Farm Household Support Amendment Act 2017

Administered by Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

Legislation au C2017A00023 In force Act

Legislation content

 

 

 

 

 

 

Farm Household Support Amendment Act 2017

 

No. 23, 2017

 

 

 

 

 

An Act to amend the Farm Household Support Act 2014, and for related purposes

 

 

Contents

1 Short title

2 Commencement

3 Schedules

Schedule 1—Removal of waiting periods

Farm Household Support Act 2014

Schedule 2—Farm assets

Farm Household Support Act 2014

 

 

 

 

Farm Household Support Amendment Act 2017

No. 23, 2017

 

 

 

An Act to amend the Farm Household Support Act 2014, and for related purposes

[Assented to 4 April 2017]

The Parliament of Australia enacts:

1  Short title

  This Act is the Farm Household Support Amendment Act 2017.

2  Commencement

 (1) Each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms.

 

Commencement information

Column 1

Column 2

Column 3

Provisions

Commencement

Date/Details

1.  Sections 1 to 3 and anything in this Act not elsewhere covered by this table

The day this Act receives the Royal Assent.

4 April 2017

2.  Schedules 1 and 2

The later of:

(a) the day after this Act receives the Royal Assent; and

(b) 1 April 2017.

5 April 2017

(paragraph (a) applies)

Note: This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally enacted. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of this Act.

 (2) Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this Act. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of this Act.

3  Schedules

  Legislation that is specified in a Schedule to this Act is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule concerned, and any other item in a Schedule to this Act has effect according to its terms.

Schedule 1—Removal of waiting periods

 

Farm Household Support Act 2014

1  Subsection 5(1)

Repeal the following definitions:

 (a) definition of liquid assets test waiting period;

 (b) definition of ordinary waiting period;

 (c) definition of waiting period.

2  Subdivision C of Division 6 of Part 2 (heading)

Repeal the heading, substitute:

Subdivision C—Situations where allowance not payable (waiting period)

3  Section 39

Repeal the section, substitute:

39  Waiting period

  Farm household allowance is not payable to a person while the person is subject to a newly arrived resident’s waiting period (see sections 42 and 43).

4  Sections 40 and 41

Repeal the sections.

5  Subsection 42(1) (note)

Repeal the note.

6  Sections 44 to 47

Repeal the sections.

7  Subsection 93(1) (table items 14, 23, 24 and 25)

Repeal the items.

8  Application provision

The amendments made by this Schedule apply in relation to the following:

 (a) a claim for farm household allowance that is made on or after the commencement of this item;

 (b) a claim for farm household allowance that was made before the commencement of this item, where no decision on the claim had been made before that commencement.

Schedule 2—Farm assets

 

Farm Household Support Act 2014

1  Subsection 5(1) (definition of farm asset)

Omit “subsection 35(1)”, substitute “subsections 35(1) and (2)”.

2  Subsection 5(1)

Insert:

water access entitlement has the meaning given by section 35A.

water allocation has the meaning given by section 35A.

water entitlement right has the meaning given by section 35A.

water resource has the meaning given by section 35A.

3  Subsections 35(1) and (2)

Repeal the subsections, substitute:

 (1) A farm asset is any asset that is used or held wholly or mainly for the purposes of a farm enterprise, but does not include the following:

 (a) cash;

 (b) money on deposit with an authorised deposit‑taking institution within the meaning of the Banking Act 1959;

 (c) a farm management deposit within the meaning of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997;

 (d) an asset of a kind prescribed by the Minister’s rules.

 (2) Without limiting subsection (1), each of the following is a farm asset:

 (a) a right or interest in land used wholly or mainly for the purposes of a farm enterprise;

 (b) a right or interest in livestock, crop, plant or equipment that:

 (i) is produce of a farm enterprise; or

 (ii) is used wholly or mainly for the purposes of a farm enterprise;

  other than any livestock, crop, plant or equipment leased out by the farm enterprise;

 (c) a water entitlement right that is used or held wholly or mainly for the purposes of a farm enterprise;

 (d) so much of a loan to which subsection (2A) applies as:

 (i) is used to purchase a thing covered by subsection (1) or paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of this subsection; and

 (ii) remains unpaid.

 (2A) This subsection applies to a loan at a particular time if:

 (a) it was made by a beneficiary of a trust to the trustee of the trust, or by a shareholder of a company to the company; and

 (b) the outstanding amount of the principal of the loan exceeds, at that time, the total value of all the financial investments:

 (i) the trustee has in the capacity of trustee; or

 (ii) the company has.

4  After section 35

Insert:

35A  Meaning of water entitlement right

 (1) A water entitlement right is:

 (a) any right conferred by or under a law of a State or Territory to do either or both of the following:

 (i) to hold water from a water resource;

 (ii) to take water from a water resource; or

 (b) an irrigation right (within the meaning of the Water Act 2007); or

 (c) a water delivery right (within the meaning of the Water Act 2007); or

 (d) a right of a kind prescribed by the Minister’s rules; or

 (e) a contractual right that a person holds to all or part of another person’s right covered by paragraph (a), (b), (c) or (d).

 (2) Without limiting paragraph (1)(a), that paragraph includes the following:

 (a) stock and domestic rights;

 (b) riparian rights;

 (c) a water access entitlement;

 (d) a water allocation.

 (3) A water access entitlement is a perpetual or ongoing entitlement, by or under a law of a State or Territory, to exclusive access to a share of the water resources of an area in the State or Territory.

 (4) A water allocation is the specific volume of water allocated to a water access entitlement in a given period.

 (5) A water resource is:

 (a) surface water or ground water; or

 (b) a watercourse, lake, wetland or aquifer (whether or not it currently has water in it).

An expression used in paragraph (a) or (b) that is also used in the Water Act 2007 has the same meaning as in that Act.

5  Application provision

The amendments made by this Schedule apply in relation to a claim for farm household allowance that is made on or after the commencement of this item.

 

 

 

 

[Minister’s second reading speech made in—

House of Representatives on 9 February 2017

Senate on 20 March 2017]

 

(5/17)

 

Overview

The Farm Household Support Amendment Act 2017, assented to on 4 April 2017 by the Parliament of Australia, serves to amend the Farm Household Support Act 2014. This legislation was enacted to address specific issues within the farm household support framework, particularly concerning waiting periods and the definition of farm assets. The overarching policy objective of the amendment is to streamline the process for farm households seeking support by eliminating unnecessary waiting periods and providing a clearer definition of what constitutes a farm asset. These changes aim to enhance the accessibility and efficiency of the support system for farm households in Australia.

Scope and Application

The Farm Household Support Amendment Act 2017 is an Act of the Parliament of Australia designed to amend the Farm Household Support Act 2014. This Act applies to individuals who are farm household allowance claimants, as well as to the entities and transactions associated with the claims. It operates within the national jurisdiction of Australia, aiming to modify the existing legislative framework for farm household support. The Act removes waiting periods for the farm household allowance and expands the definition of farm assets to include certain water entitlements. The amendments apply to claims made on or after the Act's commencement date of 4 April 2017. The Act does not contain specific exclusions, but it does specify that the amendments apply to claims made after the specified commencement date. The Act's scope may be further defined or restricted by subordinate instruments, although no such instruments are mentioned in the text.

Key Provisions

The Farm Household Support Amendment Act 2017 amends the Farm Household Support Act 2014 by removing waiting periods for certain allowances and altering the definition of farm assets. The Act introduces these changes through Schedules 1 and 2. Section 1 of the Act removes the waiting periods for farm household allowance payments, as detailed in Schedule 1. This includes repealing definitions related to waiting periods, and replacing sections that discuss these periods with new provisions that outline situations where allowances are not payable (sections 39 and 40). Additionally, it removes references to waiting periods in various other sections and subsections, such as section 42 and subsection 93(1). These amendments apply to claims made on or after the commencement of the Act, as well as to claims made before the commencement date if no decision had been made at that time. The obligations imposed by the Farm Household Support Amendment Act 2017 primarily involve the removal of specific waiting periods for farm household allowance claims. Under the original Farm Household Support Act 2014, certain applicants had to wait before they could receive their allowances, but this Act eliminates those waiting periods. The Act also updates the definition of farm assets in Schedule 2 to include more specific categories and exclude certain types of assets, such as cash and money on deposit. The new definition now encompasses assets used or held for farm enterprises, including rights or interests in land, livestock, crops, plants, equipment, and water entitlement rights. These changes apply to claims made on or after the commencement of the Act. For breaches of the provisions within the Farm Household Support Amendment Act 2017, the consequences primarily involve civil penalties. While the Act itself does not explicitly state penalties for non-compliance, breaches of related provisions under the Farm Household Support Act 2014 may incur penalties. These penalties could include fines and other civil consequences as outlined in the original Act. It is important for parties to adhere to the updated definitions and requirements to avoid potential penalties or legal repercussions associated with non-compliance.

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Area of Law
Social Welfare Law
Instrument
Act
Concepts
Commencement Provisions
Repeal & Amendment
Reporting & Disclosure Obligations

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Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 August 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au.