EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
STATUTORY RULES 1989 NO 82.
INSURANCE SUPERVISORY LEVIES COLLECTION REGULATIONS
ISSUED BY AUTHORITY OF THE TREASURER
The Insurance Supervisory Levies Collection Act 1989 (the Act) provides for the collection of the annual supervisory levies imposed on authorised general insurers, Lloyd’s and registered life insurers by the General Insurance Supervisory Levy Act 1989 and the Life Insurance Supervisory Levy Act 1989. The Act is aimed at recovering the ongoing costs of supervision of such bodies under the Insurance Act 1973 and the Life Insurance Act 1945 by the Insurance and Superannuation Commissioner.
These regulations prescribe a number of administrative matters which are necessary to ensure the efficient and effective collection of the levies.
Regulation 3 allows for remission from the full amount of the levy for insurers authorised under section 37 of the Insurance Act. The activities of these insurers are confined to conducting insurance business with limited classes of persons (generally only members or employees of the company or the particular trade, industry or profession) and one of the pre-conditions of their authority is that their premium income does not exceed $500,000 per annum. These insurers are exempted from certain provisions of the Act, principally involving a reduced statutory reporting requirement, and consequently there is a reduced supervisory responsibility in respect of these companies on the part of the Insurance and Superannuation Commissioner.
A brief outline of the regulations is attached.
Insurance and Superannuation Commission
CANBERRA ACT
ATTACHMENT
Details of the Regulations
Regulation 1 provides for the manner of citation of the regulations.
Regulation 2 provides that a reference to “the Act” in the regulations is a reference to the Insurance Supervisory Levies Collection Act 1989.
Regulation 3 allows for the remission of an amount of $9,000 from the annual rate of levy payable by insurance companies authorised under section 37 of the Insurance Act 1973. The effect of this regulation is to relieve these insurers from liability for the full amount of the levy and, after allowing for the amount remitted, result in their liability being determined on an annual rate of levy of $2,000.
Regulation 4 provides for the levy and other amounts payable to the Commonwealth under the Act to be made to the Receiver of Public Moneys at offices of the Commissioner located in Canberra, Sydney and Melbourne.
Regulation 5 makes provision for the refund by the Commissioner of overpayments where the amount paid by a person to the Commissioner exceeds that person’s liability under the Act.