EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

 

Select Legislative Instrument 2010 No. 56

 

Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Financial Services, Superannuation and Corporate Law

 

Corporations (Fees) Act 2001

Corporations (Fees) Amendment Regulations 2010 (No. 1)

 

Section 8 of the Corporations (Fees) Act 2001 (the Fees Act) provides that the Governor‑General may make regulations for the purposes of sections 5, 5A and 6 of the Fees Act, which deal with the imposition of fees for things done under the Act.

The Corporations Act 2001 (the Act) was recently amended by the Corporations Legislation Amendment (Financial Services Modernisation) Act 2009 (Modernisation Act) in relation to a number of financial services matters, including the regulation of debentures.

 

Complementary regulations have been made to prescribe the way in which the register is established or maintained, including the details that must be entered into the register by ASIC. Those regulations are known as the Corporations Amendment Regulations 2010 (No. 1).

 

In providing the register, ASIC is providing the public with access to the quarterly report which the borrower must provide to the trustee and ASIC under section 283BF of the Act. In providing this access, these regulations amend the Corporations (Fees) Regulations 2001 to set out that ‘no fee’ will be prescribed for this purpose.

 

Details of the Regulations are set out in Attachment A.

 

Public consultation on an exposure draft of the then Corporations Legislation Amendment (Financial Services Modernisation) Bill 2009 occurred in May/June 2009. The details to be included in the regulations were also considered as part of that process. Further consultation on the draft regulations was undertaken from 21 August 2009 for a four‑week period. No comments were received.

 

The Regulations are a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.

 

The Regulations commence on the day after they are registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.

 

ATTACHMENT A

 

Details of the Corporations (Fees) Amendment Regulations 2010 (No. 1)

 

Regulation 1 – Name of Regulations

 

This regulation provides that the name of the Regulations is the Corporations (Fees) Amendment Regulations 2010 (No. 1).

 

Regulation 2 – Commencement

 

This regulation provides that the Regulations commence on the day after they are registered.

 

Regulation 3 – Amendment of Corporations (Fees) Regulations 2001

 

This regulation provides that the Corporations (Fees) Regulations 2001 are amended as set out in Schedule 1.

 

Schedule 1 – Amendment

 

Item [1] – Schedule 1, after item 30

 

Item 1 inserts a new item 30AB in Schedule 1 – Fees, to provide that no fee applies for inspecting, or an enquiry involving the inspection of, a quarterly report lodged with ASIC which must be provided to the trustee by the borrower as required under the Act. This access is available to persons via the register relating to trustees for debenture holders.