21 November 2017
- The Department of Agriculture and Water Resources is proposing changes to the biosecurity cost recovery charges applied to broker class (19.1 and 19.2) approved arrangements.
- The changes reduce the annual charge payable by operators of broker class approved arrangements.
- Those brokers who operate an approved arrangement and participate in the Automatic Entry Processing scheme would also contribute to program costs through a throughput based charge on each entry.
Reason for the changes
Since the implementation of the current approved arrangements charge of $2,900 in December 2015, a wide range of views have been provided to the department on the cost recovery structure for these arrangements. Stakeholder concerns relate to perceived inequality across users and the appropriateness of the charge, indicating that in some cases the new annual charge has had an inequitable impact on small to medium businesses, particularly the in broker sector.
In response to this feedback, the department has undertaken a review of the approved arrangement charging framework. The outcome of the review has resulted in a proposed change to the charge points and their price. The addition of a throughput based charge to recover costs associated with Automated Entry Processing activities provides a more equitable and focused charge for operators of Automatic Entry Processing arrangements.
Who would be affected
Operators of broker class 19.1 and 19.2 biosecurity approved arrangements will see changes to the biosecurity charges they pay. All operators will pay a lower annual charge, while those that participate in the Automated Entry Processing scheme will pay a throughput charge for every entry processed. Any revision to current charging arrangements are expected to be implemented from 1 July 2018.
Proposed new charges
The proposed charges for broker class (19.1 and 19.2) approved arrangement participants has been revised.
- Participants will pay an annual charge of $500 in addition to an Automatic Entry Processing (AEP) charge of $18 per entry. The annual charge ensures brokers not participating in the AEP scheme still contribute to the cost of operating the broker class approved arrangements.
- Participants that also operate a non-broker class of approved arrangement will pay both the higher non-broker charge totalling $2,900 in addition to an Automatic Entry Processing (AEP) charge of $18 per entry.
Background
Biosecurity approved arrangements are voluntary arrangements entered into with the department. They were introduced as part of the Biosecurity Act 2015, replacing compliance agreements (CAs) and quarantine approved premises (QAPs) which were in place prior to the introduction of the Biosecurity Act 2015.
Under the Biosecurity Act 2015, a person (the biosecurity industry participant) covered by an Approved Arrangement is authorised to carry out biosecurity activities to manage biosecurity risks associated with specified goods, premises or other things. Under this arrangement, all participants currently pay an annual charge of $2,900.
Further information
All industry participants are encouraged to provide feedback on the new charging proposals during stakeholder consultation period.
The consultation period has now commenced and will conclude 5 pm AEDT Friday 5 January 2018. Feedback on the proposed changes to approved arrangement charging can be directed to Cost Recovery.