Grain and Plant Products - Proposed new fee structure for Grain and Plant Products Export Program

​Industry Advice notice no. G2009/02

21 April 2009

Notification of the proposed new fee structure as at 1 July 2009

In early 2008 the Australian Government commissioned an independent review of quarantine and biosecurity arrangements. The result of this independent review was a report One Biosecurity: a working partnership, late 2008. The review concluded with a number of reforms and recommendations of which the Government has considered and agreed to implement. One key recommendation in the report was to remove the 40 per cent government contribution from 1 July for export certification functions. This Industry Advice Notice is to inform industry of the proposed fees from 1 July 2009.

To implement the recommendation to move to full cost recovery by industry, the program reassessed the costs and resources required to provide AQIS export certification activities.  The Program last reviewed the current fees in 2003. These fees have been maintained since the last review, however the costs of providing export certification services has increased during this period. Over the last two financial years, the program has been under recovered by $2.5 million. This financial year the program expects to under recover by $0.7 million dollars.

Over the last three years the program has been actively identifying costs savings and introducing measures to realise savings.  This has been achieved by reducing costs associated with travel, car hire, relocating resources closer to industry, greater use of contractors and reducing departmental and property overheads.

The proposed fee schedule reflects the complex phytosanitary certification environment and the level of work required to underpin Australian export certification standards. This fee review process has provided an opportunity for the program to re-examine the resources required to undertake these activities and to address under-recovering or cross subsidising.

The program has consulted extensively with members of industry through the AQIS Grains Industry Consultative Committee (AGICC). A number of fee proposals have been provided to AGICC for distribution to industry members and comment. AQIS has considered all submissions and comments received as part of this consultation process.

The proposed fee schedule recognises the range of activities undertaken by AQIS in providing export certification services. A number of existing fees have been consolidated to streamline the charging process. For example, AQIS proposes to abolish fees for travel to an inspection site and in-office charging for documents.

Attachment 1 provides a comparison between current and proposed fees.

In summary, the program will no longer charge the following fees;

• Overnight charges
• Travel charges
• Shiftwork
• Audit charges
• Approved arrangement tonnage charges
• Office inspection fees when issuing documentation
• Inspection fees for daily, weekly, four weekly and annual rates

A number of new fees will apply after 1 July 2009:

• Booking fee
• Registered establishment fee
• Approved arrangement fees
• Replacement and re-issued phytosanitary certificate fees (refer to documentation fees)

Booking Fee

A booking fee has been proposed that recognises the costs associated with scheduling bookings for clients. It is proposed that this booking fee will be charged when an exporter, agent or other party books AQIS to conduct an inspection or a number of inspections at a registered establishment or on a vessel.  If an exporter, agent or other party contacts AQIS to vary or cancel the booking(s) this will incur another booking fee of $20.

Registered Establishment Fee

There are a number of activities that AQIS undertakes to establish and support registered establishments, for example assessing an application, conducting site inspections, auditing, industry liaison, travel, quality assurance and regulatory assessment both at a regional level and the national office.  The costs associated with these activities have not been fully recovered by AQIS under the existing fee schedule. Accordingly, AQIS propose a new fee of $450 to apply to parties who wish to register an establishment and or vary or renew (annually) a registered establishment.

AQIS has allocated 12 hours to register a new establishment, and 5 hours for a renewal/variation. AQIS staff will maintain a record of the hours undertaken for each activity. AQIS will notify the entity when a process is close to the allocated hours for that activity, advising that any additional time to complete the process will incur a fee at the ¼ hourly inspection rate.

Approved Arrangement

The existing fee schedule imposes a fee for services to establish, vary or renew an approved arrangement. The proposed fees encompasses the costs associated with assessing an application, conducting site inspections, auditing, industry liaison, training, and travel at a regional level.

This proposed new fee schedule recognises the types of approved arrangements and the associated costs in establishing, varying, or renewing an approved arrangement.  It also introduces an annual renewal fee.

The proposed fees for approved arrangements are:

• $1,700.00 for sampling and inspection arrangement applications
• $1,400.00 for sampling approved arrangement applications
• $520.00 for dry box arrangement applications

AQIS has allocated the following hours for approved arrangement applications:

AQIS staff will maintain a record of the hours undertaken for a new application, variation or renewal activity. AQIS will notify the party when a process is close to the allocated hours for that application, advising that any additional time to complete the application will incur a fee at the ¼ hourly inspection rate.

Follow up audits and activities to close out a Corrective Action Request will be charged at the ¼ hourly inspection rate.

In regards to dry box inspection training, costs have been set on the basis of training being delivered to employees from a number of companies at one time.  If a company seeks individual training on site, they will incur the ¼ hourly inspection rate.

CURRENT FEES

Inspection Fee

The following existing range of fees i.e. travel charges, overnight fee, in-office inspection fees associated with inspection, documentation and certification assurance will be abolished. Instead AQIS propose a fee for inspections of $28.00 per quarter hour per inspector. This fee will apply to:

• Sampling activities (non-bulk)
• Dry box inspections
• Ship inspections  
• Verifying importing country requirements
• Additional activities associated with approved arrangements and registered establishments

These inspection fees will be charged from the nominated start time of the inspection to the end of export certification activity.

Tonnage Fee

The proposed bulk tonnage charge for consignments inspected by AQIS will be $0.22 per tonne.  The bulk tonnage charge will continue to apply to loading rates equal to and more than 400 metric tonnes per hour.

The existing practice of charging a fee for service for bulk inspections will continue when stoppages longer than 1 hour occur (e.g. no grain loaded during change of shift, breakdowns or delays in starting) and AQIS inspectors/contractors are not stood down.

The proposed fee schedule does not include a tonnage fee for consignments inspected by approved inspectors at approved arrangements.

Documentation Fees

An Australian phytosanitary certificate is an internationally recognised document that allows domestic exporters to enter international markets. Importing countries recognise that Australia has sound plant health inspection systems and that statements provided on Australian documentation will meet the importing countries rigorous biosecurity requirements.

Central to these systems and processes is the issuing of a phytosanitary certificate. Importing country requirements have become increasingly complex and require additional verification and information to support declarations and statements on the phytosanitary certificate. The process to issue a phytosanitary certificate includes:

• Verifying the importing country requirement(s)—this may include liaising with the importing country's National Plant Protection Organisation, Biosecurity Australia or AQIS national or regional offices
• Liaising with state departments of agriculture and accredited laboratories
• Liaising with the exporter or agent to clarify conditions and tests that may be required to support the certification
• Verifying that any supporting documentation provided by the exporter or agent meets the importing country requirements
• Maintaining internal systems and auditing to ensure phytosanitary statements comply with importing country requirements

The propose fees for AQIS documentation are:

• Electronically issued (EXDOC) phytosanitary certificates—$70.00 per certificate
• Manually issued phytosanitary certificates—$95.00 per certificate
• Replacement phytosanitary certificates—$190.00 per certificate
• Other Government certificates (manual and electronic)—$70.00 per certificate

The fee for an export permit (EX028), when issued together with a phytosanitary certificate is included in the applicable fee for the phytosanitary certificate. For example, a manually issued export permit will be included in the cost of a manually issued phytosanitary certificate.

A fee of $70.00 per EX028 will apply when no phytosanitary certificate is required.

Overtime

The existing overtime charging structure has been retained in the proposed fee schedule; however the proposed fees have been increased to cover the removal of the 40% contribution and wage increases.

The Grain and Plant Products Export Program will be discussing the proposed fee schedule with industry members at the next AGICC meeting scheduled for 29 April 2009.  Comments regarding the fee schedule should be forwarded either to your industry AGICC member or alternatively to AQIS.

Mike Gilbert
Program Manager
AQIS Grain and Plant Products Export Program