Consultation hub

The Australian Government is working with state and territory governments to tackle the issue of forced marriage through a coordinated national approach.

On 5 July 2024, the Standing Council of Attorneys-General (SCAG) agreed to conduct public consultation to inform the development of enhanced civil protections and remedies for people in or at risk of forced marriage.

Led by the Australian Government in partnership with all state and territory governments, consultations commenced on 29 July 2024 and concluded on 23 September 2024.

Public consultation focused on 3 key areas:

• building a shared understanding of forced marriage as a form of family and domestic violence
• enhancing education and awareness raising
• strengthening forced marriage civil protections and remedies.

We travelled to every state and territory and held targeted consultation meetings with over 240 people from more than 130 organisations. We also received 44 written responses.

We heard from a range of stakeholders including:

• people with lived experience of forced marriage
• people from culturally and linguistically diverse communities
• people with disability
• family and domestic violence service providers
• legal organisations
• academics
• faith leaders
• courts
• government
• civil society organisations.

We will continue to consider all submissions and responses received as part of the consultation. We would like to acknowledge the contribution of participants to the consultation processes.

For more information on the outcomes, read the Forced marriage public consultation overview.

Feedback received during the public consultation will inform future work to strengthen Australia’s response to forced marriage.

On 23 July 2024, we published a draft of the Administrative Review Tribunal Rules 2024 (Rules) on our website.

The Rules prescribe the following matters, to support the operation of the Administrative Review Tribunal Act 2024 (ART Act):

• timeframes for making applications to the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART)
• matters which decision-makers must have regard to when giving notices of decision
• witness fees and allowances
• election and participation notices
• application fees
• authorisations for registrars and members to perform and exercise certain functions and powers of the Tribunal.

The Rules largely deal with matters previously addressed in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975 (AAT Act), the Administrative Appeals Tribunal Regulation 2015 and the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (Code of Practice) Determination 2017, with updates to reflect modern drafting practices. The Rules also deal with new matters under the ART Act that were not previously included in subordinate legislation.

We sought written submissions via the website and met with interested and affected stakeholders to discuss the draft Rules.

We undertook public consultation on the draft Rules from 23 July 2024 to 5 August 2024, and received 14 written submissions from stakeholders.

In August 2024, we also facilitated 3 consultation meetings with approximately 15 key stakeholders to discuss the draft Rules. Separately, we spoke with affected Australian Government departments and agencies and the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. We received feedback from Tribunal users, members of the Tribunal, and organisations with an interest in the administrative review framework. We have published 6 of these submissions, with the authors’ consent. 

The submissions provided feedback on all areas proposed to be covered by the Rules. A summary of the submissions is set out below.

Application fees

Stakeholders supported that the Rules maintain existing application fee exemptions and concessions for matters covered by the Rules. Some stakeholders considered that fee exemptions should apply in a wider range of circumstances.

Authorisations

Stakeholders broadly supported the proposed rules authorising ART members and registrars to exercise the identified Tribunal powers. Some stakeholders expressed concern about the proposed authorisation for registrars to exercise the power under section 359A of the Migration Act, noting its importance to procedural fairness.

Election notices

Stakeholders generally supported the rules concerning election and participation notices. In relation to the factors that the Tribunal may consider when deciding whether to allow a non-participating decision-maker to participate in a proceeding, some stakeholders considered some or all of these factors should be mandatory, rather than discretionary, considerations for the Tribunal.

Notices of decision

Stakeholders welcomed the new requirement for decision-makers to take accessibility considerations into account when giving notices of decision. Some stakeholders considered it would be useful to provide additional detail about how requirements could be met. In addition, some stakeholders suggested that it should be made clearer that a notice of decision should identify not only the timeframe for making an application for review of a decision, but also, where possible, the specific deadline or an explanation of when the timeframe starts.

Timeframes to apply

Stakeholders expressed support for clarity regarding the timeframes to apply to the Tribunal, particularly where an applicant applies to Tribunal to obtain adequate statement of reasons and, due to that application, is out of time to make an application for review of the reviewable decision.

Witness fees

Stakeholders supported the maintenance of provisions concerning witness fees and allowances. However, some stakeholders suggested it could be useful to provide additional information about the circumstances in which the Tribunal may order the Commonwealth to cover another party’s witness fees and allowances.

Other issues

Stakeholders provided input on a range of further issues, including non-publication orders, and additional rules for meeting the costs associated with litigation supporters.

We updated the drafting of the ART Rules in response to stakeholder feedback. For example, we updated the draft Rules so that:

1. registrars could not be authorised to exercise the Tribunal’s power under section 359A of the Migration Act
2. a legislative note explains that a person may apply for an extension of time to make an application for review under section 19 of the ART Act if the timeframe has expired where they have applied for a statement of reasons under section 270 of the Act or an adequate statement of reasons under section 271 of the Act
3. it is clearer that decision-makers should include in notices of decision an explanation of when the timeframe for making a review application begins and ends

Feedback about practical issues or the implementation of the ART Act or ART Regulations was passed on to the ART and other Australian Government agencies, as relevant. Additional explanation was also included in the Explanatory Statement for the Rules in response to issues raised in consultation, for example in relation to accessibility of notices of decision.

The Rules were tabled in the Parliament on 8 October 2024 and came into effect on 14 October 2024, which was the day the new Tribunal commenced. Read a copy of the Rules.

We thank everyone who engaged with this consultation process.

We held a second round of consultation on reforming Australia’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF) regime between May and June 2024.

This second round of consultation built upon the first round of consultation undertaken in 2023. We considered feedback from the first round of consultation and used it to develop detailed reform proposals outlined over 6 consultation papers. 

We sought public input through written submissions and through virtual and in-person meetings with affected sectors.

We held over 40 targeted consultations with industry and government stakeholders, including roundtables with peak industry bodies, bilateral engagements with industry members and addresses at industry events. 

We received over 130 submissions from stakeholders across all affected sectors, as well as from government, academics, civil society and individuals. With consent, we have published 104 of these submissions.

Key themes

Reflecting similar feedback from the first round of consultation, there was broad support for the reforms. Submissions provided useful insights into how the AML/CTF regime could be strengthened to build Australia’s resilience against criminal exploitation and protect businesses that are at the frontline of financial crime prevention. Stakeholders noted several inefficiencies in the regime that limit the effectiveness of Australia’s response to transnational crime.

Overall, stakeholders supported the proposed reforms to simplify, clarify and modernise the existing regime to make it easier for regulated businesses to identify and mitigate illicit financing risks and to comply with their AML/CTF obligations. 

Current reporting entities welcomed proposals to expand the regime to address vulnerabilities in ‘gatekeeper’ professions, including lawyers, accountants, real estate professionals and dealers in precious stones and metals (also known as tranche two entities). There was also support for ensuring the regime keeps pace with the increasingly digital, instant nature of the global financial system, by updating digital and virtual asset services.

Most stakeholders demonstrated an understanding that the proposed reforms aim to improve Australia’s compliance with the global standards to combat money laundering and terrorism financing. Stakeholders sought additional details on the specific impacts on their businesses – this information will be set out in forthcoming consultations on amendments to the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Rules Instrument 2007 (No. 1) (AML/CTF Rules). 

Thank you to everyone who contributed valuable feedback to the consultation processes. 

Feedback from both rounds of consultation will inform government consideration of the final policy changes and legislation. Timing for any legislation is a matter for government. 

There will be ongoing opportunities to influence and work with government on the detailed impact of the reforms on businesses through upcoming consultation on the AML/CTF Rules led by AUSTRAC. AUSTRAC will also collaborate with industry on fit-for-purpose, tailored industry education and guidance, particularly for new tranche two entities.