AUSTRALIA Law and Practice Contributed by: Scott Colvin, Warren Scott and Lachlan Speirs, Archer Scott Lawyers
Monetary thresholds are indexed annually on January 1st. For 2026, the principal thresholds are as follows. • Business acquisitions: a threshold of AUD347 mil - lion applies to investors from non-agreement coun - tries. For private investors from certain free trade agreement partners (such as the United States, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Japan), a higher threshold of AUD1.498 billion applies to entities not carrying on a sensitive business, while the AUD347 million threshold continues to apply where the target carries on a sensitive business. • Agribusiness: AUD75 million. Agricultural land: a cumulative AUD15 million. • Media businesses and residential land: notifiable at any value. • National security businesses and national security land: notifiable at any value. Foreign government investors are screened at a nil threshold for all direct interests. Approval must be obtained before the action is com - pleted, so the regime is suspensory in effect. The Treasurer assesses each proposal against the national interest and, where relevant, national security; neither term is exhaustively defined, and the factors consid - ered include security, competition, tax, the impact on the economy and the community, and the character of the investor. Where a transaction is also notifiable under the merger control regime, foreign investment approval does not substitute for Australian Competi - tion and Consumer Commission (ACCC) approval or a waiver, and the two assessments should be managed as parallel workstreams. 2.2 Procedure to Obtain Approval and Sanctions for Non-Compliance Applications are lodged electronically through the Foreign Investment Portal, which the government launched in 2025, and a fee is payable on lodgement. Fees generally range from AUD1,125 to AUD1,205,200 for non-residential actions, depending on the acquisi - tion type and value. The statutory decision period is 30 days, with a further short period to notify the appli - cant; it can be extended by an interim order of up to 90 days, and applicants are frequently asked to agree to a voluntary extension. Foreign investors should build the Foreign Investment Review Board timeta -
ble into conditions precedent and long-stop dates in their transaction documents, particularly where ACCC approval is also required. The outcome is either a no objection notification, which may be unconditional or subject to conditions, or, in rare cases, a prohibition. Investing without a required approval, or breaching conditions, exposes the investor to civil and criminal penalties, which for individuals can reach into the millions of dollars and are substantially higher for corporations; investors could also be exposed to divestiture orders, infringe - ment notices and value-based penalties. Foreign per - sons also have ongoing obligations to notify holdings to the Register of Foreign Ownership of Australian Assets. 2.3 Commitments Required From Foreign Investors The Treasurer routinely attaches conditions to a no objection notification, calibrated to the national inter - est and national security risk presented by the particu - lar investment. Standard tax conditions are common, requiring the investor to comply with Australian tax law, co-operate with the Australian Taxation Office and refrain from arrangements that shift profits offshore. Other conditions may address: • data security and access for sensitive or critical assets; • development timeframes for vacant land; • ongoing reporting and audit requirements; and • in some cases, undertakings as to Australian direc - tors, local management or continuity of operations. Conditions are negotiated in practice, and early engagement with the Treasury helps investors under - stand and shape the likely conditions before a binding decision is made. 2.4 Right to Appeal A decision of the Treasurer on the national interest or national security is an exercise of executive discretion, and there is no merits review of such a decision by a tribunal. An affected investor may seek judicial review of the legality of the decision, under the Administrative Decisions (Judicial Review) Act 1977 (Cth) or under
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