{"id":"F2020L00962","name":"ASIC Corporations, Credit and Superannuation (Internal Dispute Resolution) Instrument 2020/98","slug":"asic-corporations-credit-and-superannuation-internal-dispute-resolution-instrument-2020-98","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":100370,"registerId":"commonwealth-F2020L00962-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-02","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"ASIC Corporations, Credit and Superannuation (Internal Dispute Resolution) Instrument 2020/98","content":"![Commonwealth Coat of Arms and ASIC logo](image.001.png)\n\nASIC Corporations, Credit and Superannuation (Internal Dispute Resolution) Instrument 2020/98\n\nAbout this compilation\n\nCompilation No. 1\n\nThis is a compilation of ASIC Corporations, Credit and Superannuation (Internal Dispute Resolution) Instrument 2020/98 as in force on 30 September 2021. It includes any commenced amendment affecting the legislative instrument to that date.\n\nThis compilation was prepared by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.\n\nThe notes at the end of this compilation (the endnotes) include information\n\nabout amending instruments and the amendment history of each amended provision.\n\nContents\n\n[Part 1—Preliminary](#_Toc84408765)\n\n[1 Name of legislative instrument](#_Toc84408766)\n\n[3 Authority](#_Toc84408767)\n\n[4 Definitions](#_Toc84408768)\n\n[Part 2—Standards and requirements](#_Toc84408769)\n\n[5 Standards and requirements for internal dispute resolution procedures](#_Toc84408770)\n\n[6 Requirements relating to written reasons](#_Toc84408771)\n\n[Part 3—Declaration](#_Toc84408772)\n\n[7 Obligation to comply with internal dispute resolution procedure](#_Toc84408773)\n\n[8 “Small business” definition for internal dispute resolution](#_Toc84408774)\n\n[Part 4—Transitional](#_Toc84408775)\n\n[9 Application](#_Toc84408776)\n\n[Endnotes](#_Toc84408777)\n\n[Endnote 1—Instrument history](#_Toc84408778)\n\n[Endnote 2—Amendment history](#_Toc84408779)\n\nPart 1—Preliminary\n\n1 Name of legislative instrument\n\nThis is the ASIC Corporations, Credit and Superannuation (Internal Dispute Resolution) Instrument 2020/98.\n\n3 Authority\n\nThis instrument is made under:\n\n(a) in relation to Part 2 of this instrument:\n\n(i) subsection 11(4) of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001 for the purposes of subparagraphs 912A(2)(a)(i) and 1017G(2)(a)(i) of the Corporations Act 2001; and\n\n(ii) subsection 12A(6) of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001 for the purposes of:\n\n(A) paragraph 47(1)(b) of the Retirement Savings Accounts Act 1997;\n\n(B) paragraph 101(1)(b) of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993;\n\n(C) subparagraph 47(1)(h)(i) of the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009;\n\n(D) subparagraph 47(1)(e)(i) of the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009 as notionally inserted by regulation 25E and Schedule 2 to the National Consumer Credit Protection Regulations 2010;\n\n(iii) subsection 47(2A) of the Retirement Savings Accounts Act 1997 and subsection 101(1B) of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993;\n\n(b) in relation to Part 3 of this instrument—subsections 926A(2) and 1020F(1) of the Corporations Act 2001 and subsection 109(3) of the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009.\n\n4 Definitions\n\nIn this instrument:\n\napproved deposit fund has the same meaning as in the SIS Act.\n\ncomplaint has the meaning given by paragraphs 27 – 32 of Regulatory Guide 271.\n\nCorporations Act means the Corporations Act 2001.\n\nCredit Act means the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009.\n\ncredit licensee means a person who holds an Australian credit licence.\n\nfinancial firm means:\n\n(a) a financial services licensee;\n\n(b) a person to whom section 1017G of the Corporations Act applies;\n\n(c) a credit licensee;\n\n(d) an unlicensed carried over instrument lender;\n\n(e) a trustee of a regulated superannuation fund or of an approved deposit fund;\n\n(f) an RSA provider.\n\nfinancial services licensee means a person who holds an Australian financial services licence.\n\nregulated superannuation fund has the same meaning as in the SIS Act.\n\nRSA provider has the same meaning as in the RSA Act.\n\nRegulatory Guide 271 means ASIC Regulatory Guide 271 Internal Dispute Resolution as published on 2 September 2021.\n\nRSA Act means the Retirement Savings Account Act 1997.\n\nSIS Act means Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993.\n\nunlicensed carried over instrument lender has the meaning given by subsection 5(1) of the Credit Act as notionally inserted by regulation 25E and Schedule 2 to the National Consumer Credit Protection Regulations 2010.\n\n  \n\nPart 2—Standards and requirements\n\n5 Standards and requirements for internal dispute resolution procedures\n\n(1) ASIC makes and approves the standards and requirements mentioned in the following paragraphs and tables of Regulatory Guide 271:\n\n(a) in “Definition of complaint”:\n\n(i) paragraphs 27 – 29 (including the note);\n\n(ii) paragraph 32 (including the notes);\n\n(b) in “Definition of complainant”:\n\n(i) paragraph 39 (including the note);\n\n(ii) paragraphs 41 and 42;\n\n(c) in “Outsourcing IDR processes”:\n\n(i) paragraph 48;\n\n(d) in “What an IDR response must contain”:\n\n(i) paragraphs 53 (including the notes) and 54;\n\n(e) in “Maximum timeframes for an IDR response”:\n\n(i) paragraphs 56 – 60 and Table 2;\n\n(ii) paragraphs 64 – 66 (including the notes) and paragraph 69;\n\n(iii) paragraph 71;\n\n(iv) paragraph 75;\n\n(v) paragraphs 76 – 78;\n\n(vi) paragraphs 79;\n\n(vii) paragraphs 81 – 85 (including the notes);\n\n(viii) paragraphs 86, 89, 92 and 93;\n\n(f) in “The role of customer advocates”:\n\n(i) paragraphs 109 and 110 (including Note 1);\n\n(g) in “Links between the IDR process and AFCA”:\n\n(i) 111 and 112;\n\n(h) in “How to manage systemic issues”:\n\n(i) paragraphs 118 – 120 (including the note);\n\n(j) in “Enabling complaints”:\n\n(i) paragraph 134;\n\n(ii) paragraph 141;\n\n(k) in “Resourcing”:\n\n(i) paragraphs 142 and 143;\n\n(ii) paragraphs 146 and 147;\n\n(l) in “Responsiveness”:\n\n(i) paragraphs 163 and 165;\n\n(m) in “Policy and procedures”:\n\n(i) paragraph 172;\n\n(n) in “Data collection, analysis and internal reporting”:\n\n(i) paragraph 179 and 183.\n\n(2) A word or expression that is defined in Regulatory Guide 271 has the same meaning for the purposes of the paragraphs and tables of Regulatory Guide 271 mentioned in subsection (1).\n\n6 Requirements relating to written reasons\n\n(1) ASIC specifies the requirements mentioned in subsection (2) in relation to written reasons:\n\n(a) for the purposes of paragraph 47(1)(d) of the RSA Act—for any decision of the RSA provider (or failure by the RSA provider to make a decision) relating to a complaint; and\n\n(b) for the purposes of paragraph 101(1)(d) of the SIS Act—for any decision of a trustee of a regulated superannuation fund other than a self managed superannuation fund or of an approved deposit fund (or failure by the trustee to make a decision) relating to a complaint.\n\n(2) ASIC specifies the requirements mentioned in the following paragraphs of Regulatory Guide 271:\n\n(a) in “What an IDR response must contain”:\n\n(i) paragraphs 53 (including the notes) and 54;\n\n(b) in “Maximum timeframes for an IDR response”:\n\n(i) paragraphs 56 – 60 and Table 2;\n\n(ii) paragraphs 64 – 66 (including the notes) and paragraph 69;\n\n(iii) paragraph 75;\n\n(iv) paragraph 79;\n\n(v) paragraphs 81 – 85 (including the notes).\n\n(3) A word or expression that is defined in Regulatory Guide 271 has the same meaning for the purposes of the paragraphs of Regulatory Guide 271 mentioned in subsection (2).\n\n  \n\nPart 3—Declaration\n\n7 Obligation to comply with internal dispute resolution procedure\n\nFinancial services licensees\n\n(1) Part 7.6 (other than Division 4 and 8) of the Corporations Act applies in relation to financial services licensees as if paragraph 912A(1)(g) were modified or varied by, after subparagraph (i), inserting:\n\n“(ia) in relation to an internal dispute resolution procedure for the purposes of paragraph (2)(a)—comply with the internal dispute resolution procedure; and”.\n\nProduct issuers and regulated persons\n\n(2) Part 7.9 of the Corporations Act applies in relation to issuers and regulated persons covered by section 1017G as if subsection 1017G(1) were modified or varied by, after paragraph (c), inserting:\n\n“(ca) in relation to an internal dispute resolution procedure for the purposes of paragraph (2)(a)—comply with the internal dispute resolution procedure; and”.\n\nCredit licensees\n\n(3) The provisions to which Part 2-6 of the Credit Act applies apply in relation to credit licensees as if subsection 47(1) were modified or varied by omitting paragraph (h) and substituting:\n\n“(h) both:\n\n(i) have an internal dispute resolution procedure that:\n\n(A) complies with standards and requirements made or approved by ASIC in accordance with the regulations; and\n\n(B) covers disputes in relation to the credit activities engaged in by the licensee or its representatives; and\n\n(ii) comply with the internal dispute resolution procedure; and”.\n\nUnlicensed carried over instrument lenders\n\n(4) The provisions to which Part 2-6 of the Credit Act applies apply in relation to unlicensed carried over instrument lenders as if subsection 47(1) as notionally substituted by regulation 25E and Schedule 2 to the National Consumer Credit Protection Regulations 2010 were modified or varied by omitting paragraph (e) and substituting:\n\n“(e) both:\n\n(i) have an internal dispute resolution procedure that:\n\n(A) complies with standards and requirements made or approved by ASIC in accordance with section 48; and\n\n(B) covers disputes in relation to the credit activities the lender engages in in relation to the carried over instrument; and\n\n(ii) comply with the internal dispute resolution procedure; and”.\n\n8 “Small business” definition for internal dispute resolution\n\nPart 7.6 (other than Division 4 and 8) of the Corporations Act applies in relation to financial services licensees, and Part 7.9 of the Corporations Act, applies in relation to issuers and regulated persons covered by section 1017G, as if the definition of small business in subsection 761G(12) were omitted and substituted with:\n\n“small business means:\n\n(a) in relation to an obligation in this Chapter to have an internal dispute resolution procedure—a business (including a primary production business within the meaning of section 995.1(1) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997) that has less than 100 employees at the time of the act or omission that gives rise to the complaint, but not including a body corporate that, at that time, is a member of a group of related bodies corporate and that group has 100 employees or more;\n\n(b) otherwise—a business employing less than:\n\n(i) if the business is or includes the manufacture of goods—100 people:\n\n(ii) otherwise—20 people.”.\n\n  \n\nPart 4—Transitional\n\n9 Application\n\nThis instrument applies in relation to a complaint received on or after 5 October 2021 by a financial firm.\n\n  \n\nEndnotes\n\nEndnote 1—Instrument history\n\n| Instrument number | Date of FRL registration    | Date of commencement                             | Application, saving or transitional provisions |\n| ----------------- | --------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------ | ---------------------------------------------- |\n| 2020/98           | 30/7/2020 (see F2020L00962) | Sections 1‒5, 7‒9: 30/7/2020Section 6: 5/10/2021 |                                                |\n| 2021/753          | 29/9/2021 (see F2021L01343) | 30/9/2021                                        | -                                              |\n\nEndnote 2—Amendment history\n\n> Note: ad. = added or inserted am. = amended LA = Legislation Act 2003 rep. = repealed rs. = repealed and substituted\n\n| Provision affected | How affected |\n| ------------------ | ------------ |\n| Section 2          | rep. s48D LA |\n| Section 4          | am. 2021/753 |\n| Section 5          | am. 2021/753 |","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":7,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"This instrument broadened and hardened the original, guidance‑based approach by (a) incorporating selected paragraphs of ASIC Regulatory Guide 271 as enforceable standards (s 5) rather than mere guidance, and (b) changing the statutory definition of \"small business\" for the IDR obligation so that a business with fewer than 100 employees is treated as a \"small business\" for IDR purposes (s 8). Those changes increase the number of firms captured by mandatory IDR standards and convert previously non‑binding guidance into binding requirements, thus expanding the practical scope and compliance reach of the original IDR framework. The instrument also explicitly imposes written‑reasons requirements for trustees and RSA providers (s 6), adding substantive procedural obligations where before the regime relied more on guidance."},"complexity_factors":["Multiple cross‑references to primary legislation: Corporations Act, Credit Act, SIS Act, RSA Act (see s 3 and s 7)","Imports many discrete paragraphs and a table from RG 271 as binding standards (s 5(1) lists ~20 distinct paragraph groups, including Table 2)","Defines and re‑uses terms from RG 271 by reference (s 5(2), s 6(3)), creating dependence on an external instrument for interpretation","Several targeted textual modifications to existing statutory provisions (s 7 modifies multiple subsections across Acts), requiring interpretive substitution","Special definition replacement for 'small business' that varies by context (s 8), introducing a context‑sensitive exception","Separate treatment of written reasons requirements tied to different Acts (s 6), with a delayed commencement for section 6 in the instrument history","Transitional/application timing (s 9 and endnotes) with different commencement dates for parts of the instrument"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this instrument does (mechanics)\n\n- Makes a set of ASIC guidance paragraphs in Regulatory Guide 271 (RG 271) legally binding standards and requirements for internal dispute resolution (IDR) for a range of financial firms (see section 5).  Specifically, ASIC adopts portions of RG 271 on items such as the definition of \"complaint\", who counts as a complainant, outsourcing IDR processes, what an IDR response must contain, maximum timeframes for responses (including Table 2 in RG 271), customer advocates, links to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA), managing systemic issues, resourcing, responsiveness, record-keeping and internal reporting (s 5(1)).\n\n- Prescribes what must be in written reasons for decisions about complaints made by RSA providers and trustees of regulated superannuation funds (s 6(1)–(2)), by making selected RG 271 paragraphs mandatory.\n\n- Changes the legislation that requires financial firms to have and comply with an IDR procedure so that compliance with the ASIC-approved standards is mandatory. It does this by modifying application of parts of the Corporations Act and the Credit Act so that affected firms must have an IDR procedure that complies with ASIC standards and must comply with it (s 7(1)–(4)).\n\n- Replaces the statutory definition of \"small business\" for the purpose of the obligation to have an IDR procedure: for IDR obligations, a business with fewer than 100 employees counts as a \"small business\" (with an exception for related body corporate groups) (s 8).\n\n- Applies to complaints received on or after 5 October 2021 (s 9).\n\nWho it affects\n\n- Financial services licensees (AFSL holders) and other persons subject to Chapters 7.6 and 7.9 of the Corporations Act (s 7(1)–(2)).\n- Credit licensees and certain unlicensed \"carried over instrument\" lenders (s 7(3)–(4)).\n- Trustees of regulated superannuation funds and approved deposit funds, RSA providers and other persons covered by the SIS Act/RSA Act (see definitions in s 4 and the instruments of authority in s 3).\n\nWhy it matters (stated purpose, then practical implications)\n\n- Purpose as stated: to make specific, consistent standards for how financial firms handle complaints so that IDR is timely, clear, and linked to external dispute resolution (AFCA) (see s 5 and s 6).  The instrument publicly adopts selected RG 271 materials as enforceable requirements.\n\n- Practical implications and how this changes behaviour:\n  - Firms must design, maintain and operate IDR procedures that match the ASIC-prescribed content and timeframes (s 5; s 7).  That requires documented policies, staff training, record-keeping and meeting maximum response times in RG 271 (s 5(1)(e)).\n  - Firms must give written reasons for complaint decisions in the form and timeframes required (s 6(1)–(2)).  Written reasons increase the formality and the documentation associated with complaint handling.\n  - Some firms may need new or expanded resources (staff, IT systems, reporting functions) to collect data, analyse complaints and manage systemic issues (s 5(1)(k),(n)).\n  - The instrument clarifies that outsourcing parts of IDR is permitted but subject to the standards in RG 271 (s 5(1)(c)).  Outsourcing shifts where operational burden sits but does not remove the obligation on the firm to comply.\n  - The IDR rules are linked to AFCA (s 5(1)(g)), so proper internal handling is a pre-condition to escalation to external dispute resolution.\n\nCosts, incentives and trade-offs (concrete mechanisms)\n\n- Who pays: the regulated firms pay compliance costs — drafting procedures, training, staffing customer advocates, recording and reporting complaints, and possibly legal review of written reasons (s 5, s 6).  Those costs are likely more burdensome for smaller firms, although the instrument sets a higher employee threshold (100 employees) for some \"small business\" IDR purposes (s 8).\n\n- Incentives: firms have an incentive to resolve complaints internally and within the prescribed timeframes to avoid AFCA escalation and regulatory attention. Enhanced record‑keeping and written reasons also create a paper trail that can be used in external dispute resolution or enforcement.\n\n- Trade-offs and opportunity costs: resources devoted to meeting IDR standards are not available for other business activities; smaller firms in particular may face proportionally higher compliance overheads. Outsourcing may reduce direct staffing costs but increases reliance on third parties and requires oversight (s 5(1)(c)).\n\n- Effects on private enterprise and competition: the instrument standardises complaint-handling obligations across a wide set of financial firms, reducing regulatory arbitrage about IDR practices. Standard compliance costs can be a fixed cost of entry or ongoing operation, which may raise barriers for very small providers (the small business threshold change in s 8 affects who is captured).\n\nImplementation risk, discretion and enforcement\n\n- ASIC converts guidance (RG 271) into enforceable rules by reference. That means the detail of RG 271 is binding for the listed paragraphs (s 5(1), s 6(2)), and definitions in RG 271 are imported (s 5(2), s 6(3)).  Any future changes to RG 271 could affect interpretation and may require firms and ASIC to coordinate updates.\n\n- The instrument relies on statutory modifications (it operates \"as if\" certain paragraphs/subsections were varied) to impose the duty to comply (s 7). Enforcement remains a matter of the underlying Acts and ASIC’s powers; the instrument itself sets standards and makes compliance mandatory.\n\n- Risk areas: firms must ensure outsourcing arrangements preserve compliance; written reasons increase potential legal exposure if not carefully drafted; collecting and reporting systemic issues creates obligations for internal remediation or supervisor attention (s 5(1)(h),(n)).\n\nConcentrated vs diffuse effects\n\n- Concentrated benefits: consumers and complainants receive clearer timelines, written reasons, and better-defined escalation paths.\n\n- Diffuse costs: the compliance burden falls across many firms; smaller firms may bear relatively larger administrative cost per complaint.\n\nKey sections to look at quickly: s 5 (what parts of RG 271 are made mandatory), s 6 (written reasons requirements), s 7 (modifications to legislative obligations to require compliance), s 8 (small business definition for IDR), and s 9 (transitional date).\n\nOverall, the instrument takes elements of ASIC guidance and makes them enforceable standards for a wide range of financial firms, tightening the formal requirements for internal complaints handling, written reasons and reporting, and changing the small‑business threshold for IDR obligations (see s 5–9)."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":7,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The instrument appears consistent with its original purpose of establishing internal dispute resolution standards for financial firms. While it spans multiple financial sectors (corporations, credit, superannuation), this breadth appears to be the intended scope rather than scope creep, given the instrument's title and the cross-cutting nature of complaint handling across these sectors."},"complexity_factors":["Extensive cross-referencing to external documents: The instrument incorporates by reference specific paragraphs and tables from ASIC Regulatory Guide 271 (published 2 September 2021), creating a dual-document reading requirement","Multiple enabling Acts: The instrument operates under six different legislative authorities across three Acts (Corporations Act 2001, National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009, Retirement Savings Accounts Act 1997, and Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993)","Notional amendments: Uses complex 'as if' modification language to amend primary legislation (e.g., 'as if paragraph 912A(1)(g) were modified or varied by...')","Nested definitions: Terms defined in Regulatory Guide 271 are imported into the instrument (section 4 and subsections 5(2), 6(3))","Sector-specific variations: Different rules apply across five distinct categories of financial firms (financial services licensees, credit licensees, super trustees, RSA providers, and unlicensed carried over instrument lenders)","Transitional complexity: Different commencement dates for different sections (sections 1-5, 7-9 commenced 30/7/2020; section 6 commenced 5/10/2021)","Conditional logic in small business definition: The definition varies depending on whether the obligation relates to internal dispute resolution procedures versus other obligations"],"plain_english_summary":"This instrument requires Australian financial firms—licensees for financial services and credit, superannuation trustees (not SMSFs), RSA providers, and certain transitional lenders—to maintain ASIC‑approved internal dispute resolution systems for complaints received on/after 5 Oct 2021.  \n\nIt mandates prompt written responses within set timeframes (e.g. 30 days generally; longer for some superannuation matters), expands \"small business\" to <100 employees, and legally embeds parts of ASIC’s RG271 to make those complaint-handling standards binding."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/asic-corporations-credit-and-superannuation-internal-dispute-resolution-instrument-2020-98","history":"/api/acts/asic-corporations-credit-and-superannuation-internal-dispute-resolution-instrument-2020-98/history","analysis":"/api/acts/asic-corporations-credit-and-superannuation-internal-dispute-resolution-instrument-2020-98/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/asic-corporations-credit-and-superannuation-internal-dispute-resolution-instrument-2020-98/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/asic-corporations-credit-and-superannuation-internal-dispute-resolution-instrument-2020-98/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/asic-corporations-credit-and-superannuation-internal-dispute-resolution-instrument-2020-98/documents"}}