{"id":"tas:sr-2020-050","name":"COVID-19 Disease Emergency (Commercial Leases) Regulations 2020","slug":"covid-19-disease-emergency-commercial-leases-regulations-2020","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"tas","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"50 of 2020","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":182634,"registerId":"tas-tas:sr-2020-050-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Short title","content":"### 1 Short title\n\n> These regulations may be cited as the [COVID-19 Disease Emergency (Commercial Leases) Regulations 2020](/view/html/inforce/2026-04-12/sr-2020-050) .","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"2","sectionType":"section","heading":"Commencement","content":"### 2 Commencement\n\n> These regulations take effect on the day on which their making is notified in the *Gazette*.","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"3","sectionType":"section","heading":"Interpretation","content":"### 3 Interpretation\n\n> In these regulations –\n> \n> > ***statutory charge*** means –\n> > \n> > > > (a) land tax, within the meaning of the [Land Tax Act 2000](/view/html/inforce/2026-04-12/act-2000-074) ; and\n> > > \n> > > > (b) rates payable under the [Local Government Act 1993](/view/html/inforce/2026-04-12/act-1993-095) ; and\n> > > \n> > > > (c) any fee or charge, payable under an Act, that, if it is not paid, becomes, under an Act, a charge on land;\n> \n> > ***the Act*** means the [COVID-19 Disease Emergency (Commercial Leases) Act 2020](/view/html/inforce/2026-04-12/act-2020-013) .","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"4","sectionType":"section","heading":"Prescribed factor for purposes of section 17","content":"### 4 Prescribed factor for purposes of section 17\n\n> > (1)  For the purposes of the definition of ***rent*** in [section 17(1)](/view/html/inforce/2026-04-12/act-2020-013#GS17@Gs1@EN) of the Act, turnover is prescribed to be a factor.\n> \n> > (2)  For the purposes of [subregulation (1)](#GS4@Gs1@EN) , turnover includes gross takings, gross receipts, gross income and any similar concept.\n> \n> > (3)  For the purposes of calculating turnover, in relation to a protected lease, for the purposes of [section 17(1)](/view/html/inforce/2026-04-12/act-2020-013#GS17@Gs1@EN) of the Act, the following are not to be included:\n> > \n> > > > (a) the amount of losses incurred in the resale or disposal of merchandise reasonably and properly purchased from customers as trade-ins in the usual course of business;\n> > > \n> > > > (b) the amount of deposits and instalments that are received on account of lay-bys, hire purchase or credit sales and that are refunded to customers;\n> > > \n> > > > (c) the amount of a refund on a transaction when the proceeds of the transaction have been included as part of turnover;\n> > > \n> > > > (d) the amount of any service charge, finance charge, or interest charge, payable to any financier in connection with provision of credit to customers (other than commission on credit cards or store cards);\n> > > \n> > > > (e) the price of merchandise exchanged between shops of the lessee, if the exchange is made solely for the convenient operation of the business of the lessee and not for the purpose of concluding a sale made at or from the premises to which the lease relates;\n> > > \n> > > > (f) the price of merchandise returns to shippers, wholesalers or manufacturers;\n> > > \n> > > > (g) the proceeds of sales, of the fixtures and fittings of the lessee in respect of the premises to which the protected lease relates, after their use in the conduct of business at or from those premises;\n> > > \n> > > > (h) the amount of discounts allowed to customers in the normal course of business;\n> > > \n> > > > (i) the amount of uncollected credit accounts that are written off;\n> > > \n> > > > (j) the amount paid or payable as GST by the lessee in respect of the premises to which the protected lease relates;\n> > > \n> > > > (k) the amount of delivery charges;\n> > > \n> > > > (l) the amount received from the sale of lottery tickets or similar tickets (other than commission on sales of lottery tickets or similar tickets);\n> > > \n> > > > (m) the amount of revenue from online transactions, other than online transactions –\n> > > > \n> > > > > > (i) where the goods or services concerned are delivered or provided from or at the premises to which the protected lease relates (or a shopping centre of which the premises to which the protected lease relates forms part); or\n> > > > > \n> > > > > > (ii) where the transaction takes place while the purchaser is at the premises to which the protected lease relates, whether or not the goods or services concerned are delivered or provided from or at the premises.","sortOrder":3},{"sectionNumber":"5","sectionType":"section","heading":"Frequency of rent renegotiation","content":"### 5 Frequency of rent renegotiation\n\n> [Section 18](/view/html/inforce/2026-04-12/act-2020-013#GS18@EN) of the Act does not apply in relation to a party to a protected lease at a time if the time occurs within the 3-month period after the day on which renegotiation of the rent payable under the lease most recently concluded, unless the parties to the protected lease have agreed in writing that this regulation does not apply in relation to a period in which the time occurs.","sortOrder":4},{"sectionNumber":"6","sectionType":"section","heading":"Reduction of statutory charge","content":"### 6 Reduction of statutory charge\n\n> > (1)  If –\n> > \n> > > > (a) a protected lessee is required by a provision of a protected lease to pay (otherwise than as part of rent) a fixed amount that represents an amount of a statutory charge, or insurance premium, payable by the lessor; and\n> > > \n> > > > (b) the amount of the statutory charge, or insurance premium, payable by the lessor is reduced –\n> > \n> > the fixed amount that the protected lessee is required under the provision of the protected lease to pay is reduced in the same proportion as the proportion by which the amount of the statutory charge, or insurance premium, payable by the lessor has been reduced.\n> \n> > (2)  [Subregulation (1)](#GS6@Gs1@EN) does not apply in relation to a protected lessee if the protected lessee agrees, in writing, with the lessor that the subregulation does not apply to the protected lessee.","sortOrder":5},{"sectionNumber":"7","sectionType":"section","heading":"Mediation under Fair Trading (Code of Practice for Retail Tenancies) Regulations 1998 not to occur","content":"### 7 Mediation under Fair Trading (Code of Practice for Retail Tenancies) Regulations 1998 not to occur\n\n> If a dispute in relation to a protected lease is a dispute to which [section 22(a)](/view/html/inforce/2026-04-12/act-2020-013#GS22@Hpa@EN) of the Act applies, [clause 39 of Schedule 1](/view/html/inforce/2026-04-12/sr-1998-118#JS1@HS4@GC39@EN) to the [Fair Trading (Code of Practice for Retail Tenancies) Regulations 1998](/view/html/inforce/2026-04-12/sr-1998-118) does not apply in relation to the dispute.\n\nDisplayed and numbered in accordance with the *[Rules Publication Act 1953](/view/html/inforce/current/act-1953-050)*.\n\nNotified in the *Gazette* on 24 July 2020\n\nThese regulations are administered in the Department of Justice.","sortOrder":6}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The regulations remain tightly focused on their original purpose: providing technical implementation details for the COVID-19 commercial leases emergency regime. They address specific operational gaps (turnover calculation methodology, renegotiation frequency, pass-through of statutory charge reductions, and mediation conflict avoidance) without expanding beyond the emergency commercial tenancy context established by the parent Act."},"complexity_factors":["Only 2 defined terms in the interpretation section, both straightforward","Single nested structure in regulation 4(3)(m) with two sub-paragraphs (i) and (ii)","Multiple specific exclusions in regulation 4(3) — 13 separate items (a) through (m), though they are simple laundry-list exclusions","Cross-references to primary Act (COVID-19 Disease Emergency (Commercial Leases) Act 2020) and two other statutes (Land Tax Act 2000, Local Government Act 1993)","Conditional logic present but not deeply nested: regulation 6 uses simple 'if-then' with an opt-out clause","Regulation 7 involves interaction with another set of regulations (Fair Trading (Code of Practice for Retail Tenancies) Regulations 1998)","Overall length is short — 7 regulations covering discrete technical matters"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this legislation does:**\n\nThese regulations support Tasmania's COVID-19 emergency laws for commercial tenants by filling in technical details that the main Act left blank. They operate during the pandemic emergency period to help struggling businesses with their rent obligations.\n\n**Key things it covers:**\n\n*   **How 'turnover rent' is calculated** — Some leases charge rent based on a percentage of the tenant's sales (called \"turnover\"). These rules specify exactly what counts as turnover and what doesn't. For example, GST, delivery charges, and refunds don't count, but online sales *do* count if the goods come from the shop premises.\n\n*   **How often rent can be renegotiated** — Tenants and landlords can renegotiate rent under the emergency laws, but they can't start another renegotiation for 3 months after the last one finished — unless both sides agree in writing to waive this waiting period.\n\n*   **Passing on reductions in land tax and rates** — If a landlord's land tax, council rates, or insurance costs go down, any fixed amount the tenant pays toward these costs must be reduced by the same percentage. Tenants can opt out of this in writing if they want.\n\n*   **Blocking duplicate mediation** — If a dispute is already being handled under the COVID-19 emergency laws, it can't also go through the separate retail tenancy mediation process.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n\nCommercial tenants with \"protected leases\" under the COVID-19 emergency laws (mostly small to medium businesses hurt by pandemic restrictions) and their landlords.\n\n**Why it matters:**\n\nThese technical rules prevent arguments about how the emergency rent relief actually works in practice — things like whether an online sale \"counts\" for turnover rent, or whether landlords must share savings on their tax bills with tenants."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"These regulations do not alter which leases are 'protected' under the Act but implement technical rules and procedures: they prescribe how 'turnover' is calculated for rent (and what is excluded), set a default 3‑month renegotiation interval (subject to written waiver), require proportional reduction of lessee payments when statutory charges/insurance payable by lessors fall, and exclude a Fair Trading mediation route. They clarify and operationalise the Act rather than expanding or contracting its fundamental coverage (see regs 3–7)."},"complexity_factors":["Cross‑references to the parent Act and multiple external Acts (Land Tax Act 2000, Local Government Act 1993, Fair Trading Regulations) requiring readers to consult several instruments (regs 3, 7).","Detailed turnover definition with many exclusions (reg 4(3)(a)–(m)) and an online‑sales carve‑out (reg 4(3)(m)), which creates line‑drawing and accounting questions.","Interplay between fixed lessee payments and subsequent reductions in statutory charges or insurance creates proportional adjustment mechanics and potential disputes about timing and calculation (reg 6).","Opt‑out by written agreement for both the 3‑month renegotiation limit and application of the proportional reduction (regs 5 and 6(2)), adding contractual complexity.","Removal of a specific dispute‑resolution pathway (Fair Trading mediation) for certain disputes changes procedural options and may redirect disputes to other forums (reg 7).","Short instrument length but high reliance on definitions and external terms raises implementation and compliance burdens for businesses and advisers."],"plain_english_summary":"These regulations set technical rules for how the COVID‑19 commercial‑lease law operates. They prescribe turnover as a factor for calculating rent (and list what is excluded from turnover); limit how soon rent can be renegotiated to a 3‑month interval unless the parties agree otherwise; require lessees’ fixed payments that reimburse lessors’ statutory charges or insurance to be reduced proportionally if those charges fall; and prevent a specified Fair Trading mediation for certain disputes. They affect lessors and lessees of protected leases by changing rent calculation, timing and cost‑sharing."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"},"summary":{"complexity_score":5,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Based on the available information, these regulations appear to have remained consistent with their original emergency intent — providing temporary relief for commercial tenants during the COVID-19 pandemic. The version has been stable since 24 July 2020 with no indication of scope creep or significant departure from the original purpose. However, full verification is limited because the complete operative provisions were not included in the provided text."},"complexity_factors":["Emergency legislation operating within a specific and unusual legal context (declared disease emergency), which requires understanding of the underlying emergency powers framework","Interaction with existing commercial tenancy law, contract law, and the national COVID-19 leasing code of conduct adds interpretive layers","Time-limited and conditional operation — rights and obligations depend on whether the emergency period was active, making it necessary to track dates carefully","Affects the legal relationship between two parties (landlord and tenant) whose interests directly conflict, creating disputes about interpretation","Full text of the detailed operative provisions was not available in the provided excerpt, limiting full analysis — the actual regulations likely contain specific technical definitions and conditions","Overlaps with federal and other state measures, meaning parties needed to understand which rules applied to their specific situation"],"plain_english_summary":"These Tasmanian emergency regulations temporarily protected commercial tenants and landlords during COVID-19 by pausing evictions and limiting harsh enforcement when tenants couldn’t pay rent due to pandemic impacts.  \n\nThey implemented the national approach of requiring or encouraging negotiated rent relief, giving struggling businesses breathing room to survive while the emergency measures remained in force."},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/covid-19-disease-emergency-commercial-leases-regulations-2020","history":"/api/acts/covid-19-disease-emergency-commercial-leases-regulations-2020/history","analysis":"/api/acts/covid-19-disease-emergency-commercial-leases-regulations-2020/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/covid-19-disease-emergency-commercial-leases-regulations-2020/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/covid-19-disease-emergency-commercial-leases-regulations-2020/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/covid-19-disease-emergency-commercial-leases-regulations-2020/documents"}}