{"id":"C2004A04225","name":"Foreign Fishing Licences Levy Act 1991","slug":"foreign-fishing-licences-levy-act-1991","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"150 of 1991","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":7467,"registerId":"commonwealth-C2004A04225-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-03-30","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Foreign Fishing Licences Levy Act 1991","content":"---\nmeta-content-style-type: text/css\nmeta-content-type: application/xhtml+xml; charset=utf-8\n---\n\n?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"utf-8\" standalone=\"no\"?>\n\n![](image.001.png)\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nForeign Fishing Licences Levy Act 1991\n\n \n\nNo. 150, 1991\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nAn Act to impose a levy on the grant of certain foreign fishing licences\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nContents\n\n1 Short title\n\n2 Commencement\n\n3 Interpretation\n\n4 Imposition of levy\n\n5 Amount of levy\n\n6 By whom is levy payable?\n\n7 Regulations\n\n![](image.002.png)\n\n \n\n \n\nForeign Fishing Licences Levy Act 1991\n\nNo. 150, 1991\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nAn Act to impose a levy on the grant of certain foreign fishing licences\n\n[Assented to 21 October 1991]\n\nThe Parliament of Australia enacts:\n\n##### 1  Short title\n\n  This Act may be cited as the Foreign Fishing Licences Levy Act 1991.\n\n##### 2  Commencement\n\n (1) Sections 1 and 2 commence on the day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent.\n\n (2) Subject to subsection (3), the remaining provisions of this Act commence on a day to be fixed by Proclamation.\n\n (3) If a provision mentioned in subsection (2) does not commence under that subsection within the period of 6 months commencing on the day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent, it commences on the first day after the end of that period.\n\n##### 3  Interpretation\n\n  In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:\n\nAFMA, AFZ and fish have the same respective meanings as in the Fisheries Management Act 1991.\n\nlicence means a foreign fishing licence granted under Part 3 of the Fisheries Management Act 1991.\n\n##### 4  Imposition of levy\n\n (1) Subject to this section, a levy is imposed on the grant to a person of a licence.\n\n (2) Where there is in force an agreement between the Commonwealth and the government of another country that contains a provision under which licences are agreed to be granted (whether or not the provision also provides for the payment of an amount or amounts to the Commonwealth), levy is not imposed on the grant of any of the licences to which the provision relates.\n\n##### 5  Amount of levy\n\n (1) Subject to subsection (2), the amount of the levy imposed by section 4 on the grant of a licence is such amount as is prescribed by the regulations or as is calculated in accordance with the regulations.\n\n (2) Where:\n\n (a) AFMA has entered into an agreement with a person other than the government of another country or with persons none of whom is the government of another country; and\n\n (b) the agreement contains a provision under which licences are agreed to be granted if an amount specified in the provision is paid to the Commonwealth;\n\nthe amount of the levy imposed by section 4 on the grant of all those licences is the amount specified in the provision.\n\n##### 6  By whom is levy payable?\n\n (1) Subject to subsection (2), the amount of the levy imposed by section 4 on the grant of a licence is payable by the person to whom the licence is granted.\n\n (2) The amount of the levy imposed by section 4 on a licence granted in accordance with an agreement of a kind mentioned in subsection 5(2), is payable by the person, or jointly and severally by the persons, as the case may be, with whom AFMA entered into the agreement.\n\n##### 7  Regulations\n\n (1) The Governor‑General may make regulations, not inconsistent with this Act:\n\n (a) prescribing all matters required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or\n\n (b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.\n\n (2) Regulations made for the purposes of subsection 5(1) may prescribe the amount of, or method of calculating the amount of, levy imposed by this Act on the grant of a licence by reference to a matter specified in the regulations, being a matter relating to the boat or to the operations of the boat the use of which is authorised by the licence or, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, by reference to any one or more of the following matters:\n\n (a) the fact that the boat is included in a class of boats in respect of which an agreement relating to the operations or proposed operations of boats of that class is in force, being an agreement to which AFMA is a party;\n\n (b) the size or tonnage of the boat, measured as prescribed, or the power of the boat’s main engine;\n\n (c) the quantity or kind of equipment permitted by the licence to be carried on the boat for the purpose of taking, processing or carrying fish;\n\n (d) the quantity of the fish, measured as prescribed, that the licence authorises to be taken or processed with the use of the boat or carried by the boat;\n\n (e) the kind of fish that the licence authorises to be taken or processed with the use of the boat or carried by the boat;\n\n (f) the conditions to which the licence is subject;\n\n (g) the method by which the licence authorises fish to be taken, processed or carried;\n\n (h) the degree of control that persons who are residents of Australia or of an external Territory have over the operations of the boat.\n\n \n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"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":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains tightly focused on its original purpose: imposing a levy on foreign fishing licences. The scope has not expanded beyond this specific fiscal mechanism."},"complexity_factors":["Very short statute — only 7 sections","Minimal defined terms (only 3: AFMA, AFZ, fish — all imported by reference from another Act)","Simple conditional structure: basic rule (s.4) → exemption (s.4(2)) → amount calculation (s.5) → payment responsibility (s.6)","Only one level of exception (treaty exemption in s.4(2))","Heavy reliance on delegated legislation (regulations) for operational details like levy rates, but this is standard for fiscal legislation","No cross-references to other Acts except the definitional borrow from Fisheries Management Act 1991"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this law does:**\n\nThis Act creates a **levy** (a type of tax or fee) that foreign fishing boats must pay to the Australian government when they receive a licence to fish in Australian waters.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n\n- **Foreign fishing operators** — anyone from overseas who wants a licence to fish in Australia's **Australian Fishing Zone** (AFZ)\n- **The Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA)** — the government body that issues these licences and collects the levy\n- **Foreign governments** — if they have a treaty with Australia about fishing access\n\n**Key rules:**\n\n- **Most foreign fishers pay:** If you get a foreign fishing licence, you generally have to pay this levy.\n- **Treaty exemptions:** If Australia has an official agreement (treaty) with another country's government about fishing access, no levy is charged on licences covered by that agreement.\n- **How much:** The amount is set by **regulations** (rules made by the government), and can be based on things like:\n  - The size of your boat\n  - How much fish you're allowed to catch\n  - What type of fishing equipment you use\n  - What kind of fish you're targeting\n- **Private deals:** If AFMA makes a direct commercial agreement with a foreign company (not a government) to grant licences for a set fee, that fee *becomes* the levy amount.\n\n**Why it matters:**\n\nThis law ensures Australia gets paid when foreign vessels access our fish stocks. It creates a flexible system where government-to-government deals can be free, but commercial operators must pay — with the amount tailored to the scale and impact of their fishing operations."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This text implements the Act’s core, original purpose: to impose a levy on the grant of foreign fishing licences. It does not expand the subject matter beyond that narrow purpose. The broad regulation-making power (s 7) allows the executive to vary the method and amount of levy calculation, which can make the regulatory architecture complex in practice, but that is an instrument-design choice within the Act’s original scope rather than a substantive scope expansion."},"complexity_factors":["Short Act: 7 substantive sections (plus commencement and interpretation)","4 defined terms in the interpretation section, two of which (AFMA, AFZ, fish) are cross-references to the Fisheries Management Act 1991 (s 3)","Key substantive rule simple (levy on grant) but two significant exceptions/alternatives: exemption for intergovernmental agreements (s 4(2)) and special rule where AFMA commercial agreements specify an amount (s 5(2))","Regulations determine amount or formula in most cases, with a broad list of potential calculation bases (8 specific bases listed in s 7(2)(a)–(h)), adding regulatory and operational complexity","Payment rules include joint and several liability in certain contractual situations (s 6(2))","Commencement uses proclamation with a 6‑month default (s 2) — a small procedural complexity","Dependence on delegated detail (regulations) increases conditionality and practical complexity"],"plain_english_summary":"The Act creates a legal basis to charge a levy whenever a foreign fishing licence is granted for fishing in Australian-managed waters. Amounts are set by regulation (or by fee terms in AFMA’s private commercial agreements, which then become the levy), and the licence-holder—or contracting parties named in those private agreements—are liable to pay. Licences issued under government‑to‑government agreements are exempt. The measure primarily raises Commonwealth revenue and shifts regulatory detail and incentives to regulation and commercial contracting."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/foreign-fishing-licences-levy-act-1991","history":"/api/acts/foreign-fishing-licences-levy-act-1991/history","analysis":"/api/acts/foreign-fishing-licences-levy-act-1991/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/foreign-fishing-licences-levy-act-1991/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/foreign-fishing-licences-levy-act-1991/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/foreign-fishing-licences-levy-act-1991/documents"}}