{"id":"C2017A00009","name":"Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Levy Act 2017","slug":"hazardous-waste-regulation-of-exports-and-imports-levy-act-2017","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"9 of 2017","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":8570,"registerId":"commonwealth-C2017A00009-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-03-30","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Levy Act 2017","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\nHazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Levy Act 2017\n\n \n\nNo. 9, 2017\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nAn Act to impose a levy on permit applications under the Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Act 1989, and for related purposes\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nContents\n\nPart 1—Preliminary\n\n1 Short title\n\n2 Commencement\n\n3 Act to bind Crown\n\n4 Act extends to external Territories\n\n5 Definitions\n\n6 Act does not impose tax on property of a State\n\nPart 2—Levy on hazardous waste permit applications\n\n7 Imposition of levy\n\n8 By whom levy payable\n\n9 Amount of levy\n\n10 Regulations\n\n \n\n![](image.001.png)\n\n \n\n \n\nHazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Levy Act 2017\n\nNo. 9, 2017\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nAn Act to impose a levy on permit applications under the Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Act 1989, and for related purposes\n\n[Assented to 22 February 2017]\n\nThe Parliament of Australia enacts:\n\nPart 1—Preliminary\n\n \n\n1  Short title\n\n  This Act is the Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Levy Act 2017.\n\n2  Commencement\n\n (1) Each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms.\n\n \n\n- Commencement information\n- Column 1 Column 2 Column 3\n- Provisions Commencement Date/Details\n- 1. Sections 1 and 2 and anything in this Act not elsewhere covered by this table The day this Act receives the Royal Assent. 22 February 2017\n- 2. Sections 3 to 10 The later of:(a) 1 July 2017; and(b) the day after this Act receives the Royal Assent. 1 July 2017(paragraph (a) applies)\n\n\nNote: This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally enacted. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of this Act.\n\n (2) Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this Act. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of this Act.\n\n3  Act to bind Crown\n\n  This Act binds the Crown in right of each of the States, of the Australian Capital Territory and of the Northern Territory. However, it does not bind the Crown in right of the Commonwealth.\n\n4  Act extends to external Territories\n\n  This Act extends to every external Territory.\n\n5  Definitions\n\n  In this Act:\n\nhazardous waste permit application means an application under section 12, 13 or 13A of the Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Act 1989.\n\nindexation day means 1 July 2018 and each later 1 July.\n\nindex number, for a quarter, means the All Groups Consumer Price Index number that is the weighted average of the 8 capital cities and is published by the Australian Statistician in relation to that quarter.\n\nMarch quarter means a period of 3 months starting on 1 January.\n\nproperty of any kind belonging to a State has the same meaning as in section 114 of the Constitution.\n\n6  Act does not impose tax on property of a State\n\n  This Act does not impose a tax on property of any kind belonging to a State.\n\nPart 2—Levy on hazardous waste permit applications\n\n \n\n7  Imposition of levy\n\n  Levy is imposed on a hazardous waste permit application.\n\n8  By whom levy payable\n\n  Levy imposed on a hazardous waste permit application is payable by the applicant.\n\n9  Amount of levy\n\n (1) The amount of levy imposed on a hazardous waste permit application is:\n\n (a) $4,616; or\n\n (b) if another amount not exceeding $6,000 is prescribed by the regulations—that other amount.\n\n (2) However, if the indexation factor for an indexation day is greater than 1, the amount of the levy is, on that day, replaced by the amount worked out using the formula:\n\n![](image.002.png)\n\n (3) The amount worked out under subsection (2) is to be rounded to the nearest dollar (rounding 50 cents upwards).\n\nIndexation factor\n\n (4) The indexation factor for an indexation day is the number worked out using the formula:\n\n![](image.003.png)\n\nwhere:\n\nbase March quarter means the last March quarter before the reference March quarter.\n\nreference March quarter means the last March quarter before the indexation day.\n\n (5) The indexation factor is to be worked out to 3 decimal places (rounding up if the fourth decimal place is 5 or more).\n\nIndex numbers\n\n (6) Subject to subsection (7), if at any time before or after the commencement of this section:\n\n (a) the Australian Statistician has published or publishes an index number in respect of a quarter; and\n\n (b) that index number is in substitution for an index number previously published by the Australian Statistician in respect of that quarter;\n\ndisregard the publication of the later index number for the purposes of this section.\n\n (7) If, at any time before or after the commencement of this section, the Australian Statistician has changed or changes the index reference period for the Consumer Price Index, then, for the purposes of applying this section after the change took place or takes place, have regard only to index numbers published in terms of the new index reference period.\n\n10  Regulations\n\n  The Governor‑General may make regulations for the purposes of paragraph 9(1)(b).\n\n[Minister’s second reading speech made in—\n\nHouse of Representatives on 24 November 2016\n\nSenate on 8 February 2017]\n\n(176/16)\n\n \n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act remains narrowly focused on imposing a levy on hazardous-waste permit applications, with mechanisms for setting the amount and indexing it. It does not expand beyond that original purpose: the only substantive additions are an indexing mechanism, rounding rules, a regulation power to prescribe an amount up to a capped level, and administrative details (commencement, Crown binding, territorial extent). These are implementation details rather than a substantive scope expansion."},"complexity_factors":["Short statute with 10 sections (concise structure).","6 defined terms in section 5 (including technical indexing terms).","Single substantive cross-reference to Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Act 1989 (sections 12, 13, 13A).","Indexation formula with multi-step definitions (indexation day, reference/base March quarters) and rounding rules (section 9).","Regulation-making power that allows an alternative levy up to $6,000 (section 10) — introduces delegated discretion.","Provisions dealing with ABS index substitution and index reference-period changes (section 9(6)–(7)), adding conditional logic.","Commencement table with staggered commencement for parts (s2)."],"plain_english_summary":"This law imposes a fixed, fees-style levy on applications for certain hazardous-waste export/import permits, payable by the applicant. It sets a base amount of $4,616 (regulations may set up to $6,000) and requires annual CPI-based indexation.\n\nThe levy affects businesses and others seeking those permits and the agency that collects it, raising application costs (which may deter marginal applications) while funding regulatory activity; it binds State/territory Crowns but not the Commonwealth."},"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 hazardous waste permit applications. The scope has not expanded beyond this single, specific function. The indexation mechanism and regulatory cap are standard supporting provisions that don't represent scope creep."},"complexity_factors":["Short statute with only 10 sections across 2 Parts","Simple core mechanism: single levy on permit applications with straightforward liability (applicant pays)","Moderate complexity introduced by CPI indexation formula in section 9 with mathematical calculations and defined terms (indexation day, index number, March quarter, base/reference March quarters)","Limited cross-referencing — only refers to the Hazardous Waste (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Act 1989 for permit application definitions","One conditional element: alternative amount prescribed by regulations (capped at $6,000)","Rounding rules specified (nearest dollar, 3 decimal places for indexation factor)","No nested exceptions or complex conditional logic chains"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this law does:**\n\nThis law creates a **fee (called a 'levy')** that must be paid when someone applies for a permit to export or import **hazardous waste** under Australia's main hazardous waste law (the 1989 Act).\n\n**Who it affects:**\n\n- **Businesses and organisations** that want to move hazardous waste across Australia's borders — they must pay this levy when they submit their permit application.\n- The **Australian Government**, which collects the money (though notably, this law doesn't apply to the Commonwealth itself — see below).\n\n**Key details:**\n\n- **How much?** The levy started at **$4,616** per application, but can be adjusted up to a maximum of **$6,000** by regulations. The amount also automatically increases each year based on inflation (using the Consumer Price Index).\n- **When did it start?** The levy began on **1 July 2017**.\n- **Where does it apply?** Across all of Australia, including external territories like Christmas Island and Norfolk Island.\n- **Special rule:** This law **doesn't apply to the Commonwealth government itself** (it doesn't bind the Crown in right of the Commonwealth), but it does apply to the States and Territories.\n\n**Why it matters:**\n\nThis law ensures that **the people applying to move dangerous waste pay for the administrative costs** of processing their applications. It's a 'user-pays' system — rather than taxpayers funding the permit system, the businesses using it cover the costs. The inflation adjustment means the fee keeps its real value over time without needing new laws every year."},"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"}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/hazardous-waste-regulation-of-exports-and-imports-levy-act-2017","history":"/api/acts/hazardous-waste-regulation-of-exports-and-imports-levy-act-2017/history","analysis":"/api/acts/hazardous-waste-regulation-of-exports-and-imports-levy-act-2017/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/hazardous-waste-regulation-of-exports-and-imports-levy-act-2017/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/hazardous-waste-regulation-of-exports-and-imports-levy-act-2017/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/hazardous-waste-regulation-of-exports-and-imports-levy-act-2017/documents"}}