{"id":"F2016L01910","name":"International Organisations (Privileges and Immunities—Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons) Regulation 2016","slug":"international-organisations-privileges-and-immunities-organisation-for-the-prohibition-of-chemical-w","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":439051,"registerId":"F2016L01910-fast-fetch-1775955214065","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-12","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"International Organisations (Privileges and Immunities—Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons) Regulation 2016","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.jpeg)\n\nInternational Organisations (Privileges and Immunities—Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons) Regulation 2016\n\n \n\nI, General the Honourable Sir Peter Cosgrove AK MC (Ret’d), Governor‑General of the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Federal Executive Council, make the following regulation.\n\nDated 08 December 2016\n\nPeter Cosgrove\n\nGovernor‑General\n\nBy His Excellency’s Command\n\nJulie Bishop\n\nMinister for Foreign Affairs\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nContents\n\nPart 1—Preliminary\n\n1 Name\n\n2 Commencement\n\n3 Authority\n\n4 Definitions\n\nPart 2—Privileges and immunities of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and other persons\n\n5 Act applies to the Organisation\n\n6 Organisation to have juridical personality and legal capacities\n\n7 Privileges and immunities of the Organisation\n\n8 Privileges and immunities of high officers of the Organisation\n\n9 Privileges and immunities of officers (other than high officers) of the Organisation\n\n10 Privileges and immunities of representatives to the Organisation\n\n11 Privileges and immunities of persons serving on committees etc.\n\n12 General exception to privileges and immunities—motor vehicles\n\n13 General exception to privileges and immunities—property or assets\n\nPart 3—Indirect tax concession scheme\n\n14 Indirect tax concession scheme—acquisitions\n\n15 Indirect tax concession scheme—conditions\n\n16 Indirect tax concession scheme—claims for payment\n\n17 Indirect tax concession scheme—manner of payment\n\nPart 4—Other matters\n\n18 Waiver of privileges and immunities\n\n19 Delegation\n\n \n\nPart 1—Preliminary\n\n \n\n1  Name\n\n  This is the International Organisations (Privileges and Immunities—Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons) Regulation 2016.\n\n2  Commencement\n\n (1) Each provision of this instrument 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. The whole of this instrument The day after this instrument is registered. 13 December 2016\n\n\nNote: This table relates only to the provisions of this instrument as originally made. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of this instrument.\n\n (2) Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this instrument. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of this instrument.\n\n3  Authority\n\n  This instrument is made under the International Organisations (Privileges and Immunities) Act 1963.\n\n4  Definitions\n\n  In this instrument:\n\nAct means the International Organisations (Privileges and Immunities) Act 1963.\n\nhigh office means the following offices in the Organisation:\n\n (a) Director‑General;\n\n (b) Deputy Director‑General.\n\nOrganisation means the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.\n\ntaxable supply has the meaning given by section 195‑1 of the GST Act.\n\ntax invoice has the meaning given by section 29‑70 of the GST Act.\n\nPart 2—Privileges and immunities of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and other persons\n\n \n\n5  Act applies to the Organisation\n\n  The Organisation is an international organisation to which the Act applies.\n\n6  Organisation to have juridical personality and legal capacities\n\n  The Organisation:\n\n (a) is a body corporate with perpetual succession; and\n\n (b) is capable, in its corporate name:\n\n (i) of entering into contracts; and\n\n (ii) of acquiring, holding and disposing of real and personal property; and\n\n (iii) of instituting, and being a party to, legal proceedings.\n\n7  Privileges and immunities of the Organisation\n\n (1) The Organisation has the privileges and immunities specified in the First Schedule to the Act, except item 8.\n\n (2) The Organisation is not exempt from any Commonwealth, State, Territory or municipal dues and taxes that constitute payment for specific services in respect of premises owned, leased or occupied by the Organisation.\n\n (3) If goods (other than publications of the Organisation) are imported, manufactured or purchased by the Organisation for sale by it, subsection (1) does not operate to prevent sales tax being payable by the Organisation or by any other person on the sale value of the goods.\n\n (4) The Organisation’s privileges in relation to indirect tax are limited to:\n\n (a) the exemption conferred by section 11B of the Act; and\n\n (b) concessions under section 11C of the Act in relation to acquisitions mentioned in subsection 14(1) of this instrument.\n\n8  Privileges and immunities of high officers of the Organisation\n\nPrivileges and immunities of high officers\n\n (1) A person who holds, or is performing the duties of, a high office in the Organisation has the privileges and immunities specified in Part I of the Second Schedule to the Act.\n\nLimitations relating to Australian citizens and permanent residents\n\n (2) Despite subsection (1), an Australian citizen or a permanent resident of Australia who holds, or is performing the duties of, a high office in the Organisation only has immunity from suit and other legal process in respect of acts and things done in his or her capacity as a high officer.\n\nFormer high officers\n\n (3) A person who has ceased to hold, or perform the duties of, a high office in the Organisation has the privileges and immunities specified in Part II of the Second Schedule to the Act.\n\n9  Privileges and immunities of officers (other than high officers) of the Organisation\n\nPrivileges and immunities of other officers\n\n (1) A person who holds an office in the Organisation other than a high office has the privileges and immunities specified in Part I of the Fourth Schedule to the Act.\n\nLimitations relating to certain persons\n\n (2) Despite subsection (1), an Australian citizen or a permanent resident of Australia who holds an office in the Organisation other than a high office only has the privileges and immunities specified in item 1 of Part I of the Fourth Schedule to the Act.\n\n (3) Despite subsection (1), the salary and emoluments received from the Organisation by a person:\n\n (a) on whom privileges and immunities are conferred by subsection (1); and\n\n (b) who is not an Australian citizen or permanent resident of Australia but is otherwise an Australian resident within the meaning of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997;\n\nare not, to the extent to which they are for services rendered in Australia, exempt from taxation unless the person came to Australia solely for the purpose of performing duties of the office in the Organisation held by the person.\n\nFormer officers\n\n (4) A person who has ceased to hold an office in the Organisation other than a high office has the immunities specified in Part II of the Fourth Schedule to the Act.\n\nSection does not apply to inspectors\n\n (5) This section does not apply in relation to inspectors (within the meaning of the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction, done at Paris on 13 January 1993, as affected by any amendment that has come into force for Australia).\n\nNote 1: The Convention is in Australian Treaty Series 1997 No. 3 ([1997] ATS 3) and could in 2016 be viewed in the Australian Treaties Library on the AustLII website (http://www.austlii.edu.au).\n\nNote 2: Privileges and immunities are conferred on inspectors by the Chemical Weapons (Prohibition) Regulations 1997.\n\n10  Privileges and immunities of representatives to the Organisation\n\nPrivileges and immunities of representatives to the Organisation\n\n (1) A person who is accredited to, or is in attendance at an international conference convened by, the Organisation as a representative of a country (other than Australia) has, while exercising his or her functions as such a representative, the privileges and immunities specified in Part I of the Third Schedule to the Act.\n\nFormer representatives to the Organisation\n\n (2) A person who has ceased to be accredited to, or has attended an international conference convened by, the Organisation as a representative of a country (other than Australia) has the immunities specified in Part II of the Third Schedule to the Act.\n\n11  Privileges and immunities of persons serving on committees etc.\n\nPrivileges and immunities of persons serving on committees etc.\n\n (1) A person who is serving on a committee, or is participating in the work, of the Organisation or is performing, whether alone or jointly with other persons, a mission on behalf of the Organisation has the privileges and immunities specified in items 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 of Part I of the Fifth Schedule to the Act.\n\nLimitations relating to Australian citizens and permanent residents\n\n (2) Despite subsection (1), an Australian citizen or a permanent resident of Australia who is serving, or is participating in the work, of the Organisation or is performing, whether alone or jointly with other persons, a mission on behalf of the Organisation only has the privileges and immunities specified in item 2 of Part I of the Fifth Schedule to the Act.\n\nPersons who have served on committees etc.\n\n (3) A person who has served on a committee, or participated in the work, of the Organisation or has performed a mission on behalf of the Organisation has the immunities specified in Part II of the Fifth Schedule to the Act.\n\n12  General exception to privileges and immunities—motor vehicles\n\n  Nothing in this instrument confers immunity on any person from civil or criminal process:\n\n (a) for the recovery of damages for damage, injury or death resulting from an accident involving a motor vehicle owned or driven by the person; or\n\n (b) relating to the commission of an offence by the person under a law of the Commonwealth, a State or a Territory, relating to motor traffic, motor vehicles or the use of a motor vehicle.\n\n13  General exception to privileges and immunities—property or assets\n\n  The privileges and immunities conferred by subsection 7(1) in relation to the property and assets of the Organisation cease to apply to any such property or assets:\n\n  (a) if that property has, or those assets have, been abandoned by the Organisation for a period exceeding 12 months; or\n\n (b) in an emergency in which there is a risk of personal injury, death, property damage or harm to the environment.\n\nPart 3—Indirect tax concession scheme\n\n \n\n14  Indirect tax concession scheme—acquisitions\n\n (1) For paragraph 11C(1)(a) of the Act, the following acquisitions by the Organisation are covered by this instrument:\n\n (a) an acquisition of any of the following, on a single tax invoice for a taxable supply of at least $200 (including indirect tax):\n\n (i) goods (by purchase or lease);\n\n (ii) mail services;\n\n (iii) telecommunications services;\n\n (iv) electricity or gas services;\n\n (v) protection of premises services;\n\n (vi) removal of goods services;\n\n (vii) freight and cartage other than removal of goods;\n\n (b) an acquisition of goods that are freed from duties of excise by section 7 of this instrument;\n\n (c) an acquisition of warehoused goods (within the meaning of the Customs Act 1901), the importation of which is covered by an immunity from taxation (including customs duties) conferred by this instrument;\n\n (d) an acquisition of any of the following, if the acquisition is subject to an arrangement between the Organisation and the Commonwealth for reimbursement of indirect tax:\n\n (i) construction or renovation services;\n\n (ii) real property;\n\n (iii) any other thing.\n\n (2) However, an acquisition by the Organisation is covered by this instrument only if, at the time of the acquisition, it was intended for the official use of the Organisation.\n\n15  Indirect tax concession scheme—conditions\n\n (1) For paragraph 11C(3)(a) of the Act, the amount mentioned in subsection 11C(1) of the Act is payable only if the following conditions are satisfied:\n\n (a) the Organisation has entered into a written agreement with the Commonwealth to repay to the Commonwealth the amount worked out under subsection (3) of this section if:\n\n (i) for a payment in relation to an acquisition of a motor vehicle—the Organisation disposes of the motor vehicle (except to a person entitled to an indirect tax concession under this instrument or another law of the Commonwealth in relation to similar acquisitions) in Australia or an external Territory within 3 years after it was acquired; or\n\n (ii) for a payment in relation to an acquisition of goods other than a motor vehicle—the Organisation disposes of the goods (except to a person entitled to an indirect tax concession under this instrument or another law of the Commonwealth in relation to similar acquisitions) in Australia or an external Territory within 2 years after they were acquired; or\n\n (iii) for a payment in relation to an acquisition of services—the Organisation assigns the services to another person (except to a person entitled to an indirect tax concession under another law of the Commonwealth in relation to similar acquisitions) in Australia or an external Territory; or\n\n (iv) for a payment in relation to any other acquisition—the Organisation assigns the thing acquired to another person (except to a person entitled to an indirect tax concession under another law of the Commonwealth in relation to similar acquisitions) in Australia or an external Territory;\n\n (b) if the Organisation has breached a previous agreement under paragraph (a)—the Organisation complies with any written requirements, including a requirement to give security, that the Minister considers necessary to ensure that the Organisation complies with the agreement.\n\n (2) For subparagraphs (1)(a)(i) and (ii):\n\n (a) a sale of goods to a finance company as part of a sale and lease‑back arrangement is not a disposal of the goods; and\n\n (b) the Organisation is taken to have disposed of goods to which one of those subparagraphs applies within the period mentioned in that subparagraph to a person who is not entitled to an indirect tax concession in relation to similar acquisitions if:\n\n (i) the Organisation disposes of the goods to a person who is entitled to the concession; and\n\n (ii) the person disposes of the goods to another person; and\n\n (iii) the series of disposals of the goods to other persons continues (if necessary) until the goods are eventually acquired, within the period mentioned in that paragraph, by a person who is not entitled to the concession.\n\n (3) For paragraph (1)(a), the amount to be repaid is:\n\n (a) for an acquisition to which subparagraph (1)(a)(i) or (ii) applies—the proportion of the amount paid under section 11C of the Act in relation to the acquisition that is equal to the proportion of the period mentioned in that subparagraph remaining after the Organisation disposes of the goods; and\n\n (b) for an acquisition to which subparagraph (1)(a)(iii) or (iv) applies—the amount paid under section 11C of the Act in relation to the acquisition.\n\n (4) However, for an acquisition to which subparagraph (1)(a)(i) or (ii) applies, a person is not required to repay an amount paid under section 11C of the Act in relation to a lease payment that relates to a period before the Organisation disposes of the goods.\n\n (5) The amount mentioned in subsection 11C(1) of the Act is not payable if:\n\n (a) an amount was payable for a similar acquisition; and\n\n (b) the Minister tells the Organisation in writing that, in his or her opinion, the Organisation’s reasonable needs were met by that acquisition.\n\n16  Indirect tax concession scheme—claims for payment\n\n  A claim for payment under section 14:\n\n (a) must be signed by, or for, the Director‑General of the Organisation; and\n\n (b) must be sent with the tax invoice for the acquisition; and\n\n (c) must be sent:\n\n (i) for an acquisition of a motor vehicle—to the Protocol Branch of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade; or\n\n (ii) in any other case—to the Australian Taxation Office; and\n\n (d) for an acquisition of a motor vehicle or an acquisition of real property by lease—may be sent at any time after the acquisition; and\n\n (e) for an acquisition of a kind mentioned in paragraph 14(1)(d), other than an acquisition of real property by lease—may only be sent as specified in the arrangement mentioned in that paragraph or, if the arrangement does not so specify:\n\n (i) with another claim; or\n\n (ii) at least 3 months after another claim from the Organisation is sent; and\n\n (f) for an acquisition that is not mentioned in paragraph (d) or (e) of this section—may only be sent:\n\n (i) with another claim; or\n\n (ii) at least 3 months after another claim from the Organisation is sent.\n\nNote: Paragraphs (e) and (f) are intended to limit the number of claims from the Organisation to one in each quarter, to minimise delays in the processing of claims.\n\n17  Indirect tax concession scheme—manner of payment\n\n  For paragraph 11C(3)(b) of the Act, the amount is to be paid to a single recipient, or an account, nominated by, or on behalf of, the Director‑General of the Organisation.\n\nPart 4—Other matters\n\n \n\n18  Waiver of privileges and immunities\n\n (1) The Organisation may waive any privileges and immunities to which:\n\n (a) the Organisation; or\n\n (b) a person who holds or performs the duties of an office (including a high office) in the Organisation, or who has ceased to hold such an office; or\n\n (c) a person who is serving on a committee or participating in the work, or has served on a committee or participated in the work, of the Organisation or is performing or has performed, whether alone or jointly with other persons, a mission on behalf of the Organisation;\n\nis entitled by virtue of the Act or this instrument.\n\n (2) The government of a country may waive any privileges and immunities to which a person who is, or has been, accredited to, or is or was in attendance at an international conference convened by, the Organisation as a representative of that country is entitled to by virtue of the Act or this instrument.\n\n19  Delegation\n\n (1) The Minister may, by writing, delegate his or her powers under paragraph 15(1)(b) or (5)(b) to:\n\n (a) the Secretary of the Department; or\n\n (b) an SES employee, or acting SES employee, in the Department.\n\n (2) The delegate must comply with any directions of the Minister in exercising powers or functions under the delegation.\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"},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":5,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The instrument implements the International Organisations (Privileges and Immunities) Act 1963 in relation to the OPCW by declaring the organisation subject to that Act, creating corporate legal personality, and specifying the scope and limits of privileges, immunities and indirect‑tax concessions. It confines and defines immunities (including carve‑outs for nationals and motor‑vehicle/property exceptions) and establishes administrative repayment and claim rules, but does not expand the Act’s general framework beyond applying it to the OPCW and setting procedural/tax conditions (see ss 5–7, 12–17, 18–19)."},"complexity_factors":["Cross‑references to primary Act and external tax law (International Organisations (Privileges and Immunities) Act 1963; GST Act definitions) (ss 3–4, multiple provisions)","Multiple categories of persons with different privilege rules (organisation, high officers, other officers, representatives, committee members) requiring cross‑checking of several schedules to the Act (ss 5, 8–11)","Tax concession scheme with eligibility, timing, repayment triggers and calculation rules creating administrative and financial compliance obligations (Part 3: ss 14–17)","Specific limitations for Australian citizens and permanent residents narrowing immunities (ss 8(2), 9(2), 11(2))","General exceptions that strip immunity in concrete circumstances (motor vehicle liabilities; abandoned or emergency‑affected property) introducing litigation exposure (ss 12–13)","Ministerial discretion and delegation powers linked to security and enforcement of reimbursement agreements (ss 15(1)(b), 19)","Interaction with other instruments and treaties (reference to the Chemical Weapons Convention and inspection regime) requiring external legal alignment (note to s 9(5))","Operational requirements for claim processing (signatory, invoice, recipient account rules) that affect flow of funds and administrative burden on the Organisation and Commonwealth agencies (s 16–17)"],"plain_english_summary":"This regulation applies the International Organisations (Privileges and Immunities) Act 1963 to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). It gives the OPCW corporate legal personality, grants specified privileges and immunities to the organisation and its officials, sets specified exceptions (for motor‑vehicle incidents and abandoned or emergency‑affected property), and establishes a limited indirect‑tax concession and reimbursement scheme with rules for claims and repayments (see sections 6–7, 12–13, 14–17, 18–19)."},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":5,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The regulation appears tightly scoped to its original purpose of implementing Australia's obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention regarding the OPCW. It follows the standard template for international organisation privileges regulations without significant expansion beyond the core requirements of granting legal personality, immunities, and tax concessions to the specified organisation and its personnel."},"complexity_factors":["Heavy reliance on external schedules: The regulation constantly refers to 'First Schedule', 'Second Schedule', 'Third Schedule', etc. of the parent Act (International Organisations (Privileges and Immunities) Act 1963), meaning the full legal effect cannot be understood without cross-referencing that Act","Nested conditional logic in Part 3: The indirect tax concession scheme contains multiple layers of conditions—acquisition types (14(1)), use requirements (14(2)), repayment triggers (15(1)), complex repayment calculations (15(3)), and timing restrictions on claims (16)","Differential treatment based on citizenship/residency status: At least 4 sections (8(2), 9(2), 9(3), 11(2)) contain 'Despite subsection X' carve-outs that reduce privileges for Australian citizens and permanent residents","Defined terms requiring external references: Terms like 'taxable supply' and 'tax invoice' are defined by reference to the GST Act (A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999), not defined within the instrument","Exception to exception structure: Section 15 contains exceptions to the general rule that tax concessions are available, with subsections like 15(4) creating exceptions to the repayment requirements in 15(3)","Temporal limitations on immunity: Multiple sections distinguish between current office-holders (Part I of Schedules) and former office-holders (Part II of Schedules), creating parallel but different immunity regimes"],"plain_english_summary":"This regulation grants the OPCW legal personality, broad immunities for the organisation and senior officials, and tax/GST exemptions and refunds to enable its operations in Australia. It affects OPCW staff, visiting foreign representatives, and Australian tax authorities, ensuring Australia meets its Chemical Weapons Convention obligations.\n\nProtections are limited: Australian nationals get only functional immunity, traffic incidents remain prosecutable, tax relief can be clawed back on short resales, and abandoned property loses protections after a year."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/international-organisations-privileges-and-immunities-organisation-for-the-prohibition-of-chemical-w","history":"/api/acts/international-organisations-privileges-and-immunities-organisation-for-the-prohibition-of-chemical-w/history","analysis":"/api/acts/international-organisations-privileges-and-immunities-organisation-for-the-prohibition-of-chemical-w/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/international-organisations-privileges-and-immunities-organisation-for-the-prohibition-of-chemical-w/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/international-organisations-privileges-and-immunities-organisation-for-the-prohibition-of-chemical-w/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/international-organisations-privileges-and-immunities-organisation-for-the-prohibition-of-chemical-w/documents"}}