Currency (Perth Mint) Determination 2009 (No. 1)

This Determination rests on and implements two concepts in the Currency Act 1965: the idea of a statutory “standard composition” for a denomination, and the idea that the minister may specify technical specifications and designs for individual coins.

• Standard composition, for the purposes of paragraph 13(2)(b) of the Act, is the material stated as the normal composition for a denomination. Section 4 of the Determination treats “aluminium and bronze” as the standard composition for the $1 denomination for paragraph 13(2)(b). The Determination’s text therefore establishes a default composition reading for the $1 denomination in the Schedule to the Act (s 4).

• Specification of individual coins, under subsection 13A(1) of the Act, is implemented by the Schedule to this Determination (s 5). Each Schedule item is a specification applying to “a coin having the denomination and standard composition mentioned in the item”, and the Determination lists particular technical attributes: standard weight and allowable variation; maximum diameter; maximum thickness; shape; edge; and designs for obverse and reverse (s 5; Schedule 1).

A further conceptual distinction appears in the instrument: the Determination simultaneously records a single “standard composition” for the denomination ($1, aluminium and bronze) while also specifying coins of that denomination with a different composition (at least 99.9% silver) in Schedule 1. The instrument contains express non-derogation clauses,s 4(2) and s 6,preserving other determinations. Those clauses operate as legal boundaries, signalling that this Determination gives a standard for paragraph 13(2)(b) but does not obliterate other ministerial determinations or the existing legal matrix of coin specifications.

The Schedule’s descriptions of obverse and reverse designs are verbal, not pictorial, and include inscriptions and symbolic elements (for example “ELIZABETH II”, “AUSTRALIA 2009”, “1 DOLLAR” on the obverse across all items). The reverse descriptions identify commemorative themes (for example “INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF ASTRONOMY 2009”, “Lest We Forget / April 25”, and Swimming Australia centenary material) and include short letter inscriptions such as “DB”, “WR” and “P”. The Determination does not define those letters.

The Determination is an exercise of executive specification power rather than primary legislation. It alters how the Currency Act’s Schedule is read and creates machine‑readable technical specifics for use by a mint or regulator. It does not, on its face, change monetary policy, tax, or criminal law in the text provided.

The Determination’s immediate legal subjects are the persons and institutions operating under the Currency Act 1965 and anyone who manufactures, issues, handles or specifies Australian coinage to government technical standards.

Primary affected entities and personnel, as derived from the instrument’s content, are:

• The Minister and the issuing authority: the determination was made by the Minister for Superannuation and Corporate Law (the named maker, Nick Sherry). The Determination takes effect under statutory powers in the Currency Act 1965 (recital and ss 1-6). The ministerial office decides the content and gives the specification legal form.

• The mint or mints: the Schedule’s technical specifications and designs are actionable by any mint fulfilling supply or issue contracts for Australian coinage. The items include “P” inscriptions; the textual Schedule does not itself name the mint that must produce the coins but sets the standards the producing facility must meet (Schedule 1). Entities manufacturing coins will have to meet weight tolerances, diameters, thicknesses, material composition and design inscriptions.

• Regulators and record keepers: officials responsible for maintaining the Schedule to the Currency Act and for registering legislative instruments (the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments) will be affected administratively because the Determination modifies the Act’s operation for paragraph 13(2)(b) and is subject to registration (s 2 and the Note).

• Dealers, collectors, bullion traders and financial intermediaries: the instrument specifies coins with differing metal contents and weights for the same denomination (notably aluminium and bronze versus 99.9% silver). Those who trade or advise on coin purchases and valuations will be affected by the technical differences because the specifications determine physical characteristics, and therefore authentication and possibly market practice for sale and custody.

• Businesses and persons handling cash: any business that receives or stores coinage, or that needs to verify coins against statutory specifications for tender or acceptance policies, will be affected in practice by the addition of these specifications to the legal regime. The Determination’s text requires that certain design and dimensional features be recognised.

Less directly affected are legal advisers, compliance officers and auditors who will need to interpret how the Determination interacts with the Currency Act and other determinations (the instrument contains express non-affectation clauses, s 4(2) and s 6, which must be read by advisors in context).

The Determination does not, in its text, itself impose duties on private sector purchasers or set out enforcement measures; instead, it supplies a statutory technical baseline that other actors must factor into manufacturing, certification, acceptance, authentication and record-keeping practices.

The Determination itself is a prescriptive technical instrument. It does not create new rights of property or novel statutory entitlements in the document provided; it creates duties of specification and describes design and physical characteristics that must be used as legal reference points under the Act. The relevant duties and operational rights, as discernible from the text, are:

• Ministerial duty to specify: by exercising the powers in paragraph 13(2)(b) and subsection 13A(1) of the Currency Act 1965, the minister has an explicit duty to set out a standard composition for the denomination and to table detailed specifications and designs. The Determination records that exercise (opening recital; ss 4-5).

• Duty to observe technical specifications: for any person or authority responsible for producing coins, the technical details in Schedule 1 become the reference specification for those particular coin items. Schedule 1 enumerates the attributes that “specify” the coin’s standard weight, allowable variation, dimensions, shape, edge and design (s 5; Schedule 1). Meeting those specifications is a de jure requirement for the described coin forms.

• Duty not to alter other determinations: the instrument contains limits on its own effect. Section 4(2) states that the setting of the standard composition does not affect other determinations made under paragraph 13(2)(b). Section 6 repeats the non-derogation principle for other determinations of coin specifications. These clauses create a duty of legal interpretation for officials and drafters to ensure that the Determination is read with reference to, and not as cancelling, other determinations.

• Right to rely on official description: parties manufacturing, certifying or valuing coins are entitled to rely on the Determination’s specifications as the ministerially authorised descriptions of those coin forms. The instrument is a formal, registered legislative instrument (s 2 and the Note).

• No new penalties or enforcement mechanisms in the Determination: the text contains no express penalties, offence provisions or administrative sanctions. Any enforcement or sanctioning would come from the Currency Act 1965 or other statutory instruments; the Determination is a specification instrument, not an enforcement instrument (no sections within the Determination itself impose penalties).

• Obligation of public registration and accessibility: the Note at the end points users to the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments for registration and compilation (Note). This imposes the practical obligation on officials to register the Determination and on interested parties to consult that register for the formal text and any related instruments.

Operationally, the rights and duties produced are therefore largely technical and administrative: officials must apply the Determination in managing the Schedule to the Currency Act and mints must meet the specifications; market actors may rely on the Determination for legal descriptions of coin types. The Determination does not, within its text, extend to pricing, sale, taxation or criminal enforcement; those matters remain governed by other statutory provisions.

The Determination does not itself prescribe criminal penalties, civil fines or administrative sanctions. The text contains no offence provisions, penalty schedules or explicit enforcement mechanisms. Its operative content is specification-making under the Currency Act 1965 (see the recital and ss 4-6). Therefore, any enforcement or penalty questions arising from failure to conform to the specifications in Schedule 1 must be located in the Currency Act 1965 or other applicable statutes and instruments, not within this Determination.

From the Determination itself the following enforcement-related points can be drawn:

• No internal enforcement provisions: there are no clauses in the Determination that create a new offence for producing coins not in accordance with the Schedule, nor are there administrative processes set out for disputed compliance. The instrument is a declaratory/specification instrument and does not include enforcement machinery.

• Reliance on the parent Act: the Determination is made under paragraph 13(2)(b) and subsection 13A(1) of the Currency Act 1965 (opening recital). If the Act contains offences, civil sanctions, or enforcement powers relating to the production, issuance or misuse of coin, those provisions would be the legal avenue for enforcement. The Determination does not reproduce or restate any such Act provisions.

• Practical compliance enforcement: in practice, enforcement of specifications is likely to reside with the issuing authority (for example, a mint operating under contract, or officials maintaining the coinage register). The Determination sets out the statutory design and physical attributes that those actors must meet or use for inspection and acceptance. But the Determination itself supplies only the technical basis, not the sanctions for non‑conformity.

• Record and evidential value: because the Determination is a formal legislative instrument that is to be registered (s 2; Note), it will have statutory record status and be evidential of the minister’s specifications when disputes arise about the authorised design and physical attributes of the listed coin items. That evidential role may be relevant in enforcement or civil disputes, even though the instrument does not itself specify penalties.

If enforcement or penalty detail is required, practitioners should consult the Currency Act 1965 (the statutory provisions under which this Determination was made) and any other relevant instruments or contractual terms governing minting or distribution, as those sources will identify the legal consequences of non-conformance which are not set out in this Determination.

The Determination operates within a statutory framework and interacts with other legal instruments in narrowly specified ways stated in the Determination itself.

• Parent legislation: the Determination is made under paragraph 13(2)(b) and subsection 13A(1) of the Currency Act 1965 (opening recital; ss 4-5). Its legal force is therefore derivative of the powers and limits contained in the Currency Act. Any substantive legal effects beyond technical specification,such as legal tender status, offences for counterfeiting, export restrictions, or taxation consequences,depend on provisions elsewhere in the Currency Act and in other statutes; they are not set out in this Determination.

• Schedule to the Currency Act: s 4 explicitly alters the Act’s operation “for paragraph 13(2)(b)” by stating that the Act should be read “as if” the Schedule to the Act included a reference to the denomination ‘One dollar’ with ‘aluminium and bronze’ as its standard composition. That means this Determination interacts directly with the Schedule of the Currency Act and thereby changes how the Act is to be read for certain purposes. However, s 4(2) and s 6 each contain express non-derogation language preserving the effect of other determinations, which requires readers to reconcile this Determination with pre‑existing determinations.

• Other determinations under the Currency Act: the instrument contains two explicit non‑interference statements. Section 4(2) provides that the subsection does not affect any other determination made under paragraph 13(2)(b) of the Act; s 6 provides that the specifications in Schedule 1 do not affect any other determination of the specifications of coin. Practically, these clauses mean the Determination must be read alongside any older or later determinations, not as a replacement or repeal of them. Where other determinations concern the same denomination or design, legal interpretation will require comparing the instruments.

• Legislative Instruments Act and registration: the Note points to the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments kept under the Legislative Instruments Act 2003. The Determination is a legislative instrument that must be registered; its legal efficacy depends on registration and availability under that Act and the Register. This interacts with administrative law processes for instruments,publication, access, and potential procedural review,though the Determination itself does not restate those procedures.

• Contractual and commercial law: the Determination provides technical specifications that will be incorporated into contracts for minting, sale, custody, authentication, and possibly insurance. Therefore, it will interact with contract law, procurement law and any specific contracts between the government and the Perth Mint or other producers.

• Intellectual property and designer recognition: Schedule 1 lists designer initials/inscriptions such as “DB”, “WR” and “P” and contains detailed artistic descriptions. Those entries might intersect with contractual arrangements, designer credit requirements, moral rights or licensing terms under other statutes or contracts. The Determination itself does not assert copyright or moral‑rights regimes; any such interaction would depend on separate legal instruments or contracts.

• Criminal law and customs: while the Determination sets physical and design standards, matters such as counterfeiting, fraudulent alteration, or export control are addressed elsewhere in statutory law. Those provisions remain applicable and the Determination will serve as a technical reference in any prosecutions or regulatory actions that look to authorised specifications.

In sum, the Determination interacts directly with the Schedule to the Currency Act and with other ministerial determinations by changing how the Act is to be read for a portion of paragraph 13(2)(b), while preserving compatibility with existing determinations (ss 4(2), 6). Its broader legal interactions,for enforcement, market transactions, and IP,depend on other statutes and contractual arrangements not reproduced within this Determination.

The Determination itself records its making date (signed 18 March 2009 by the Minister) and commencement rule (s 2: commences the day after registration). The instrument contains no express amendments to earlier instruments within its text, but it also contains two clauses that limit its effect on other determinations (s 4(2) and s 6). From the text provided, the following items comprise the amendment history and formal status information that can be ascertained directly from the instrument:

• Date of making and maker: the instrument begins with the recital naming Nick Sherry, Minister for Superannuation and Corporate Law, and is dated 18 March 2009. That is the formal making date.

• Commencement: the instrument states it “commences on the day after it is registered” (s 2). The precise registration date is not contained in the Determination text here; registration is an administrative act recorded on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.

• Non‑derogation of other determinations: s 4(2) states that the inclusion of the $1 denomination with aluminium and bronze as the standard composition (for paragraph 13(2)(b)) does not affect any other determination under that paragraph. Section 6 likewise provides that the Schedule 1 specifications do not affect any other determination of the specifications of coin. These clauses are built into the Determination’s operative text and therefore stand as internal limits on how this instrument amends or interacts with the statutory schedule or other determinations.

• No express repeal or amendment clauses: the instrument does not contain words of repeal, amendment, or replacement of previous determinations. Its non‑affectation clauses indicate the drafter intended to slot the Determination alongside other determinations rather than to displace prior instruments.

• Registration and compilation: the closing note directs users to the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments, which is the official repository where details of registration and any later amendments or repeals would be recorded. The Determination’s practical amendment history (for example, whether it has been amended, superseded, or repealed) cannot be ascertained from the document excerpt alone; those administrative events would be visible on the Register.

For a complete, authoritative amendment history (registering entries, any subsequent revocation, supersession, or variation), practitioners must consult the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments (the Determination’s Note identifies that register) and the Currency Act 1965’s Schedule and instrument listing. The Determination’s text itself shows only the original making and the embedded limits on its effect with respect to other determinations.

The Determination’s text contains no reference to any litigation, court decisions, or legal challenges. It is a legislative instrument that sets out specifications and design descriptions. The document does not record any judicial consideration or administrative review outcomes.

Consequently, from the instrument provided:

• There is no litigation history recorded in the Determination itself. The instrument does not cite, respond to, or implement any judicial decision.

• There is nothing in the text to indicate that it was made in consequence of litigation, that it has been the subject of judicial review, or that its provisions have been interpreted by any court in the document provided.

• Any litigation that may have arisen later concerning the Determination,whether about the validity of the instrument, its effects on other determinations, or disputes over compliance,would not appear within the Determination’s text. Such litigation, if any, must be researched in case law databases and the Federal Court or High Court records.

Practitioners seeking to know whether the Determination has been litigated, challenged, or interpreted should consult judicial databases (Federal Court, High Court), the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments (to check for revocations/amendments), and administrative law reports. The Determination as provided supplies the underlying statutory specification but does not itself indicate any adjudicative history.

The Determination is concise but contains a number of drafting and operational features that merit close attention because they can create interpretative uncertainty or implementation challenges. The following are concrete “watch outs” drawn from the instrument’s text.

1. Standard composition versus multiple specified compositions

• Section 4 makes the Act operate “as if” the Schedule included aluminium and bronze as the standard composition for “One dollar”. At the same time, Schedule 1 includes two $1 items whose standard composition is “At least 99.9% silver” (Items 1 and 3). That produces a legal landscape where the denominator $1 has a stated standard composition (aluminium and bronze) but individual ministerially specified $1 coins can be of a different composition. Practitioners must read s 4 and Schedule 1 together: the Determination sets a default standard composition while separately specifying other coin forms with different materials. Do not assume a single exclusive composition for $1 across all instruments; cross‑check other determinations and the Act’s Schedule (see ss 4-5 and Schedule 1).

2. Descriptive (verbal) design specifications

• The reverse and obverse designs are described verbally, not pictorially. Detailed images may be used in the minting process, but the Determination’s legal text is a narrative description. That can make borderline questions of conformity (for example, whether a produced coin matches the ministerial description) matters of interpretation. The descriptions include colour-washed and stylised representations, but the instrument does not provide tolerances for colour application or a reproduction standard. This can create disputes about what passes as compliance with the design descriptions (see Schedule 1 reverse/obverse descriptions).

3. Inscriptions of initials and single letters

• Several inscriptions are given as initials or short letter sequences,“DB”, “WR” and “P”. The Determination does not define them within its text. Parties should not assume a particular meaning without corroboration from mint records or accompanying explanatory materials. Those initials may be designer initials, mint marks or something else; the Determination records them as inscriptions but leaves their legal status or source undefined (Schedule 1).

4. Tolerances and precision

• The standard weight tolerances are ±0.500 g for both weight classes. For the heavier silver coins (31.635 g ±0.500 g) and the lighter aluminium and bronze coins (13.800 g ±0.500 g), those tolerances are relatively broad numerically for the lighter coins in percentage terms and narrower for the heavier coins. Practically, a manufacturer must hit those tolerances, and supply contracts and assay testing must be written to those figures. The Determination does not specify manufacturing tolerances for diameter or thickness beyond the maximums. For quality control and contractual specification, parties must build their own acceptance regimes consistent with these numeric limits (Schedule 1).

5. Non‑affectation clauses

• The instrument expressly provides that its operation does not affect other determinations (s 4(2) and s 6). That is helpful, but it also requires users to perform a contemporaneous search for other determinations to ascertain the full set of applicable specifications. Failure to do so could result in misreading which coin types are authorised or which composition is standard in different contexts.

6. Absence of enforcement text

• There is no enforcement, penalty or procedure text in the Determination. If a stakeholder assumes that non‑conforming coins automatically attract certain penalties or that the Determination itself creates enforceable offences, that would be incorrect; one must refer to the Currency Act or related instruments for enforcement mechanisms.

7. Registration date linkage

• The Determination “commences on the day after it is registered” (s 2) but the registration date is not recorded in the body of the instrument as provided here. Practical reliance requires checking the Federal Register for the registration entry and any subsequent administrative annotations.

8. Commoditisation and market confusion risk

• The Schedule includes silver coins and aluminium and bronze coins both denominated $1. Market participants (collectors, bullion traders, custodians) must be careful not to conflate face value with metal value. The Determination fixes physical specifications but does not speak to how those coins are to be valued or purchased in the market; parties should not infer market price or legal tender treatment from composition alone.

9. Ambiguity as to intended issuance scope

• The Determination does not state whether these items are for general circulation or are commemorative/collector issues. The commemorative inscriptions (e.g. “INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF ASTRONOMY 2009”, “Lest We Forget”, Swimming Australia references) imply commemorative intent, but the Determination does not label them as such. Contracting and distribution plans should therefore be confirmed with the issuing authority.

In short, the main practical gotchas are interpretive: multiple compositions for the same denomination, verbal design descriptions without pictorial plates, undefined initials/inscriptions, and the need to reconcile this Determination with other determinations and the Currency Act itself.

Compliance with this Determination requires attention to both the textual specifications set out in Schedule 1 and to the procedural obligations implicit in its making (registration and interaction with the Currency Act). The following are concrete steps and compliance checkpoints that manufacturers, mints, procurement officers, dealers and advisers should follow, grounded in the Determination’s text.

1. Confirm instrument registration and operative date

• Check the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments for the Determination’s registration entry and the exact commencement date (s 2 and the Note). The Determination commences the day after registration; manufacturing and issuing plans should not rely on the instrument until it is registered.

2. Cross‑check other determinations and the Schedule to the Currency Act

• Because s 4(2) and s 6 limit the Determination’s effect on other determinations, obtain and compare all other determinations under paragraph 13(2)(b) and other instruments specifying coin specifications. Ensure that no conflicting or superseding determination exists and reconcile multiple specifications when planning production.

3. Implement the technical specifications exactly as written

• For each listed item in Schedule 1, production must meet the stated attributes:
  • Composition: Items 1 and 3 are specified as “At least 99.9% silver”; Items 2 and 4 as “Aluminium and bronze” (Schedule 1).
  • Standard weight and allowable variation: 31.635 g ± 0.500 g for silver items; 13.800 g ± 0.500 g for aluminium/bronze items (Schedule 1).
  • Maximum diameter and thickness: adhere to the maximums (40.60 mm/4.00 mm for silver; 30.60 mm/3.10 mm for aluminium/bronze) (Schedule 1). Note that the instrument specifies maximums, not minimums for diameter and thickness; production must ensure dimensions do not exceed those caps.
  • Shape: circular (Schedule 1).
  • Edge: continuously milled (Schedule 1).
  • Obverse and reverse designs: use the described inscriptions and motifs exactly as recorded in Schedule 1.

4. Design fidelity and approval

• Because the Determination uses narrative descriptions, produce working designs and obtain formal sign‑off from the relevant issuing authority before full production. Establish an approval workflow that aligns the minted dies, proofs and colour wash treatments (where applicable) with the ministerially authorised descriptions in the Schedule. Keep documentary proof of approvals in case of future disputes.

5. Quality control and assay procedures

• Create QC and assay procedures keyed to the tolerances expressed (±0.500 g). For composition, secure assay certificates or material sourcing documentation showing compliance with “at least 99.9% silver” or the specified aluminium/bronze alloy. Maintain batch testing and retention samples to evidence compliance.

6. Turn design inscriptions into die specifications

• Translate the obverse and reverse verbal descriptions (including inscriptions “ELIZABETH II”, “AUSTRALIA 2009”, “1 DOLLAR”, “INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF ASTRONOMY 2009”, “Lest We Forget”, “April 25”, “swimming australia”, “celebrating 100 years of excellence”, “DB”, “WR”, “P”) into die artwork. Do not alter wording; if a proposed die contains an alternative wording or an additional inscription, seek ministerial or issuing authority approval prior to production.

7. Recordkeeping and traceability

• Keep project records demonstrating that the coins produced matched the Determination’s specifications and were minted after the instrument’s commencement. Include assay records, physical measurements, die approvals and the instrument registration evidence. These records will be material in any compliance audit or dispute.

8. Procurement and contractual arrangements

• If the mint is producing these coins under contract, include references to the Determination in the contract and incorporate the exact measurements and inscriptions as contractual specifications. Include warranty and indemnity clauses covering non-conforming coins and define acceptance testing processes that reflect the Determination’s numerical tolerances.

9. Communication with market participants

• If coins are to be distributed to the public, dealers, financial institutions, or collectors, prepare communication and authentication materials that reflect the Determination’s text. Clarify whether silver coin items and aluminium/bronze items are both face value $1 coins, and provide authoritative descriptions so that market participants do not conflate metal value with face value.

10. Legal and regulatory checks

• Because the Determination does not itself create penalties, check the Currency Act 1965 and other related legislation for enforcement, criminal or regulatory obligations (for example, counterfeiting offences, customs export controls, or requirements for sale). Ensure compliance with any statutory obligations outside the Determination.

11. Consult the issuing authority on ambiguous points

• Where the Schedule’s verbal descriptions are ambiguous (e.g. the meaning or legal significance of “DB”, “WR” and “P”, colour wash tolerances, or whether an item is intended for circulation or collector issue), seek clarification from the issuing authority (typically the minting body or the Department that administers the Currency Act) and keep the clarifying correspondence.

In short, compliance is a combination of administrative confirmation (registration date and reconciliation with other instruments), exacting technical adherence to the Schedule’s numeric and descriptive provisions, robust recordkeeping and procurement drafting, and proactive clarification of any ambiguous descriptive elements. The Determination provides the legal baseline; operational compliance requires embedding that baseline into manufacturing, QA, contractual and market‑facing processes.