What it does
This instrument, the Foreign States Immunities (Taxation) Regulations 2018 (the Regulations), is a statutory regulation made under the Foreign States Immunities Act 1985 (the Act), as stated in regulation 3 and defined in regulation 5. Mechanically, the Regulations list, by jurisdiction and by statute, the Commonwealth, state, territory and Norfolk Island taxation laws "for the purposes of section 20 of the Act" in respect of which immunity does not apply (see regs 6-15). In other words, the Regulations do not change the text of the underlying tax statutes; they specify which taxation laws are to be treated as falling outside the scope of foreign-state immunity under the mechanism created by s 20 of the Act.
The Regulations are organised as a sequence of prescriptions, each headed "No immunity in relation to certain tax laws of ..." and then a table of statutory titles. At the Commonwealth level (reg 6) the prescription includes A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999; A New Tax System (Luxury Car Tax) Act 1999; A New Tax System (Wine Equalisation Tax) Act 1999; Excise Act 1901; Fringe Benefits Tax Assessment Act 1986; Income Tax Assessment Act 1936; Income Tax Assessment Act 1997; International Tax Agreements Act 1953; Petroleum Resource Rent Tax Assessment Act 1987; Superannuation Guarantee (Administration) Act 1992; Taxation Administration Act 1953; and Commonwealth Places (Mirror Taxes) Act 1998. Equivalent prescription tables appear for New South Wales (reg 7), Victoria (reg 8), Queensland (reg 9), Western Australia (reg 10), South Australia (reg 11), Tasmania (reg 12), the Australian Capital Territory (reg 13), the Northern Territory (reg 14) and Norfolk Island (reg 15). Several jurisdictions’ entries include payroll tax, duties or land tax legislation and the respective "Taxation Administration" Acts.
The Regulations therefore change, by administrative prescription, the immunity landscape created by the Act: they make explicit that, for the purpose of s 20 of the Act, immunity will not protect foreign states from the operation, enforcement, assessment, or recovery available under the specific taxation statutes enumerated in regs 6-15. The instrument contains no separate enforcement or penalty provisions; it operates by reference to the Act (reg 3) and the listed taxation statutes. The Regulations are an implementing instrument: they identify which taxation laws are excluded from immunity rather than creating or modifying taxing powers themselves.