Radiocommunications (Spectrum Access Charges—3.4 GHz Band) Direction 2020

The instrument is short and focused; its operative legal concepts are defined in the instrument and in the Act as the instrument acknowledges. The principal concepts to track are:

• Direction under the Act (cl 3): The instrument is made under subsection 294(2) of the Radiocommunications Act 1992. Subsection 294(1) (quoted in the instrument’s Note) is the power under which ACMA makes charges determinations that fix spectrum access charges and times when they are payable. This instrument operates as a direction to ACMA about how to exercise that charge‑fixing power in a tightly specified circumstance (see cl 5(1)).

• Relevant part of the spectrum (cl 4): Expressly includes frequencies >3400 MHz up to and including 3542.5 MHz. The direction only applies to spectrum licences that relate to that frequency band.

• Relevant spectrum licence (cl 4): Defined as a spectrum licence issued under subsection 57(1) of the Act to replace an apparatus licence that, at the time it is issued, authorises operation of radiocommunications devices at frequencies within one or more relevant parts of the spectrum and within a designated area. Two points follow from that definition: (1) the instrument targets replacement spectrum licences that convert existing apparatus licences into spectrum licences, and (2) the relevant licences must be located within a designated area (an inner‑ or outer‑metropolitan area as defined in Schedule 1).

• Designated areas and HCIS (cl 4 and Schedule 1): The instrument uses HCIS identifiers from the Australian Spectrum Map Grid 2012 to specify the geographic extents of the “inner‑metropolitan” and “outer‑metropolitan” areas. The HCIS is explicitly referenced as “used as a part of the Australian Spectrum Map Grid 2012 document published by ACMA, as the document existed at the time this instrument was made” (cl 4, definition of HCIS). Schedule 1 then lists named inner metropolitan areas (Inner Adelaide, Inner Brisbane, Inner Canberra, Inner Melbourne, Inner Perth, Inner Sydney) and outer metropolitan areas (Outer Adelaide, Outer Brisbane, Outer Canberra/Sydney, Outer Melbourne, Outer Perth), each as a composite of HCIS identifiers.

• Amounts and timing (cl 5): The instrument prescribes fixed aggregate amounts for the inner‑metropolitan and outer‑metropolitan relevant licences and sets the timing rules for when those aggregate amounts are payable, including a conditional zero outcome for inner‑metropolitan charges if no relevant licences are in force at a specified milestone (start of the first anniversary of the first licence coming into force), and an instalment election option for the outer‑metropolitan charge.

• NBN Co and election right (cl 4, cl 5(5)-(6)): The direction applies specifically to spectrum licences “to be issued to NBN Co” and gives NBN Co a right to elect to pay the outer‑metropolitan amount in instalments subject to specified terms. The instrument defines NBN Co by company ACN and makes clear the company reference is to the company “as the company exists from time to time” (cl 4).

• “In force” and anniversaries (cl 5): The timing hinges on when licences “come into force” and whether licences are “in force” at the start of a stated anniversary. Those terms are used by the instrument; their precise legal meaning will be informed by the Act (the instrument’s notes point to s 5 of the Act for a number of expressions used).

These concepts determine the legal mechanics: which licences are captured, who is charged, how much must be charged, when a payment cliff or instalment election applies, and how the geographic scope is defined by HCIS identifiers. The instrument fixes monetary outcomes and leaves ACMA to make a corresponding charges determination that implements those amounts and timing rules.

The instrument explicitly and narrowly affects three categories of actors:

• NBN Co (cl 4 definition and cl 5): NBN Co is the named payer. The direction applies only to charges determinations “that relate to relevant spectrum licences to be issued to NBN Co” (cl 5(1)). The amounts prescribed (clauses 5(2)-(6)) are payable by NBN Co. NBN Co also has the statutory option to elect to pay outer‑metropolitan charges in instalments (cl 5(5)-(6)).

• ACMA (cl 3 and cl 5(1)): ACMA is the decision maker who must give effect to this direction when it makes a charges determination under subsection 294(1) of the Act. The direction constrains ACMA’s discretion for the specified class of charges determinations: ACMA must fix the amount and timing in accordance with the prescription in clause 5. The instrument therefore limits ACMA to a prescribed outcome for those licences rather than leaving ACMA to set charges following its typical procedures.

• Holders of apparatus licences and geographical stakeholders: The instrument captures “relevant spectrum licences” defined as spectrum licences issued to replace apparatus licences that previously authorised operation at frequencies in the 3.4-3.5425 GHz band within a designated area. That means the instrument will operate in circumstances where apparatus licence holders’ licences are replaced by spectrum licences and where those spectrum licences are issued to NBN Co. The instrument does not by its terms impose charges on the existing apparatus licence holders; rather, it concerns spectrum licences issued to NBN Co that replace such apparatus licences. Nevertheless, any party whose apparatus licence is the subject of replacement by a spectrum licence issued to NBN Co will be indirectly affected because the direction governs the charges that will attach to the replacement spectrum licence (cl 4 definition of “relevant spectrum licence”).

Beyond those named, the instrument does not purport to bind other spectrum users, does not create new obligations for private entities other than NBN Co, and does not itself alter the terms of the apparatus licences that are replaced except insofar as the charges that must be fixed in the ACMA charges determination relate to the replacement spectrum licences. The Schedule’s mapping of HCIS identifiers to named metropolitan areas will affect how geographic scope is applied: entities and sites located within HCIS areas listed under the relevant inner or outer metropolitan headings will be within the geographic ambit that determines whether a relevant spectrum licence is a “within a designated area” licence (Schedule 1).

Finally, because the direction constrains ACMA’s charges determination-making in a particular context (s294(2)), other regulators, advisers and commercial counterparties to NBN Co and ACMA may be affected in their planning and contract mechanics (for example, in budgeting for licence costs), but the instrument itself directly binds only ACMA (as the decision maker) and NBN Co (as the payor) in the circumstances described.

The instrument sets a small number of discrete duties and rights that flow from the direction:

Duties owed by ACMA

• Constrained exercise of the charges-determination power: ACMA is directed, when making a charges determination that relates to relevant spectrum licences to be issued to NBN Co, to fix the amount of charges payable by NBN Co and to specify the times at which those charges are payable “in accordance with this section” (cl 5(1)). That is a duty to give effect to the amounts and timing rules that follow in clause 5.
• Timing implementation: ACMA’s charges determination must, in substance, implement the timing rules in clause 5(3) and clause 5(6) for inner‑metropolitan and outer‑metropolitan charges respectively. The direction therefore prescribes detail that ACMA’s charges determination must adopt.

Rights and duties of NBN Co

• Payment obligation: NBN Co is the party identified as liable for the prescribed aggregate amounts for inner‑ and outer‑metropolitan relevant spectrum licences (cl 5(2)-(4)). The instrument prescribes the amounts and the timing contingencies, and ACMA’s charges determination will formalise the payable sum and the due dates.
• Election right for outer metropolitan charges: NBN Co “is to be permitted to elect to pay the outer‑metropolitan charges in instalments” and the instrument sets the terms for such an election (cl 5(5)-(6)). The election delivers a payment‑smoothing option: if NBN Co makes that election, the aggregate outer‑metropolitan charge is payable in 10 equal annual instalments with precise timing (first instalment before licence comes into force, subsequent instalments on each anniversary).
• Contingent exemption for inner‑metropolitan charges: NBN Co has a contingent advantage if it ensures no relevant spectrum licences are in force at the start of the first anniversary of the first licence coming into force; the inner‑metropolitan charge is nil in that circumstance (cl 5(2)(a)). That is a conditional non‑paying right that depends on the factual state of licences at a defined milestone.

Other duties and entitlements implicit in the instrument

• Geographic ascertainment: The instrument requires parties to apply the HCIS composite definitions in Schedule 1 to ascertain whether a licence is “within a designated area” (cl 4, Schedule 1). This imposes a technical duty on ACMA and on NBN Co (and their advisers) to map licences to HCIS identifiers and ensure accurate counting of which HCIS areas are affected. The instrument expressly notes the HCIS and ASMG 2012 as the mapping framework to be used “as the document existed at the time this instrument was made” (cl 4).

What the instrument does not do (important negative duties)

• The instrument does not itself set enforcement mechanisms, penalties for non‑payment, or dispute resolution procedures. It directs ACMA’s charges determination-making; actual enforcement or remedies for non‑payment will be those contained in the Act and in the charges determination that ACMA makes (the instrument does not add fines or offences) (see cl 3 and the instrument’s Note referencing s 294(1) of the Act).

Operational implications of key duties and rights

• The direction constrains ACMA but leaves implementation to ACMA’s charges determination: ACMA must fix amounts and timing but will do so via a charges determination under s 294(1) of the Act. For NBN Co, the key practical rights are the instalment election for outer charges and the possibility of avoiding the inner charge by having no relevant licences in force at the specified anniversary. Those procedural choices are rights within the instrument’s text.

The instrument itself does not create, amend or specify penalty provisions, enforcement mechanisms or sanctions. It is a direction under s 294(2) of the Act that prescribes amounts and timing for a charge that ACMA must adopt when it makes a charges determination under subsection 294(1) of the Act (cl 3 and cl 5(1)). The instrument’s Notes reference subsection 294(1) as the statutory basis for ACMA making a charges determination fixing amounts and times when spectrum access charges are payable, but the instrument contains no express provisions governing consequences of non‑payment, interest, collection mechanisms, forfeiture of licences, administrative penalties, or criminal offences.

Practical consequences and where to look for enforcement detail

• Actual enforcement, remedies and penalties that could follow from non‑payment of a spectrum access charge fixed in a charges determination will reside in the Act and in the charges determination instrument that ACMA issues to implement this direction. The direction requires ACMA to “fix” the amount and “specify the times at which those charges are payable” (cl 5(1)). The charges determination is the statutory instrument that will set the payable amounts (it must reflect the figures and timing in clause 5) and, in doing so, is the likely vehicle for attaching administrative consequences for failure to pay, recovery mechanisms and any interest or default regime. Those enforcement details are not in the direction and the instrument does not attempt to replicate them.

• Because the direction prescribes the outer‑metropolitan instalment structure and the inner‑metropolitan cliff, the charges determination will need to address default consequences consistent with ACMA’s broader statutory powers. For example, if the charges determination permits instalments, the determination is the natural place to specify whether missed instalments accelerate the balance, whether interest or late fees accrue, and whether entitlement to use the spectrum is conditioned on payment. None of those matters are set out in the direction.

Implementation risk and uncertainty

• The absence of enforcement mechanics in the instrument creates implementation uncertainty until ACMA issues the charges determination implementing the direction. Parties who need certainty about default consequences, security interests, set‑offs and timing should therefore review the charges determination when made and consider contractual protections (for example, in supply and network provisioning contracts) that address payment default, because the direction itself does not provide those operational answers.

• Similarly, the conditional nil for inner‑metropolitan charges (cl 5(2)(a)) and the timing rules hinge on the factual status of licences “in force” at the “start of the first anniversary of the first of those licences coming into force”. Any dispute about whether a licence is “in force” at that precise moment may result in contested interpretations, and the direction does not provide a dispute mechanism for that factual question.

In short, enforcement and penalties are not specified in this direction; readers must look to the Act and to ACMA’s charges determination that implements the direction to understand remedies, recovery mechanisms and penalties for non‑compliance with the payable charges.

The instrument situates itself within the Radiocommunications Act 1992 framework and directly interacts with the Act in a limited, specific way. The operative cross‑references in the instrument identify the axis of interaction:

• Power relationship under the Act (cl 3 and cl 5(1)): The instrument is expressly made under subsection 294(2) of the Act (cl 3). The instrument also notes that subsection 294(1) provides ACMA’s power to make charges determinations fixing spectrum access charges and specifying when they are payable (instrument Note to cl 5(1)). Thus, the instrument is a statutory direction constraining ACMA’s exercise of the s 294(1) power in respect of specified licences.

• Definitions cross‑referencing the Act (cl 4): The instrument notes that a number of expressions used in the instrument are defined in section 5 of the Act (for example ACMA, spectrum, spectrum access charge, spectrum licence) and relies on those Act definitions for legal meaning. The instrument therefore interacts with s 5 of the Act for the legal definitions of terms it uses.

• Substantive interplay with s 57(1) of the Act (cl 4): The instrument targets spectrum licences “issued under subsection 57(1) of the Act to replace an apparatus licence”. That cross‑reference ties the direction to the Act’s regime for converting or issuing spectrum licences in place of apparatus licences and requires administrators and stakeholders to read the direction in tandem with s 57(1).

• Geographic mapping and administrative materials (cl 4 and Schedule 1): The instrument relies on the Australian Spectrum Map Grid 2012 and the HCIS naming convention for geographic definitions. These are administrative instruments and datasets maintained by ACMA; the instrument makes them part of its definitional scaffolding by reference. The instrument notes that the HCIS and conversion tools were available on ACMA’s website “as the document existed at the time this instrument was made” (cl 4). This fixes the temporal snapshot of the geographic reference material: if ACMA updates the ASMG or HCIS later, the direction refers to the 2012 document as it existed at the instrument’s making. That snapshot interaction matters for interpreting which HCIS areas the Schedule identifies.

What the instrument does not do in relation to other laws

• The instrument does not expressly amend or displace other provisions of the Act beyond instructing ACMA about how it must make the charges determination in this specific context. It does not purport to change licensing procedures, compliance, enforcement or the broader regulatory structure in the Act. It does not purport to create novel offences or civil causes of action; any such matters remain governed by the Act and by ACMA’s charges determination to be made under s 294(1).

Practical legal cross‑checks

• To understand statutory enforcement, interest, recovery and licence consequences, one must read the direction together with the Radiocommunications Act 1992 provisions that govern charges determinations, spectrum licences, obligations on licensees and civil or administrative sanctions. The instrument’s effectiveness and operational detail will therefore depend on ACMA’s charges determination instrument and on how the Act structures collection and enforcement of spectrum access charges.

• Because the geographic definitions rely on HCIS and ASMG 2012, practitioners should cross‑check the HCIS identifiers in Schedule 1 against the ASMG 2012 dataset as it existed when the direction was made, particularly where site‑by‑site decisions or mapping errors have commercial consequences. The instrument does not adopt dynamic updating language; it freezes the ASMG/HCIS reference as at the instrument’s making (cl 4).

In summary, the instrument is a specific direction that must be read in tandem with s 294(1) and the relevant definitional and licensing provisions of the Radiocommunications Act 1992 and with the fixed ASMG 2012/HCIS mapping referenced.

The instrument’s own commencement clause and accompanying table set out the immediate historical facts about commencement and provide a self‑contained amendment note. Key points:

• Commencement (cl 2): The instrument specifies that the whole instrument (item 1 in the commencement table) commences, or is taken to have commenced, the day after the instrument is registered. The table further contains a note that it relates only to the provisions of the instrument “as originally made” and will not be amended to deal with later amendments in published versions of the instrument.

• Temporal fix for HCIS/ASMG (cl 4): The instrument expressly refers to the HCIS and Australian Spectrum Map Grid 2012 “as the document existed at the time this instrument was made.” That is a built‑in statement about what version of the mapping and naming convention is applicable for interpreting the Schedule. It has the effect of anchoring the geographic references to the state of the ASMG/HCIS at time of making rather than tying them to future revisions.

• No amendment schedule within this text: The instrument as provided contains no further amendment entries, saving the commencement table note that published versions may alter column 3 for information but not change the substance of the instrument. The instrument therefore appears as an original single instrument without recorded subsequent amendments in the text provided.

Practical reading on amendment and future change

• The instrument’s note in cl 2 about the commencement table warns users that the table relates only to the instrument as originally made and will not be amended to reflect later instrument amendments. That is an administrative point about the published instrument formatting rather than a substantive limit on the Commonwealth’s capacity to amend the direction in future.

• Any later change to the amounts, the timing, the HCIS mapping or the scope of the direction would require a fresh statutory instrument made under the Act, or an amendment to this instrument, made using the Act’s processes. The instrument itself does not provide for staged amendments or indexation of the monetary amounts; the amounts are fixed numbers in cl 5(2)(b) and cl 5(4).

• Because the HCIS/ASMG reference is to the 2012 document as it existed at the instrument’s making, any later change to the ASMG would not automatically alter which HCIS identifiers are within the instrument’s Schedule. That anchoring reduces interpretive drift but creates a potential mismatch if ACMA’s administrative mapping changes later; any resolution would likely be administrative or judicial, not fixed by the direction.

In short, the instrument is presented as originally made, with a single commencement date provision and no amendment history internal to the text provided. Any subsequent amendments would appear in separate instruments and are not reflected here.

The instrument text itself contains no references to judicial decisions, appeals, or litigation. It cites only statutory provisions in the Radiocommunications Act 1992 (not cases) and administrative mapping documents (HCIS/ASMG 2012). Therefore, as drafted, there is no litigation history recorded inside this instrument.

Points for practitioners considering potential litigation exposure or challenges

• The instrument creates discrete factual and legal questions that could, in principle, be litigated if a dispute arose over its operation: for example, whether a particular licence is a “relevant spectrum licence” for the purposes of the direction, whether a licence is “in force” at the “start of the first anniversary of the first of those licences coming into force”, or whether ACMA’s eventual charges determination correctly implements the direction’s requirements. None of those possibilities are referenced in the instrument, but they are predictable types of high‑stakes disputes that could result in administrative or judicial review challenges.

• Judicial review may be available to challenge ACMA’s charges determination if a party believes ACMA failed to make the charges determination “in accordance with this section” (cl 5(1)). The instrument binds ACMA to specific outcomes; if ACMA were to make a charges determination inconsistent with the direction, that could be susceptible to judicial review for unlawfulness. The instrument itself is a statutory direction under s 294(2), so the legal question in any challenge would include whether ACMA followed the mandatory content of the direction in making its charges determination.

• Factual disputes about whether an HCIS area listed in Schedule 1 applies to a particular site or whether particular apparatus licences have been replaced by the spectrum licences captured by the direction could also lead to contested proceedings, but again the instrument does not identify any litigation or prior case law.

Practical note for counsel and compliance teams

• Absent recorded litigation in the instrument, practitioners should monitor ACMA’s charges determination instruments and any administrative decisions that ACMA makes when implementing this direction. Those charges determinations and any subsequent enforcement actions (for example, notices of non‑payment) will be the likely flash points for legal challenges. Before litigation arises, it is sensible to obtain contemporaneous documentation of licensing status and of communications with ACMA about commencement dates and in‑force status to preserve evidence relevant to any future dispute.

In summary, there is no litigation history contained in this instrument; possible litigation vectors are foreseeable from the instrument’s factual and administrative mechanics and would play out against the Act and in any ACMA instrument implementing this direction.

The instrument is concise but contains several practical and interpretive pitfalls that counsel, accountants and compliance teams should note. The following are concrete “gotchas” grounded in the instrument text and Schedule.

1. Ambiguity about aggregate application across multiple designated areas

• The direction uses the term “aggregate” in cl 5(2) and cl 5(4) and ties the relevant licences to a “designated area that is an inner‑metropolitan area” or “an outer‑metropolitan area”. It is not worded as explicitly per named inner metropolitan area in Schedule 1. The drafting invites a question whether the $226,441,720 inner‑metropolitan figure is: a) an aggregate across all inner‑metropolitan designated areas listed in Schedule 1; or b) a per‑designated‑area amount that applies to each named inner‑metropolitan area separately.
• That interpretive point is a material legal risk because it affects the scale of liability. The instrument’s text does not resolve it; ACMA’s charges determination and possibly judicial interpretation will be determinative. Treat the amount allocation as a potential ambiguity until clarified by ACMA.

2. Cliff mechanism for inner‑metropolitan charge

• Clause 5(2) creates a cliff: if all relevant spectrum licences are “no longer in force” at the start of the first anniversary of the first licence coming into force, the inner‑metropolitan charge is nil; if any relevant spectrum licence is still in force at that moment, the full amount ($226,441,720) becomes payable in the aggregate. This is a binary outcome that creates a strong timing incentive. Parties must understand precisely what “in force” means under the Act and how ACMA will interpret licences that have been suspended, temporarily de‑activated, transferred, or otherwise affected before that anniversary moment.

3. Importance of “first of those licences coming into force” timing

• Both the inner and outer timing rules reference the anniversary of the “first of those licences coming into force” (cl 5(3), cl 5(6)(b)-(c)). If multiple licences are issued at different times, the anniversary dates will be driven by the earliest commencement. That places legal and commercial significance on the sequencing of licence commencements and creates an incentive to structure licence commencements if NBN Co seeks to manage payment timing.

4. Instalment election mechanics and pre‑commencement first instalment

• For outer‑metropolitan charges, the instrument permits an election to pay in 10 equal instalments (cl 5(5)-(6)). Critically, if NBN Co elects instalments, the first instalment is required “prior to” the licence coming into force (cl 5(6)(b)(i)-(ii)). Practically, that means payment must be made before any relevant licence is operational; this has cashflow and operational implications and may affect rollout timing or commercial arrangements tied to licence commencement.

5. Reliance on HCIS/ASMG 2012 snapshot

• The Schedule defines inner and outer metropolitan areas by listing HCIS identifiers and states that HCIS is “as the document existed at the time this instrument was made” (cl 4). That temporal fix means later updates to ACMA’s ASMG or HCIS will not, by the wording of the direction, change which areas are listed. If ACMA’s public mapping tools are later updated, the Schedule’s static snapshot could create mismatches that need administrative reconciliation.

6. “Relevant spectrum licence” requires a replacement of an apparatus licence

• The direction applies only to spectrum licences issued under s 57(1) of the Act that are issued to replace an apparatus licence authorising operation in the relevant part of the spectrum within a designated area (cl 4). If a licence is newly issued (not issued as a replacement) or covers other frequencies, it may fall outside the direction. Practitioners must check the statutory basis and the instrument’s precise replacement condition.

7. No enforcement details in the instrument

• The direction does not specify default remedies, interest, or enforcement steps; those will appear in ACMA’s charges determination or elsewhere in the Act. Parties cannot rely on the direction alone to understand consequences of missed payments or dispute procedures.

8. Potential for strategic behaviour

• The conditional nil and the instalment election create clear incentives for timing and sequencing of licences. NBN Co potentially can avoid the inner charge by ensuring no licences are in force at the specified milestone; the instrument does not preclude strategic sequencing. That creates both commercial leverage and an enforcement/interpretive dispute risk if ACMA and NBN Co disagree about the factual state of licences at the anniversary point.

9. Mapping and site‑by‑site determinations

• The Schedule lists HCIS identifiers in long tables. Mapping a particular site or apparatus licence to the HCIS identifier(s) listed will require technical GIS work using the ASMG 2012 shapefiles or conversion tools that ACMA made available (cl 4 notes). Errors in mapping could materially affect whether a licence is captured by the inner/outer designation.

Given these gotchas, practitioners should approach implementation with a focus on precise mapping, careful chronology of licence commencements, and an expectation that ACMA’s charges determination will need to be reviewed to resolve ambiguities and to reveal enforcement details.

Compliance with this direction requires a combination of legal interpretation, administrative evidence‑gathering, cash‑flow planning, and close monitoring of ACMA’s subsequent charges determination. The following step‑by‑step approach is grounded in the instrument’s text and the practical provisions it contains.

1. Identify captured licences

• Map existing and prospective apparatus licences that authorise operation in the relevant part of the spectrum (greater than 3400 MHz up to and including 3542.5 MHz) to the Schedule’s HCIS identifiers to see whether they fall within inner‑metropolitan or outer‑metropolitan designated areas (cl 4, cl 5, Schedule 1). Use ACMA’s ASMG 2012 HCIS datasets as they existed at the instrument’s making for authoritative mapping (cl 4).

• Confirm that the spectrum licence to be issued is indeed a “relevant spectrum licence” as defined (i.e. a spectrum licence issued under s 57(1) to replace an apparatus licence authorising operation at the relevant frequencies within a designated area). If the licence is not a replacement under s 57(1), this direction will not apply.

2. Track licence commencement sequencing and “in force” status

• Record and verify the date each relevant spectrum licence “comes into force.” The instrument ties payment timing and the inner‑metropolitan cliff to the “first of those licences coming into force” and to whether licences are “in force” at the start of the first anniversary (cl 5(2)-(3), cl 5(6)). Obtain documentary proof of the commencement date(s) and any actions that affect in‑force status (surrenders, suspensions, transfers).

• Where multiple licences are issued at different dates, determine which is the “first of those licences” for anniversary calculation and plan accordingly.

3. Decide on payment strategy for outer‑metropolitan charges

• If relevant spectrum licences within outer‑metropolitan designated areas are to be issued to NBN Co, evaluate whether to elect the instalment option (cl 5(5)-(6)). If the election is made, ensure the first instalment is scheduled and paid “prior to” the licence coming into force, and establish mechanisms for making annual payments on each anniversary thereafter.

• If NBN Co does not elect instalments, prepare to make or account for the full aggregate sum at the time ACMA’s charges determination requires. The direction requires ACMA to fix the aggregate amount at $57,146,840 (cl 5(4)), so budgeting and treasury planning should reflect this number.

4. Evaluate options in relation to inner‑metropolitan charges

• For licences within inner‑metropolitan designated areas, understand the cliff: if no relevant spectrum licence is in force at the start of the first anniversary of the first licence coming into force, the inner‑metropolitan charge is nil; if any is in force then the full $226,441,720 becomes payable (cl 5(2)(a)-(b)).

• If NBN Co wishes to avoid triggering the inner charge, consider operational and legal options that would ensure licences are “no longer in force” by the relevant anniversary. Legal advice will be necessary because “in force” has a statutory meaning in the Act, and actions such as surrendering or not activating a licence may have broader regulatory or contractual consequences.

5. Prepare for practical mapping and record‑keeping

• Maintain up‑to‑date GIS and administrative records linking specific sites and apparatus licences to HCIS identifiers. Use the ASMG 2012 data as the canonical reference for the Schedule mapping. Keep copies of any ACMA conversion tools or HCIS documentation cited in the instrument’s notes, and preserve evidence of how area mapping decisions were reached.

6. Review ACMA’s charges determination when made

• The instrument requires ACMA to make a charges determination “in accordance with this section” (cl 5(1)), but the charges determination will be the operative legal instrument that states payment procedures, enforcement mechanisms, default consequences and administrative detail. Carefully review ACMA’s charges determination when issued to ensure it implements the direction correctly and to confirm any terms relating to default, interest, and reconciliations.

7. Contractual and commercial protections

• Where NBN Co has contractual obligations that depend on licence operation dates or costs (e.g., vendor contracts, construction schedules, interconnection agreements), insert protections addressing the possible outcomes under this direction: the potential for a large, aggregated charge, the timing of payment, and the consequences of payment default. The direction itself does not set enforcement terms, so contractual protections can manage allocation of risk between parties.

8. Seek clarifications and document communications with ACMA

• Given the potential ambiguities (for example, whether the inner charge is per inner‑metropolitan area or aggregate across all inner‑metropolitan areas), obtain written clarifications from ACMA and retain records of communications. If ACMA’s charges determination leaves any questions unresolved, early engagement can reduce the risk of later disputes.

9. Obtain legal and tax advice

• The instrument fixes monetary obligations. For accounting, tax, and corporate disclosure purposes, determine how the prescribed charges should be recognised in financial statements and whether any tax consequences arise. Also obtain legal advice on the interrelationship between apparatus licence replacement under s 57(1) and the direction’s application.

By following these steps and anchoring action to the instrument’s text , the specified frequencies, HCIS mapping, the “first licence” anniversary timing, the conditional nil, and the instalment election terms , parties can operationalise compliance and reduce interpretation risk. Always review ACMA’s charges determination instrument when published, because it will provide the enforcement terms and the practical administrative implementation of this direction.