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AUSTRALIA

N/A

Pillar Telecom infrastructure & competition  |  Sub-pillar Passive infrastructure sharing obligation
Lack of obligation to share passive infrastructure
According to Art. 34 of the Telecommunications Act 1997, telecommunications carriers have statutory rights of access to other carriers' towers and ducts, but such access is not mandated. Passive infrastructure sharing is practised in Australia in the mobile sector: co-location is negotiated on a commercial basis. Carriers have regulated rights of access to towers owned by other carriers for the purposes of providing carriage services. The Telecommunications Act 1997 provides for carriers to provide other carriers with access to telecommunications transmission towers, the sites of telecommunications transmission towers and eligible underground facilities. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has made a code which sets out conditions that are to be complied with in relation to the provision of access.
In addition, passive infrastructure sharing is also practised in Australia in the fixed sector: the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has declared the following services: - line sharing service (LSS) - local carriage service (LCS) - fixed originating access service (FOAS) - fixed terminating access service (FTAS) - unconditioned local loop service (ULLS) - wholesale line rental (WLR) - wholesale ADSL service (WADSL). Once a service is declared, a network owner must provide access to the service upon request.
Coverage Telecommunications sector

AUSTRALIA

Since October 1992, as amended in August 1999

Pillar Telecom infrastructure & competition  |  Sub-pillar Maximum foreign equity share for investment in the telecommunication sector
Telstra Corporation Act 1991
According to Section 8BG of the Telstra Corporations Act 1991 (as amended by Act No. 53 of 1999), foreign ownership of Telstra (the incumbent telecommunication company) is limited to 35% and individual foreign investors are only allowed to own up to 5%.
Coverage Telecommunications sector

AUSTRALIA

Since September 2012, last amended in May 2020

Pillar Telecom infrastructure & competition  |  Sub-pillar Maximum foreign equity share for investment in the telecommunication sector
National Broadband Network Companies Act 2011 (NBN Companies Act)
According to the National Broadband Network Companies Act 2011 (Subdivision A, Division 2, Part 3), the Commonwealth must retain full ownership of National Broadband Network Co (NBN Co). In addition, this ownership structure could be terminated only in limited circumstances (Subdivision B).
Coverage Telecommunications sector

AUSTRALIA

Since July 2009
Since December 2013, last amended in September 2019

Pillar Public procurement of ICT goods and online services  |  Sub-pillar Other limitations on foreign participation in public procurement
Australian Government Procurement Statement

Australian Jobs Act 2013
Starting with the Australian Government Procurement Statement in July 2009, the Federal labour Government enacted a series of measures designed to enhance Australian industry participation in Australian Government procurement. The Statement strengthened the Australian Industry Participation framework by requiring participants in large Commonwealth tenders (generally AUD 20 million (approx. 17.8 million USD) or more) and infrastructure projects to prepare and implement Australian Industry Participation (AIP) Plans. Additional support was provided in the May 2011 Budget to fund greater advocacy for local suppliers under the Buy Australian at Home and Abroad package. The labour Government's Plan for Australian Jobs, in force since December 2013, further extended the requirements for AIP Plans to all major projects with a capital expenditure of AUD 500 million (approx. 344 million USD) or more.
It was reported in 2014 that this scheme "[does not] require the use of Australian suppliers, yet their incremental application reveal[ed] a tendency towards the increased use of subtle restrictions on overseas firms participating in government procurement tenders.
More specifically:
- For Commonwealth Government Procurement of AUD 20 million or more, although bidders need to prepare and implement an AIP plan, AIP plans do not "mandate the use of Australian industry, but rather aim to provide Australian industry with the opportunity to demonstrate their capabilities so they can be considered in purchasing decisions."
- For participation in major projects, the Australian Jobs Act 2013 obligates procurement entities "not [to] request bids to supply key goods or services for the project unless the procurement entity has a broad understanding of the capability and capacity of Australian entities generally to supply those goods or services" (Section 35). This does not constitute a requirement to incorporate local suppliers, but it creates a preference for local suppliers for key goods or services for a project.
Coverage Horizontal

AUSTRALIA

Since April 2009

Pillar Telecom infrastructure & competition  |  Sub-pillar Presence of shares owned by the government in telecom companies
Presence of shares owned by the government in the telecom sector
National Broadband Network Co (NBN Co) is a wholly government-owned enterprise tasked with designing, building, deploying, and operating a high-speed (internet) access network across Australia.
Coverage Telecommunications sector

AUSTRALIA

Since July 2012

Pillar Public procurement of ICT goods and online services  |  Sub-pillar Other limitations on foreign participation in public procurement
Commonwealth Procurement Rules
The Commonwealth Procurement Rules (CPRs) provide that the Australian Government is committed to non-corporate Commonwealth entities sourcing at least 10% of procurement by value from SMEs and has a target of non-corporate Commonwealth entities procuring 35% of contracts by volume, with a value of up to AUD 20 million (approx. 17.8 million USD), from SMEs (CPRs 5.6, 5.7).
The government response to the ICT Procurement Taskforce's (within the Digital Transformation Agency) final report released in 2013 states that all agencies will be required to report on compliance with (certain) principles as part of their annual report performance statements, which include a metric on the percentage of annual ICT spending on significant projects going to Australian businesses, including a breakdown of the amount going to Australian SMEs.
Coverage Horizontal

AUSTRALIA

Since May 1997, last amended in December 2018
Since December 2016, last amended in February 2016

Pillar Telecom infrastructure & competition  |  Sub-pillar Functional/accounting separation for operators with significant market power
Telecommunications Act 1997 No. 47

Carrier Licence Conditions (Networks supplying Superfast Carriage Services to Residential Customers) Declaration 2014
Australia mandates functional and accounting separation for operators with significant market power (SMP) in the telecom market. According to Act No. 47 and the Carrier Licence Conditions Declaration, functional separation is mandated for operators with significant market power. On the other hand, accounting separation is mandated only in some cases: National Broadband Network Co (NBN Co) is required to maintain separate accounts for its different technology units.
Coverage Telecommunications sector

AUSTRALIA

Since March 2015, last amended in December 2020

Pillar Public procurement of ICT goods and online services  |  Sub-pillar Other limitations on foreign participation in public procurement
Indigenous Procurement Policy
The Commonwealth Indigenous Procurement Policy (IPP), issued in 2015, requires setting aside certain portions of domestic contracts for Indigenous enterprises (IPP 1.2). The IPP, updated in 2020, sets out a target for purchasing from indigenous enterprises for public procurements and a mandatory set-aside to direct Commonwealth contracts to indigenous enterprises (IPP 1.3). The target during the 2021-22 term was set for 1.5%. The IPP applies to non-corporate Commonwealth entities; it is not mandatory for corporate Commonwealth entities (IPP 1.6).
Coverage Horizontal
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ITA: [{"meta_value":"0.00"}]

AUSTRALIA

ITA signatory? I II

Pillar Tariffs and trade defence measures applied on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) goods  |  Sub-pillar Effective tariff rate on ICT goods (applied weighted average)
Effective tariff rate to ICT goods (applied weighted average)
0.36%
Coverage rate of zero-tariffs on ICT goods (%)
72.95%
Coverage: Digital goods

AUSTRALIA

Since March 1997
Since December 2015

Pillar Tariffs and trade defence measures applied on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) goods  |  Sub-pillar Participation in the World Trade Organization (WTO) Information Technology Agreement (ITA) and 2015 expansion (ITA II)
Information Technology Agreement (ITA)

ITA Expansion Agreement (ITA II)
Australia is a signatory of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Information Technology Agreement (ITA) of 1996 and its 2015 expansion (ITA II).
Coverage ICT goods

AUSTRALIA

Since December 2014, extended in November 2019, until December 2024

Pillar Tariffs and trade defence measures applied on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) goods  |  Sub-pillar Antidumping, countervailing duties, and safeguard measures on ICT goods
Customs Act 1901
Under the powers granted by the Customs Act 1901, a Commissioner leads the Anti-Dumping Commission, which manages antidumping and countervailing duties. In November 2019, the Commission extended the anti-dumping duties imposed in 2014 on power transformers (HS 8504.22 and 8504.23) against Indonesia and Taiwan for five additional years. The duty rate imposed on imports originating in Indonesia is 28.3%, while for imports originating in Taiwan, it ranges from 2.9% to 8.6%, depending on the company.
Coverage Product: Power transformers (HS 8504.22 and 8504.23)

Country: Indonesia, Taiwan

AUSTRALIA

Since May 2019 until May 2024

Pillar Tariffs and trade defence measures applied on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) goods  |  Sub-pillar Antidumping, countervailing duties, and safeguard measures on ICT goods
Customs Act 1901
Under the powers granted by the Customs Act 1901, a Commissioner leads the Anti-Dumping Commission, which manages antidumping and countervailing duties. In May 2019, the Commission imposed antidumping duties on PCV flat electric cables (HS 8544.49.20) imported from China. The duty rate ranges from 2.8% to 18.9%, depending on the company.
Coverage Product: PCV flat electric cables (HS 8544.49.20)

Country: China

ARGENTINA

Since September 2019

Pillar Online sales and transactions  |  Sub-pillar Restrictions on domain names
Resolution No. 43/2019 - Regulation for the Administration of Domain Names in Argentina (Resolución No. 43/2019 - Reglamento para la Administración de Dominios de Internet en Argentina)
According to Art. 3 of Resolution No. 43/2019, procedures related to domain names take place through a special platform called TAD (Trámites a Distancia). To use the platforms, the residents must use their tax ID, while non-residents must obtain an identification number that is provided by the Network Information Center (NIC) Argentina (Art. 4). Users of this platform can appoint an agent who takes the necessary steps to register, renew and manage domain names on their behalf (Art. 5).
Coverage Horizontal

ARGENTINA

Since October 1993, as amended in March 2008, last amended in 2018
Since December 2001

Pillar Online sales and transactions  |  Sub-pillar Framework for consumer protection applicable to online commerce
Law No. 24,240 - Consumer Protection Law (Ley No. 24.240 - Defensa del Consumidor)

Digital Signature Law No. 25,506 (Ley No. 25.506 de Firma Digital)
The Consumer Protection Law and the Digital Signature Law provide a comprehensive framework for consumer protection that also applies to online transactions. Arts. 10 and 33 of Law 24,240 (as amended by the Consumer Protection Law 26.361 of 2008) regulate purchases through telecommunications, postal or electronic means. The law establishes that “when services, including public services, are contracted online or by phone, the provision of such services may be cancelled in the same way as they were contracted, at the consumer's discretion”. In addition, the supplier has 72 hours after the cancellation of services to send a record of such cancellation (without cost) to the relevant consumer or user.
Coverage Horizontal

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