Export Control Act 2020

On receiving an application under section 111 to register an establishment, the Secretary must decide:

to register the establishment; or

to refuse to register the establishment.

See section 379 for matters relating to dealing with applications.

If the application is to register the establishment for more than one kind of export operations in relation to more than one kind of prescribed goods for export to more than one place, the Secretary may decide to register the establishment for some or all of those kinds of export operations in relation to some or all of those kinds of goods for export to some or all of those places.

If the Secretary does not make a decision in relation to the application within the consideration period for the application, the Secretary is taken to have refused the application at the end of that period (see subsection 379(2)).

A decision to refuse to register an establishment for a kind of export operations in relation to a kind of prescribed goods is a reviewable decision (see Part 2 of Chapter 11) and the Secretary must give the applicant written notice of the decision (see section 382).

The Secretary may register the establishment for a kind of export operations in relation to a kind of prescribed goods and, if applicable, a specified place to which the goods may be exported if the Secretary is satisfied, having regard to any matter that the Secretary considers relevant, that the following requirements are met:

the occupier of the establishment is a fit and proper person (having regard to the matters referred to in section 372);

either:

all relevant Commonwealth liabilities of the occupier of the establishment, or relating to the establishment, have been paid or are taken to have been paid; or

if one or more relevant Commonwealth liabilities of the occupier, or relating to the establishment, have not been paid or are not taken to have been paid—the non‑payment is due to exceptional circumstances;

the construction of the establishment and its equipment and facilities are suitable for carrying out export operations of that kind in relation to goods of that kind (having regard to the matters prescribed by the rules);

if the rules require export operations of that kind to be carried out in relation to goods of that kind in accordance with an approved arrangement—an approved arrangement covering that kind of export operations and that kind of goods is in force;

if export operations, or other operations, are to be carried out in relation to different kinds of goods at the establishment—the operations:

are compatible with each other; and

will not have a detrimental effect on export operations to be carried out in relation to a kind of prescribed goods at the establishment;

any other requirement prescribed by the rules.

For the purposes of paragraph (b), a relevant Commonwealth liability of a person is taken to have been paid in certain circumstances (see section 431).

If the Secretary registers the establishment, the Secretary may, if the Secretary considers it appropriate, set an expiry date for the registration.

If there is no expiry date for the registration of an establishment, the registration remains in force unless it is revoked (see subsection 115(1)).

A decision to set an expiry date for the registration of an establishment is a reviewable decision (see Part 2 of Chapter 11).

The Secretary may set an expiry date for the registration of an establishment under subsection (3) even if rules made for the purposes of subsection 115(5) apply in relation to the registration.