On 21 December 2012, the Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation released for public consultation draft legislation to address perceived gaps in existing credit regulation and enforcement. The draft legislation seeks to address avoidance by prohibiting ‘credit-like’ transactions arranged for the purpose of avoiding the National Credit Code. While the costs have not been fully quantified, the Regulation Impact Statement (RIS) suggests that the proposed changes may expand the number of credit providers which need to comply with industry obligations (and therefore raise compliance costs for these providers) while reducing the availability of credit to some consumers. However, consumers would have better access to the range of protections provided by the National Credit Code. The RIS was prepared by the Treasury and assessed as adequate by the Office of Best Practice Regulation.
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