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Defence Trade Cooperation Treaty with the United States

Post-implementation Review – Defence

On 16 May 2013, the Defence Trade Cooperation Treaty entered into force. The treaty removes administrative delays associated with existing Australian and US export licensing systems while ensuring that sensitive defence technology is appropriately protected. A Regulation Impact Statement was required at the time the decision to enter into the treaty was made, but was not prepared. Consequently a post-implementation review (PIR) was required. A PIR was completed by the Department of Defence and was assessed as compliant by the Office of Best Practice Regulation. The PIR found that since the legislation and regulation came into effect in mid-2013, the uptake of Australian Community membership among defence industry has been steadily increasing. While the number of transactions undertaken has been modest, recent indications are that they are also steadily increasing. The PIR also found that the changes reduced regulatory burden by $633,000 per annum. The reduction was agreed with the OBPR.