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Australia's Personal Property Securities Act 2009
The Australian Government had been reviewing its personal property securities law since 2006. In December 2009, the Australian Personal Property Securities Act 2009 (“the PPS Act”) was passed.
The Australian PPS Act establishes the Personal Property Securities Register (“the PPS Register”). This register will be a single, national register which will replace numerous State, Territory and Commonwealth electronic and paper registers.
The PPS Act and PPS Register are scheduled to commence from the registration commencement time, which will be in early 2012. Attorney-General, Robert McClelland will make a determination under the Personal Property Securities legislation that will set the actual date for the PPS Register commencement.
The Register will be maintained by Insolvency and Trustee Service Australia. It will be computer based, publicly accessible and updateable in real time 24 hours a day, seven days per week via the internet and Business-to-Government connections. Fees will be charged to cover the costs associated with the operation of the Register, but it is not known yet what these fees will be.
There will be a transitional period after the commencement of the PPS Act. Security interests recorded on the existing State, Territory and Commonwealth registers will be migrated to the PPS Register under the PPS Act’s transitional provisions.
The Australian legislation is similar to New Zealand’s Personal Property Securities Act 1999 in many areas. If you are doing business in Australia or with Australian businesses, you may wish to discuss with your legal advisor what the Australian PPS Act could mean for you.
For more information on the Australian PPS Act and PPS Register visit:
