Mergers and acquisitions reform
Following the Property Council’s sustained advocacy, in October 2024 the government announced an exemption from notification for benign land acquisitions, including those made in relation to residential property development and certain commercial property transactions.
Since the announcement and passage of the Bill, the government has yet to finalise and publish its ministerial instrument, the regulation which will set the thresholds for (and exemptions from) notification under its reformed M&A regime.
With a 1 July start date for voluntary notification, there are still a number of outstanding matters yet to be consulted on and finalised, including the notification waiver process, fees, and the notification forms themselves.
The Property Council has been engaging extensively with Treasury and the government on the exemption, and the broader thresholds.
Part of this advocacy has been about the myriad forms that property transactions can take, from simple direct property transactions and corporate mergers and acquisitions, to options agreements, pre-commitments and development rights.
In addition, we continue to advocate on the broad range of other benign land acquisitions, including vanilla office, commercial or industrial leases and renewals – it is our view that these should be exempt unless covered by an additional targeted notification requirement.
As part of gazetting the ministerial instrument, the government will need to formally consult as part of that process. The Property Council will engage with members closely during that period to ensure its thresholds and exemptions from notification meet the spirit of the Treasurer’s commitment in Parliament.