Financial Services Compensation Scheme of Last Resort Levy (First Levy Period) Determination 2024

The Financial Services Compensation Scheme of Last Resort Levy (First Levy Period) Determination 2024 is a Commonwealth notifiable instrument made under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme of Last Resort Levy Act 2023.

Its role is limited. It specifies the day the first levy period starts. Under section 5 of the instrument, the first levy period starts on 2 April 2024.

The instrument also includes a note saying the first levy period ends on 30 June 2024, with that end date referring back to the Act. That means this determination sets the start date, but the end date is sourced from the Act rather than created by this instrument itself.

This is a date-setting instrument. It does one specific job within a larger legislative scheme. It does not reproduce the broader levy framework and it should not be read as if it answers every levy question.

Based on the text of the instrument, it does not itself do the following:

It does not identify every class of business that is liable. It does not set levy amounts. It does not explain how any levy is calculated. It does not set out payment procedures, forms, notices or collection steps. It does not describe the full operation of the Compensation Scheme of Last Resort.

That distinction matters because businesses sometimes assume that a short instrument either creates the whole obligation or has no practical effect. Neither assumption is safe here. The instrument is narrow, but the date it sets can still affect how a regulated business tracks the first levy period in budgets, board papers, compliance calendars and advice from external consultants.

The instrument itself does not list all covered entities. It says expressions have the same meaning as in the Financial Services Compensation Scheme of Last Resort Levy Act 2023, which means the legal context comes from the Act.

In practical terms, the businesses most likely to care about this determination are those operating in regulated financial services and credit markets that may be captured by the broader levy framework. That can include Australian financial services licensees, Australian credit licensees, financial advice businesses, credit businesses and fintechs carrying on regulated activities.

Many businesses outside regulated financial services and credit are unlikely to be directly affected. A café, retailer, trade business or software company with no regulated financial services or credit activity would not usually look to this instrument as part of its ordinary compliance obligations.

The key point is that business size is not the main trigger. The real question is whether your business sits within the regulated population covered by the underlying Act.

You are most likely to need this page if your business is asking a timing question about the first levy period. Common trigger points include a board asking when the first period began, a finance team preparing regulatory cost assumptions, a compliance manager updating a legal register, or a startup entering a regulated market and trying to understand the scheme timeline.

The instrument gives a clear answer to one of those questions. The first levy period starts on 2 April 2024. If your internal records use a different start date, they should be checked.

However, this instrument is not enough to answer whether your business owes money, whether a particular sector is covered, or whether a payment obligation has arisen. Those are separate questions that need to be checked against the Act and any related scheme materials.

Because this instrument is limited to setting the first levy period start date, the safest way to describe business obligations is practical and process-focused.

If your business may be within the broader levy regime, you should record the correct first levy period start date of 2 April 2024 in your compliance and finance systems. You should also make sure your team understands that the instrument does not itself answer the full liability question.

For many businesses, the immediate task is not payment but verification. Someone in the business should confirm whether the Act applies to your licence, sector and activities. If the answer is yes or potentially yes, your internal records should align with the dates used in the legislative framework.

This is especially important for businesses with multiple advisers, growing fintechs, and SMEs that have recently become licensed. In those businesses, timing assumptions can easily become inconsistent across board papers, budgets, legal advice and compliance reporting.

The instrument is dated 31 January 2024. Its commencement clause states that the whole instrument commences on the day after it is registered. The Federal Register entry shows 31 January 2024.

The instrument then specifies that the first levy period starts on 2 April 2024. It also includes a note that the first levy period ends on 30 June 2024, referring to subsection 7(1) of the Act.

For businesses, these dates serve different purposes. The instrument commencement date tells you when the determination itself became operative. The 2 April 2024 date tells you when the first levy period begins. The 30 June 2024 date helps identify the end of that first period, but it should be understood as an Act-based date rather than a date created by this determination.

If your business may be affected by the broader levy framework, this instrument should be reflected in the records your business uses to manage regulatory obligations. The goal is consistency across legal, finance and governance documents.

In practice, that means checking whether your legal register, compliance calendar, board reporting pack and budget assumptions all use the same first levy period dates. If your business has obtained external advice, that advice should also be checked for consistency with the instrument and the Act.

If you are still unsure whether your business is covered, your records should say that coverage is being assessed rather than assuming either way. That is usually a better governance approach than treating a short timing instrument as if it settles the whole issue.

The safest reading is straightforward. This determination answers a timing question, not every levy question. It tells you when the first levy period starts. It does not, by itself, tell you whether your business must pay a levy, how much any levy may be, or what administrative steps apply.

That is common in Commonwealth legislative schemes. A parent Act may establish the framework, while a separate instrument fills in one operational detail such as a date. Here, the instrument expressly relies on the Financial Services Compensation Scheme of Last Resort Levy Act 2023 for authority and definitions.

If your business is potentially affected, check three things before relying on this page. First, confirm whether your licence and activities are within the Act. Second, confirm that your internal records use the correct first levy period dates. Third, make sure decision-makers understand that this determination is only one part of the broader scheme.