Today the Government will introduce landmark reforms to Parliament to overhaul Australia's merger rules, another big step towards further boosting competition and productivity in our economy.
This legislative package is the biggest reform to Australia's merger settings in almost 50 years.
It will create a regime that more efficiently and effectively targets mergers that are anti‑competitive, while allowing mergers that are pro‑competitive to proceed faster.
The Treasury Laws Amendment (Mergers and Acquisitions Reform) Bill 2024 delivers the merger reforms we announced in April, and will make our merger approval system faster, stronger, simpler, more targeted and more transparent.
This Bill will bring Australia's merger system into the 21st century and make it easier for the majority of mergers to be approved quickly, so the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) can focus on the minority that give rise to competition concerns.
We understand that most mergers have genuine economic benefits and are an important feature of any healthy, open financial system but some mergers can cause serious economic harm.
Under the new regime, there will be a mandatory notification system for mergers above certain thresholds and the ACCC will be the decision maker on approvals.
There will be three key thresholds:
- Any merger will be looked at if the Australian turnover of the combined businesses is above $200 million, and either the business or assets being acquired has Australian turnover above $50 million or global transaction value above $250 million.
- The ACCC will look at any merger involving a very large business with Australian turnover more than $500 million buying a smaller business or assets with Australian turnover above $10 million.
- To target serial acquisitions, all mergers by businesses with combined Australian turnover of more than $200 million where the cumulative Australian turnover from acquisitions in the same or substitutable goods or services over a 3 year period is at least $50 million will be captured, or $10 million if a very large business is involved.
These thresholds will allow the ACCC to focus its efforts on the mergers that really matter. The thresholds will be reviewed 12 months after coming into effect, to ensure they are working as intended.
Land acquisitions involving residential property development and certain commercial property acquisitions won't be included to avoid clogging up the system with simple land purchases unless they are captured by additional targeted notification requirements.
In addition, the legislation provides flexibility to allow the Treasurer to adjust and calibrate the thresholds to respond to evidence‑based concerns from the ACCC about high‑risk mergers, like in the supermarket sector.
This power, combined with the thresholds, will allow the ACCC to review all the mergers that they have been typically concerned about.
Using this provision, the Government intends to make sure the ACCC is notified of every merger in the supermarket sector.
Reviewing every supermarket merger is part of the decisive action our Government is taking to help Australians get fairer prices at the checkout. We want to make sure supermarket mergers don't come at the cost of Australians, families and pensioners getting a fair price on their grocery bills.
The Government intends to use this designation power to get the competition regulator to review purchases of an interest above 20 per cent in an unlisted or private company, if one of the companies involved in the deal has turnover more than $200 million.
The Government will also consider targeted notification requirements for sectors such as fuel, liquor and oncology radiology.
We consulted widely on these thresholds and the legislation, including with consumers, businesses, the agriculture sector, legal practitioners, investors, academics and industry associations.
Subject to the passage of legislation, the new system will come into effect from 1 January 2026, with businesses able to make voluntary notifications under the new regime from 1 July 2025.
This legislation will improve competition in our economy, which means higher quality choices for consumers and fairer prices.
It builds on our substantial competition agenda including revitalising National Competition Policy with the states and territories, abolishing 500 nuisance tariffs, our reforms to the supermarket sector, and productivity enhancing reforms to planning and zoning around the country.
The Albanese Government is focused on tackling cost of living pressures now and building a more dynamic, more productive, and more resilient economy. Making our economy more competitive is critical to these goals.
