30 April 2020
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Due to COVID-19, modern slavery reporting deadlines have been extended and new guidance has been released.
Extension for statements
On 28 April 2020, the Government announced that the deadlines for entities due to lodge statements under the Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Cth) (Act) will be extended by three months.
The extension applies to all reporting entities under the Act operating on reporting periods that end on or before 30 June 2020.
The table below summarises the new reporting deadlines:
Reporting period | Original deadline for submission of modern slavery statement | New, extended deadline for submission of modern slavery statement | ||
1 April 2019 – 31 March 2020 (Foreign Financial Year) | 30 September 2020 | 31 December 2020 | ||
1 July 2019 – 30 June 2020 (Australian Financial Year) | 31 December 2020 | 31 March 2021 | ||
Reporting periods ending after 30 June 2020 | The six month deadline for reporting periods ending after 30 June 2020 remains unchanged |
The Government said that the decision to temporarily extend reporting deadlines recognises the significant and unprecedented impact of COVID-19 on Australian businesses and global supply chains. The extension will provide businesses additional time to ensure they are able to comply with their legislative obligations. Click here to read the announcement.
New guidance
The Australian Border Force has also released guidance on how entities can reduce the risk of vulnerable workers in their operations and supply chains becoming exposed to modern slavery as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic (Guidance), including:
The Guidance also explains how reporting entities under the Act can address the impact of COVID-19 in their statements, and encourages reporting entities affected by COVID‑19 to clearly explain in their modern slavery statements how COVID-19 has impacted their capacity to assess and address modern slavery risks during their reporting periods.
A link to the Guidance can be found here.
Authors: Scott Alden & Victoria Gordon
Disclaimer
The information in this publication is of a general nature and is not intended to address the circumstances of any particular individual or entity. Although we endeavour to provide accurate and timely information, we do not guarantee that the information in this newsletter is accurate at the date it is received or that it will continue to be accurate in the future.
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