Business Names Registration Act 2011
In this Act:
ABN
for an entity means the entity
'
s ABN as shown in the Australian Business Register.
[ CCH Note: Definition of " ABN " will be repealed by No 69 of 2020 (as amended by No 35 of 2022), s 3 and Sch 1 item 104, effective 1 July 2026 or a day or days to be fixed by Proclamation. For application and transitional provisions, see note under s 23(2) .]
[ CCH Note: Definition of " ABN " will be inserted by No 69 of 2020 (as amended by No 35 of 2022), s 3 and Sch 1 item 105, effective 1 July 2026 or a day or days to be fixed by Proclamation. For application and transitional provisions, see note under s 23(2) . The definition will read:
]ABN
: see Australian Business Number .
(a) the Australian Capital Territory; and
(b) the Northern Territory; and
(ba) Norfolk Island; and
(c) the Jervis Bay Territory; and
(d) the Territory of Christmas Island; and
(e) the Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands.
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application fee
, for an application by an entity for an extract of the Business Names Register, means the fee imposed under the
Business Names Registration (Fees) Act 2011
in relation to such an application.
[ CCH Note: Definition of " application fee " will be repealed by No 69 of 2020 (as amended by No 35 of 2022), s 3 and Sch 1 item 106, effective 1 July 2026 or a day or days to be fixed by Proclamation. For application and transitional provisions, see note under s 23(2) .]
ASIC
means the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.
ASIC Act
means the
Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001
.
[ CCH Note: Definition of " ASIC Act " will be repealed by No 69 of 2020 (as amended by No 35 of 2022), s 3 and Sch 1 item 107, effective 1 July 2026 or a day or days to be fixed by Proclamation. For application and transitional provisions, see note under s 23(2) .]
ASIC member
means a member of ASIC (as defined for the purposes of the ASIC Act).
[ CCH Note: Definition of " ASIC member " will be repealed by No 69 of 2020 (as amended by No 35 of 2022), s 3 and Sch 1 item 108, effective 1 July 2026 or a day or days to be fixed by Proclamation. For application and transitional provisions, see note under s 23(2) .]
Australia
(Repealed by No 33 of 2016)
Australian business law
means a law of the Commonwealth, or of a State or Territory, that is a law that regulates, or relates to the regulation of, business or persons engaged in business.
[ CCH Note: Definition of " Australian Business Number or ABN " will be inserted by No 69 of 2020 (as amended by No 35 of 2022), s 3 and Sch 1 item 109, effective 1 July 2026 or a day or days to be fixed by Proclamation. For application and transitional provisions, see note under s 23(2) . The definition will read:
]Australian Business Number
or ABN
, for an entity, has the meaning given by the A New Tax System (Australian Business Number) Act 1999 .
Australian Business Register
means the register established under section
24
of the
A New Tax System (Australian Business Number) Act 1999
.
[ CCH Note: Definition of " Australian Business Register " will be repealed by No 69 of 2020 (as amended by No 35 of 2022), s 3 and Sch 1 item 110, effective 1 July 2026 or a day or days to be fixed by Proclamation. For application and transitional provisions, see note under s 23(2) .]
available
: a business name is available to an entity in the circumstances set out in:
(a) section 25 and subsection 31(3) of this Act; and
(b) item 21 of Schedule 1 to the Transitional Act.
business
has the meaning given by section
4
.
business day
means a day that is not a Saturday, a Sunday, a public holiday or a bank holiday in a referring/adopting State or an affected Territory.
business name
means a name used, or to be used, in relation to one or more businesses.
Business Names Register
means the register established and maintained under section
22
.
[ CCH Note: Definition of " Business Names Register " will be repealed by No 69 of 2020 (as amended by No 35 of 2022), s 3 and Sch 1 item 111, effective 1 July 2026 or a day or days to be fixed by Proclamation. For application and transitional provisions, see note under s 23(2) .]
carrying on
a business includes doing anything in the course of the commencement or termination of the business.
(a) an Agency (within the meaning of the Public Service Act 1999 ); or
(b) a body, whether incorporated or not, established for a public purpose by or under a law of the Commonwealth; or
(c) a person:
(i) holding or performing the duties of an office established by or under a law of the Commonwealth; or
(ii) holding an appointment made under a law of the Commonwealth.
Commonwealth Minister
means the Minister.
company
means a body registered as a company under the
Corporations Act 2001
.
consent application
means an application for registration of a business name that includes a statement that the entity to whom the business name is currently registered has consented to the registration of the business name to the applicant.
data standards
means standards made by the Registrar under section
62H
.
designated secrecy provision
has the meaning given by subsection
62N(3)
.
disclosure framework
means the disclosure framework made by the Registrar under section
62L
.
disqualified
: an entity is
disqualified
in the circumstances specified in section
32
.
entity
has the meaning given by section
5
.
entity on whose application a decision is reviewable
means an entity on whose application the decision is reviewable under section
56
.
Federal Court
means the Federal Court of Australia.
government body
has the meaning given by subsection
11(3)
.
government entity
has the meaning given by section
41
of the
A New Tax System (Australian Business Number) Act 1999
.
identical
: means identical under rules made by the Minister under section
26
.
intelligence or security agency
has the meaning given by section
85ZL
of the
Crimes Act 1914
.
nearly identical
: means nearly identical under rules made by the Minister under section
26
.
non-entity joint venture
means an arrangement that the Commissioner of Taxation is satisfied is a contractual arrangement:
(a) under which 2 or more parties undertake an economic activity that is subject to the joint control of the parties; and
(b) that is entered into to obtain individual benefits for the parties, in the form of a share of the output of the arrangement rather than joint or collective profits for all the parties.
notified State/Territory register
has the meaning given by section
6
.
notified successor
, in relation to a business name, means an entity entered on the Business Names Register under subsection
40(4)
as a notified successor in relation to the business name.
[ CCH Note: Definition of " notified successor " will be amended by No 69 of 2020 (as amended by No 35 of 2022), s 3 and Sch 1 item 112, by substituting " registered " for " entered on the Business Names Register " , effective 1 July 2026 or a day or days to be fixed by Proclamation. For application and transitional provisions, see note under s 23(2) .]
(a) appointment or employment by the Commonwealth, or the performance of services for the Commonwealth; or
(b) the exercise of powers or performance of functions under a delegation by the Registrar.
priority
: an entity has
priority
over a business name in the circumstances set out in section
29
.
protected information
means information:
(a) obtained by a person in the course of the person ' s official employment; and
(b) disclosed to the person or another person, or obtained by the person or another person:
(i) under, or in relation to, this Act or the Transitional Act; or
(ii) under another law of the Commonwealth;
in connection with particular functions or powers of the Registrar.
referring/adopting State
has the meaning given by section
8
.
registered owner
, in relation to a registered trade mark, has the meaning given by section
6
of the
Trade Marks Act 1995
.
registered trade mark
has the meaning given by section
6
of the
Trade Marks Act 1995
.
Registrar
has the meaning given by section
6A
.
registration fee
, for the registration of a business name to an entity, means the fee imposed under the
Business Names Registration (Fees) Act 2011
in relation to the registration.
renewal fee
, for the renewal of the registration of a business name to an entity, means the fee imposed under the
Business Names Registration (Fees) Act 2011
in relation to the renewal.
reviewable
: a decision is
reviewable
if it is reviewable under section
56
.
secrecy provision
has the meaning given by subsection
62N(2)
.
staff member
has the same meaning as in the ASIC Act.
[ CCH Note: Definition of " staff member " will be repealed by No 69 of 2020 (as amended by No 35 of 2022), s 3 and Sch 1 item 113, effective 1 July 2026 or a day or days to be fixed by Proclamation. For application and transitional provisions, see note under s 23(2) .]
State
, when used in a geographical sense, includes the coastal sea of the State.
superannuation fund
has the same meaning as in the
Income Tax Assessment Act 1997
.
taxation law
has the same meaning as in the
Income Tax Assessment Act 1997
.
Territory
, when used in a geographical sense, includes the coastal sea of the Territory.
this Act
includes instruments made under this Act.
Transitional Act
means the
Business Names Registration (Transitional and Consequential Provisions) Act 2011
, and includes instruments made under that Act.
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