Acquisition of Shares

An acquisition of a substantial interest in an existing Australian business with:

• total assets exceeding $100 million; or
• where the proposal values the business at over $100 million;

would require notification under section 26 of the Act.

Different thresholds apply to US investors (indexed annually) - $110 million for investments in prescribed sensitive sectors or by an entity controlled by a US government, or $953 million in any other case.

Proposals in Sensitive Sectors or those which raise specific national interest issues may be subject to more detailed examination.

Approvals of proposals may be made subject to the parties meeting certain conditions. In practice, such conditions relate most commonly to the time period for real estate development or to environmental requirements.

How to Apply

In most cases, the submission of a Section 26 Notice is required when making an application to acquire shares. For full details of how to apply for approval, please see the How To Apply section. In addition, please refer to the Notices section of the website for guidelines on when and which notice is applicable.