The Albanese Government will abolish another 500 nuisance tariffs.
We’re abolishing these additional tariffs to help cut red tape, ease the compliance burden on businesses and boost productivity.
This means cheaper products for Australian consumers and reduced compliance costs for Australian businesses.
This is on top of the 457 tariffs already abolished by the government in July last year.
This progress is built on the consensus reached at the Economic Reform Roundtable.
With this reform, we’ll have removed around 1,000 tariffs over two years and streamlined approximately $23 billion worth of trade, saving Australian businesses $157 million in compliance costs annually.
It means the Albanese Government has slashed more tariffs than any government in two decades.
These nuisance tariffs risk doing more harm than good.
From today, Treasury will consult on the proposed list of almost 500 additional tariffs to be abolished by the government.
Submissions will be open on the Treasury website until 10 December and a full and final list of agreed tariffs for removal will be published in the next Budget.
Examples of products that could be cheaper as a result of the abolition of tariffs proposed by the government include:
- Tyres with annual imports worth nearly $4 billion, raise less than $80,000 in revenue per year. Abolition will save business over $32 million in compliance costs each year.
- Televisions with annual imports worth over $1.4 billion, raise less than $43,000 in revenue per year. Abolition will save business over $13 million in compliance costs each year.
- Wine glasses with annual imports worth over $42 million, raise less than $28,000 in revenue per year. Abolition will save business over $375,000 in compliance costs each year.
- Air conditioners with annual imports worth over $58 million, raise less than $100,000 in revenue per year. Abolition will save business over $504,000 in compliance costs each year.
While abolishing ineffective tariffs, the Albanese Labor Government is strengthening protections for Australian businesses from unfair trade practices.
Responsibility for safeguards actions, which protect Australian industry from sudden surges in imports, will move from the Productivity Commission to the Anti‑Dumping Commission.
This change will bring together responsibility for all trade remedy measures within the Anti‑Dumping Commission, allowing for better harmonisation of actions to support Australian manufacturers and consumers.
By accelerating the modernisation of Australia’s anti‑dumping regime, we’re ensuring it is fit for purpose in a modern global economy.
These are common sense changes that will help to make our economy more prosperous, productive and resilient in the face of growing global uncertainty.
We’re proud of the progress that we’ve been able to make unilaterally because tariffs push up compliance costs on business and risk pushing up prices for workers and families as well.
While other nations are putting up trade barriers, we’re tearing them down.
We’re abolishing more tariffs because we recognise their removal will deliver benefits to Australian businesses.
We’re grateful for the clear consensus that was built around tariff reform at the Roundtable, and these contributions will continue to inform the government’s decisions on economic reform in the lead up to the budget and beyond.