The Government has introduced the Treasury Laws Amendment (Streamlining and Improving Economic Outcomes for Australians) Bill 2022 into the House of Representatives to, amongst other things, amend the Corporations Act to prescribe exemptions for foreign financial service providers  from the need to hold an Australian financial services licence.

Foreign financial services providers are overseas providers of financial services, including (but not limited to) banking, investment funding, wealth management, insurance, and financial advisory services.

The Bill provides the following exemptions:

• an exemption from the requirement to hold an Australian financial services licence for persons that provide financial services from outside Australia to professional investors (the professional
  investor exemption);
• an exemption from the requirement to hold an Australian financial services licence for persons regulated by comparable regulators that provide financial services to wholesale clients (the
  comparable regulator exemption); and
• an exemption from the fit and proper person test for persons regulated by comparable regulators when applying for an Australian financial services licence for the provision of financial services to wholesale clients (the fit and proper person test exemption).

If the Bill is passed it will commence on 1 April 2023.

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