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Exporters should be aware that Australia maintains United Nations Security Council sanctions and bilateral sanctions in respect of a number of countries. These sanctions require Australian organisations and individuals to comply with a range of measures and, in general, also apply extraterritorially to Australian nationals overseas.
Sanctions may include export and import restrictions, prohibitions of technical assistance, training and financing, travel sanctions, and financial sanctions against specific persons and entities.
See the following Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade website for more information about sanctions: www.dfat.gov.au/un/unsc_sanctions/unsc_sanctions_whatare.html.
For information about United Nations sanctions currently in force, please see: www.dfat.gov.au/un/unsc_sanctions/index.html.
For information about the operation of the defence and strategic goods export control regime, please see: www.defence.gov.au/strategy/deco.
Dealings with terrorists - what the Australian business community should know
The Government has passed laws making it a criminal offence to hold assets that are owned or controlled by terrorist organisations or individuals, or to make assets available to them, punishable by up to five years imprisonment. Go to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade's Consolidated List to search for individuals and entities listed by the Government for the purposes of terrorist asset freezing.
In addition to the Consolidated List, the Australian Government also maintains a list of groups that are proscribed as terrorist organisations under the Criminal Code. Go to the National Security Australia website to view the Criminal Code list of 'terrorist organisations'. If a group is listed as a 'terrorist organisation' it is an offence to:
- Direct the activities of the organisation
- Recruit persons to the organisation
- Receive training from or provide training to the organisation
- Receive funds from or make available funds to the organisation
- Provide support or resources to the organisation
For further information, please see www.dfat.gov.au/trade/exporting.html#ec
Issues which may affect your ability to trade and operate offshore include: - Differences between legal systems
- Question of which laws will apply in disputes
- Rules of competition
- Patent registration
- Extra-territoriality of overseas legislation
- Product liability
International contracts for the sale of goods can be very complex. This includes specially prepared contracts. It also includes contracts that have ‘standard terms and conditions’ that are often in small print on a standard order form.
Before you negotiate an international sales contract, ask for advice on the legal implications from a professional who specialises in international contracts. This includes information about:
- Defining key terms (eg. Incoterms 2000), which are the standard trade definitions most commonly used in international contracts)
- Limiting agreement to the contract
- Describing the goods
- Contents of the payment clause
- The ‘retain property until payment’ clause
- Trade terms (shipping terms, as with Incoterms 2000)
- Force majeure
- Dispute resolution
- Applicable law and jurisdiction
- Fees and charges - including what you are responsible for and what your buyer is responsible for
Australian companies need to ensure that they have checked the credentials of overseas partners and buyers. Australian companies also need to be aware that there are scam operations working in some markets and again this emphasises the need to conduct background checks. Before signing or accepting contracts, it is in your interests to seek professional legal advice from legal firms specialising in international work.
Information on frauds, scams and dishonest conduct
Below are the details of some dishonest schemes that have been brought to our attention, operating in certain markets. This is information on such schemes, is not offered as advice nor is it a comprehensive list of such schemes. Austrade provides this information to highlight the importance of being aware of such practices and validating the credentials of potential buyers and partners.
Email scams
In the case of emails/letters the author may say they have obtained your address from a mutual friend or Austrade. The author may identify him/herself as the widow/son/daughter/nephew etc of a recently deceased Tribal Chief/President etc who has in their possession a large sum of money (usually US$10 million plus) that they need to get out of the country. The offer is a request for the receiver to advise bank account details to receive 20 per cent of the monies plus the opportunity to help the author invest the rest.
Individuals and companies should not respond to these requests for funds. Some authors will mention Austrade or another organisation as a reference and the receiver should be aware that Austrade is in no way involved in these activities. If you are in doubt of the legitimacy of an email that you have received please contact us at
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.
Gift giving scams
The ‘gift giving’ scams that Austrade is aware of have been operating in some parts of China. The scams generally operate as follows:
- An Australian manufacturer is contacted direct by a potential customer.
- The customer expresses interest in the product/s on offer and invites the Australian manufacturer to visit the market.
- The Australian manufacturer does visit the market and meet with the company claiming to be a customer. There are several meetings and dinners and the customer suggests that the Australian manufacturer should pay for these events and also offer gifts as a sign of the new partnership. While in the market the customer promises to order large quantities of product.
- The manufacturer returns to Australia and follows up with the customer seeking to confirm details of the promised order. The manufacturer does not hear from the customer again and in monetary terms has lost the costs of the travel to the market and gifts provided.
- Noting the above, Australian entities should actively check and confirm the credentials of customers that have made direct contact.
Please contact
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for advice on the services we can provide in this area.
Business registry scam
Austrade has been alerted to a dishonest scheme involving a non existent business registry. The scam operates as follows:
- Australian company receives a letter encouraging them to register their business information in a publication called Industry and Commerce 2006.
- The one page letter includes questions about the type of business and contact details. The letter looks professional and is addressed correctly.
- The letter requests payment of $1200 to be listed in the directory.
- The return envelope is to an address in Spain.
While this particular example is a scam obviously there are many legitimate business registries in operation. Before responding to requests for inclusion in such directories companies should confirm that both the publishing company and the actual publication exist. Please contact
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for advice on the services we can provide in this area.
For further information on scams, visit the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's website SCAMwatch, which provides information on all types of scams from pyramid selling to Internet scams, and how to avoid and report them to the relevant agencies.
Austrade specifically denies liability for loss associated with use of this information and the user does so entirely at their own risk.
source: http://www.austrade.gov.au/
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