Kommunicate Global Newsletter (Q2 Apr – Jun 2026)

July 9, 2026
Newsletter
105 min read
Kommunicate our global regulatory newsletter 2026

Our Global Regulatory Newsletter (Q2 2026)

Welcome to the fourth issue of Lexplosion’s Kommunicate Global, your go-to source for the latest regulatory updates from Singapore, Indonesia, UAE-Dubai, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, United Kingdom and Australia. Follow our Linkedin handle for regulatory changes, blogs and flyers.

Global Regulatory Updates

Click on the location you are interested in to know about the regulatory changes that have taken place from 1st January 2026 to 31st March 2026

SINGAPORE

UAE

BANGLADESH

UK

SRI LANKA

AUSTRALIA

INDONESIA

Singapore Regulatory Updates

IMDA Singapore rolls out Discussion Paper on Allocation of Legal Responsibility for AI Agents

In May 2026, the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) of Singapore published a discussion paper assessing the issue of the attribution of liability with respect to situations where an AI agent acts autonomously, uses tools, interacts with third parties and causes harm. Businesses utilizing agentic AI technologies should approach the question of liability as one of governance and risk-allocation and not as just a legal question that arises in the aftermath of an injury.

Although contract law continues to serve as a tool to allocate responsibilities between the parties, define the expectations of behavior of the AI agents and assign the risks associated with their usage, businesses should not rely solely upon disclaimers and limitation clauses in contracts, particularly in consumer contexts.

The paper also discusses whether strict liability may be considered for certain high-risk agentic AI use cases, although broad strict liability could discourage innovation and create moral hazard. Businesses operating in higher-risk sectors should therefore prepare for the possibility of more prescriptive liability or compliance frameworks in the future.

Key Compliance Takeaways

  1. Maintain evidence of reasonable care – Compliance teams should keep records of risk assessments, testing results, deployment approvals, monitoring reports, incident responses and user disclosures. These records may be critical if liability is disputed going forward.
  2. Define permitted agent behaviour clearly – Businesses should document what the AI agent is allowed to do, what tools it can use, what decisions it can make, and when human approval is required.
  3. Strengthen transparency and disclosures – Users and affected parties should be informed about the AI agent’s capabilities, limitations, risk areas and escalation channels. Disclosures may help demonstrate responsible deployment but should not be treated as a complete shield from liability.
  4. Review insurance and incident response arrangements – Businesses should consider whether existing insurance covers AI-related losses and whether incident response plans address autonomous agent behaviour, third-party harm, and liability allocation.

The Finance (Income Taxes) Bill 2026 proposes amendments to the Income Tax Act 1947 and the Multinational Enterprise (Minimum Tax) Act 2024. If enacted in its current form, the Bill affects three main areas: tax incentive claims, corporate tax filing processes and Pillar Two compliance for multinational enterprise groups (MNE).

For businesses, the key impact is that several tax support measures announced in Budget 2026 will require proper documentation, eligibility checks and claim substantiation. The enhancement of the Enterprise Innovation Scheme allows businesses to claim 400% tax deductions on up to SGD 50,000 of qualifying AI expenditure for each of the years of assessment 2027 and 2028. This creates an opportunity for tax savings, but also increases the need to clearly identify, classify and evidence qualifying AI-related expenditure.

The Bill also extends the 250% tax deduction for qualifying donations until 31st December 2029. Businesses claiming this deduction will need to ensure that donations fall within the prescribed qualifying categories, such as cash donations to Institutions of a Public Character or the Singapore Government and eligible in-kind donations.

For year of assessment 2026, the proposed Corporate Income Tax Rebate provides a 50% rebate of corporate tax payable. Active companies that employed at least one local employee in calendar year 2025 may receive a minimum benefit of SGD 2,000 through the Corporate Income Tax Rebate Cash Grant, subject to an overall maximum benefit of SGD 40,000. Companies should verify their eligibility, employment records and tax payable position to support any claim or grant entitlement.

Companies will be required to use IRAS’ e-service to file objections and revisions to tax assessments. This means companies must ensure that responsible personnel have access to the relevant IRAS digital systems and that internal tax dispute workflows are updated.

The proposed amendments to the Multinational Enterprise (Minimum Tax) Act 2024 are significant for multinational enterprise groups subject to Pillar Two rules. The Bill proposes to implement the Side-by-Side Safe Harbour and the Global Anti-Base Erosion information return exchange framework. These amendments are intended to align Singapore’s Pillar Two regime with international standards and reduce duplicated filing obligations for affected MNE groups.

MNE groups may still be required to file GloBE information returns with IRAS if the relevant information is not received from another tax administration within the stipulated deadline. Existing penalties for non-compliance and inaccurate filings will also apply to such filings.

Since this Bill is in the public consultation stage, companies can take preparatory action by tracking the progress of the Bill and prepare to update internal tax compliance procedures if the amendments are enacted.

Key compliance takeaways (if the Bill is enacted in the current form)

  1. Review eligibility for the enhanced Enterprise Innovation Scheme by confirming that AI expenditure meets the qualifying conditions.
  2. Maintain strong documentation for AI-related claims.
  3. Verify claims involving approved innovation partners by confirming that projects involving partner institutions meet the prescribed requirements including the Sectoral AI Centre of Excellence for Manufacturing.
  4. Review donation deduction controls by verifying that donations are made to qualifying recipients and that proper receipts and supporting records are retained.
  5. Review IRAS e-service access by ensuring that authorised personnel have appropriate access and internal approval procedures for electronic tax filings.

The new Land Sales Disqualification Framework and Sales Suspension Framework strengthen the compliance and enforcement regime applicable to housing developers in Singapore. They create a stronger compliance enforcement framework for housing developers in Singapore. The measures are aimed at improving workmanship quality, reducing major defects in housing projects and deterring developers from delivering unsafe or defective homes to buyers. Poor project delivery, serious regulatory breaches or repeated major defects will now result in penalties that directly affect a developer’s ability to operate, bid for future residential land and launch sales for future projects.

The Land Sales Disqualification Framework targets housing developers that either deliver projects with severe regulatory non-compliances affecting safety or demonstrate recalcitrant behaviour through consecutive projects with major defects. A disqualified party may be barred from participating in land sales for sites with residential components for upto five years. Any bid submitted by a disqualified party will not be considered.

The Sales Suspension Framework allows authorities to impose a no-sale licence condition on a developer’s future unlaunched projects. This may apply where the developer has delivered housing projects with severe safety-related regulatory non-compliances or major defects. The suspension may also last upto 5 years.

A significant compliance concern is the broad scope of parties who may be affected. Penalties may apply not only to the errant developer, but also to directors, substantial shareholders and companies connected to those parties. This means compliance failures at one developer may have wider group-level consequences, especially where there are overlapping directors, shareholders or related companies.

Key compliance takeaways

  1. Implement robust quality assurance and quality control processes throughout the project lifecycle from design and construction to handover and defects rectification.
  2. Monitor and track major defects at portfolio level, not just project level to identify recurring issues that may attract penalties.
  3. Review contractual controls, supervision, inspections and performance monitoring of contractors.
  4. Implement processes to set clear internal thresholds for escalating severe defects, recurring defects, safety issues and buyer complaints to senior management and the board.
  5. Assess governance and oversight policies to manage compliance risk across related entities.

The Securities and Futures (Amendment) Act 2026 has introduced important changes to Singapore’s capital markets regulatory framework effective 29th June 2026. The Amendment Act establishes a new regulatory framework for dual listing arrangements through a new Part 13A of the Securities and Futures Act 2001. This allows the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to prescribe overseas exchanges and dual-listing boards, such as a dual-listing platform involving SGX and a recognised overseas exchange.

Pursuant to the related subsidiary legislation, Securities and Futures ( Part 13A) (Global Listing Boad and U.S.Exchange) Regulations 2026, MAS has prescribed the U.S. Exchange/Nasdaq Global Select Market as the designated overseas exchange and SGX’s Global Listing Board as the prescribed dual-listing board. This establishes the regulatory framework for eligible issuers to pursue qualifying dual listings between these markets.

The Amendment Act also changes the general offering process by allowing preliminary prospectuses to be circulated to retail investors, not only institutional and accredited investors. This not only creates a broader investor engagement opportunity, but also introduces additional compliance risk considerations. Issuers must ensure that no official offer is made based on the preliminary prospectus, that the document clearly states it remains subject to change and that reasonable efforts are made to inform recipients once the final prospectus is available.

For sponsored depositary receipts, the responsibility for registering the prospectus shifts from the depositary to the issuer of the underlying securities. This is significant because it places disclosure responsibility closer to the party whose business, financial position, and securities are actually being offered to investors.

The Amendment Act gives Singapore’s capital markets framework greater flexibility by facilitating prescribed dual-listing arrangements and broader investor outreach. However, it also underscores the importance of stronger compliance controls around offering documents, investor communications, regulatory mapping, market misconduct risks and responsibility allocation between issuers and intermediaries.

Key Compliance Takeaways

  1. Review internal capital markets compliance procedures to align with the new framework governing dual listing requirements.
  2. Strengthen offering document controls to ensure disclosure standards comply with applicable regulatory requirements in the dual jurisdictions.
  3. Protocols relating to investor communication must be updated to reflect the requirements governing the circulation and use of preliminary prospectuses.
  4. Enhance compliance and governance over dual-listing offerings by clearly allocating compliance responsibilities among issuers, advisers and other intermediaries involved.
  5. Update prospectus review and approval process of preliminary prospectuses to ensure that it is circulated in accordance with the amended requirements.
  6. Review roles and responsibilities for sponsored depositary receipts to ensure the issuer fulfils its prospectus registration and disclosure obligations.

The Info-communications Media Development Authority (Amendment) Act was passed in Parliament on 7th May 2026. It strengthens IMDA’s regulatory oversight over the media sector and makes changes to ownership control, regulatory intervention powers, information-gathering powers, structural separation, regulated-person coverage, codes and standards and approval requirements for certain transactions.

Under the Act, regulated media entities, investors, acquirers, shareholders and group companies must now pay closer attention to ownership and control changes. Under the amended framework, IMDA’s prior approval is required where a person acquires 30 percent or more equity interest or voting power in a regulated media entity, obtains effective control over its operations or takes over its media business as a going concern.

The definition of “regulated person” is also updated. The amendments allow entities holding newspaper permits through structures other than traditional newspaper companies to be covered and extend coverage to broadcasting-related trust structures that hold broadcasting assets. This means non-traditional corporate and trust structures in the media sector may now fall within IMDA’s regulatory perimeter.

The amendment also expands IMDA to issue directions to regulated persons and owners or controllers of essential media resources to promote fair and efficient market conduct, effective competition, consumer protection and the public interest. Previously IMDA could only issue directions if there was a breach under the IMDA Act and the Telecom and Media Competition Code (TMCC). The directions may require persons to take or refrain from specified actions and recipients are required to comply.

Key compliance takeaways

  1. Review ownership and control changes before completing a transaction involving a regulated media entity to determine whether IMDA’s prior approval is required.
  2. Review customer-facing policies and practices in light of IMDA’s expanded powers to issue directions to protect consumers.
  3. Assess commercial arrangements to ensure they are consistent with fair market conduct requirements under IMDA’s enhanced regulatory framework.
  4. Build IMDA approval checks into M&A processes to identify approval requirements early in transaction planning and documentation.

Get alerts and Summaries of latest regulatory updates to your inbox

Inquire

UAE Regulatory Updates

Ministry of Finance announces amendments to Tax Procedures Executive Regulations effective April 2026

The Ministry of Finance (MoF) introduces amendments to Cabinet Decision No. (74) of 2023 on the Executive Regulation of Federal Decree-Law No. (28) of 2022 on Tax Procedures. The amendments align the Executive Regulation with the updated Tax Procedures framework and took effect since 01.04.2026. It clarifies procedures relating to voluntary disclosures, tax refund claims, taxpayer credit balances, information sharing, confidentiality, record retention and tax audit-related preservation or seizure of documents and assets.

Key Highlights

  1. The amendments introduce clearer rules and procedures for submitting voluntary disclosures, especially where errors affect tax refund claims.
  2. Refund procedures have been clarified to expressly cover any credit balance in favour of the taxpayer, providing certainty for overpaid tax or tax credits.
  3. The framework for sharing taxpayer information with competent authorities has been revised, with stricter confidentiality requirements and limits on use.
  4. The record retention period has been extended by an additional two years for tax periods linked to pending refund claims.
  5. The amendments provide flexibility to extend the preservation or seizure of documents or assets during tax audits and examinations.

Key Compliance Takeaways

  1. Review your tax return review process and ensure that any error affecting tax payable, refund entitlement or credit balance is corrected through voluntary disclosure within the prescribed timeline.
  2. Maintain a tracker of refund claims and credit balances to ensure that refund applications are filed within the applicable limitation period and supported by complete documentation.
  3. Retain tax records for an extended period where a refund claim is pending, instead of closing records based only on the standard retention period.
  4. Update internal tax documentation policies to ensure that records, invoices, refund workings, voluntary disclosure files and correspondence with the FTA are readily available during audits.
  5. Review confidentiality controls for taxpayer information shared with government authorities.
  6. Prepare audit-response protocols for handling FTA requests, including preservation, seizure or extension-related directions concerning documents, records or assets.
  7. Update compliance calendars, refund claim procedures, voluntary disclosure SOPs and document retention matrices to reflect the amended Executive Regulation.

The Ministry of Finance introduced changes to the UAE administrative penalties framework for tax law violations through Cabinet Decision No. (129) of 2025, amending Cabinet Decision No. (40) of 2017 on Administrative Penalties for Violation of Tax Laws in the UAE. The amendment is effective from 14.04.2026 and revises penalties relating to the Tax Procedures Law and Value Added Tax Law, including record-keeping, tax registration, deregistration, tax return filing, payment of payable tax, voluntary disclosures, tax audits, tax calculation obligations, tax invoices, tax credit notes and electronic invoicing requirements.

Key Highlights

  1. The administrative penalty tables under the Tax Procedures Law and VAT Law have been amended.
  2. Penalties have been updated for failure to maintain tax records, submit tax documents in Arabic when requested, register or deregister within the prescribed timeline, update tax records, file tax returns and pay payable tax on time.
  3. Late payment of payable tax may attract a monthly penalty of 14% per annum on the unsettled payable tax amount.
  4. The treatment of voluntary disclosure-related violations has been revised. A voluntary disclosure to correct errors in a tax return, tax assessment or tax refund application may attract a monthly penalty of 1% on the tax difference.
  5. Where a taxable person fails to submit a voluntary disclosure before being notified of a tax audit, the updated framework imposes both a fixed penalty of 15% on the tax difference and a monthly penalty of 1% on the tax difference.
  6. VAT-related penalties now specifically cover failure to issue tax invoices, failure to issue tax credit notes and failure to comply with electronic tax invoice and tax credit note requirements.

Key Compliance Takeaways

  1. Review tax compliance calendar to ensure timely tax registration, deregistration, tax return filing and payment of payable tax.
  2. Maintain complete tax records and ensure that tax-related data, records and documents can be submitted in Arabic when requested by the Federal Tax Authority.
  3. Ensure to strengthen tax return review processes to identify and correct errors before filing or within the permitted correction timeline.
  4. Submit voluntary disclosures promptly where errors are identified in tax returns, tax assessments or tax refund applications, especially before any tax audit notification.
  5. Monitor outstanding payable tax amounts to avoid monthly late payment penalties.
  6. Verify that tax invoices and tax credit notes are issued within the legally prescribed period and contain the required details.
  7. Assess invoicing systems comply with electronic tax invoice and electronic tax credit note requirements.
  8. Companies should update internal SOPs, audit-readiness files, tax documentation controls and FTA response procedures to reflect the revised penalty framework.

The UAE Government issued the Cabinet Resolution No. (59) of 2026 regarding the Executive Regulations of Federal Decree-Law No. (36) of 2023 on Regulating Competition. The resolution outlines the detailed procedural framework for the implementation of the UAE Competition Law, including assessment of dominant position, control of excessively low pricing, exemption requests for certain agreements or practices, approval of economic concentration transactions, investigation of competition complaints, and coordination between the Ministry, relevant local authorities and sectoral regulators.

Key Highlights

  1. The resolution introduces detailed criteria for determining whether an establishment holds a dominant position and whether such position may harm competition in the relevant market.
  2. It sets out specific controls for identifying excessively low pricing, including pricing below average variable cost, marginal cost, or average total cost where anti-competitive intent is established.
  3. It prescribes the documents and procedures required for exemption requests relating to agreements or practices that may otherwise be restricted under the Competition Law.
  4. It requires establishments to notify draft amendments to previously exempted agreements or practices within 30 days from preparing the draft amendment.
  5. It establishes detailed approval procedures for economic concentration transactions, including acquisitions, mergers and joint ventures.
  6. It allows the Ministry or relevant authority to examine economic concentration transactions even where the concerned parties have not submitted an approval application.
  7. It provides procedures for filing, examining and investigating complaints relating to anti-competitive practices.
  8. It allows the Ministry, relevant authority or sectoral regulator to conduct field investigations, inspect records, review electronic documents and request information from establishments.

Key Compliance Takeaways

  1. Review market position regularly to whether your business could be regarded as holding a dominant market position.
  2. Review pricing policies to ensure that it does fall under anti-competitive pricing.
  3. Have process in place for exemption requests, where applicable, to ensure that prescribed notification and supporting documents are prepared before seeking an exemption for agreements or practices.
  4. Have process in place to ensure that agreements or practices covered by an exemption request are implemented only once the relevant approval decision is issued.
  5. Have processes in place notify the Ministry, relevant authority or sectoral regulatory body of any draft amendment to previously exempted agreements or practices within 30 days.
  6. Incorporate merger control assessments into transactions to ensure approval is obtained before implementing mergers or joint ventures that qualify as economic concentration
  7. Maintain a regulatory response protocol to ensure timely response to information requests, meetings, inspections and document reviews conducted by the competent authority.
  8. Maintain complete records to support investigations or complaint proceedings.
  9. Establish procedures to address and implement anti- competitive practices within the period specified by the competent authority.

The Government of Dubai has issued Law No. (2) of 2026 on Public Safety in the Emirate of Dubai. The law establishes a comprehensive legislative framework to protect individuals and property, reduce accidents, injuries and fatalities, and ensure public safety across venues, events, buildings, public spaces, products, services, swimming pools, beaches and other activities that may affect public safety. The law is effective since 01.06.2026 and assigns Dubai Municipality’s Environment, Health and Safety Agency, in coordination with relevant authorities, to oversee and regulate public safety in the Emirate.

Key Highlights

  1. The law introduces public safety rules for venues and events, including requirements on equipment standards, lighting, ventilation, entry and exit arrangements, occupancy limits, crowd control and noise levels.
  2. Owners, operators, service providers and event organisers must provide necessary safety arrangements such as fire-fighting equipment, emergency evacuation measures, first-aid supplies, trained safety supervisors, alarm systems, safety signage and public safety management plans.
  3. The law establishes safety standards for maintenance activities in inhabited buildings and homes, electrical devices and equipment, swimming pools and beaches.
  4. The law imposes duties on the public to comply with safety procedures, instructions and guidelines in public spaces, entertainment venues and events, including emergency evacuation procedures and equipment-use instructions.
  5. The law prohibits handling explosives, fireworks, toxic, flammable or unsafe materials without authorisation.
  6. The law prohibits placing dangerous materials in waste containers or collection vehicles, tampering with waste containers, and opening or interfering with manholes, sewer pipes or stormwater drains except by authorised personnel.
  7. The law prohibits the use or sale of tools, devices or products intended for human use, entertainment or education if they do not comply with public safety requirements or pose a risk to public safety.
  8. Products covered by the law must include safe-use instructions in both Arabic and English.
  9. Violations may attract fines ranging from AED 500 to AED 1,000,000, and repeat violations within one year may attract doubled fines up to AED 2,000,000.
  10. Affected parties must comply with the law within two years, subject to a possible one-time extension approved by the Executive Council based on Dubai Municipality’s recommendation.
  11. The law repeals Local Order No. (11) of 2003 on Public Health and Community Safety in Dubai, while existing regulations issued under it continue to apply unless inconsistent with the new law.

Key Compliance Takeaways

  1. Businesses operating venues, events, buildings, public facilities, swimming pools, beaches or public-facing premises in Dubai should review their public safety arrangements against the new law.
  2. Owners, operators and service providers should prepare or update public safety management plans, emergency evacuation procedures, fire safety arrangements, first-aid facilities, safety signage and alarm systems.
  3. Businesses should assess whether their products, tools, devices or equipment intended for human use, entertainment or education comply with applicable public safety requirements and include safe-use instructions in Arabic and English.
  4. Businesses handling hazardous, toxic, flammable, explosive or unsafe materials should verify that all required authorisations, storage controls, handling procedures and disposal arrangements are in place.
  5. Facility management teams should ensure that waste containers, sewer lines, stormwater drains, manholes and other public safety infrastructure are not obstructed, tampered with or misused.
  6. Event organisers and venue operators should implement crowd control, occupancy limits, safe entry and exit arrangements, lighting, ventilation and noise control measures.
  7. Businesses should train relevant employees, contractors and safety supervisors on emergency procedures, safety instructions, public safety duties and incident response requirements.
  8. Companies should maintain inspection records, safety checklists, authorisations, maintenance records and training documents to demonstrate compliance during inspections.
  9. Businesses should monitor further regulations, decisions and guidelines issued by Dubai Municipality, relevant authorities or the Executive Council to identify specific violations and applicable fines.
  10. Companies should complete a gap assessment and compliance implementation plan within the two-year adjustment period provided under the law.

The Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) has issued the Ministerial Resolution No. (0340) of 2026 concerning the Wage Protection System (WPS) which replaces Ministerial Resolution No. (598) of 2022. The revised resolution is effective since 01.06.2026 and updates the wage payment and reporting framework applicable to private sector establishments registered with the Ministry.

Key Highlights

  1. The resolution introduces a unified wage payment due date for private sector establishments.
  2. Employers are now required to pay wages on the first day of each Gregorian month for the preceding Gregorian month.
  3. The earlier wage payment position was linked to the registered payday specified in the employment contract.
  4. Earlier, wages were considered delayed if not paid within 15 days from the due date, unless the employment contract provided otherwise.
  5. Under the revised position, employers must align wage payments with the unified monthly due date and pay wages through the Wage Protection System approved by the Ministry or any other system adopted by the Ministry.

Failure to comply with the requirements can result in escalating administrative action for the employer, including suspension of new work permits, administrative fines, labour dispute proceedings and, in serious or repeated cases, precautionary seizure of assets, travel bans and referral to the Public Prosecution.

Key Compliance Takeaways

  1. Review payroll processes to ensure wages are paid by the first day of each Gregorian month through the WPS or another MoHRE-approved system.
  2. Update employee status reporting procedures to ensure MoHRE is notified, with the required supporting documentation, where employees are on approved unpaid leave or otherwise fall within recognised exceptions.
  3. Maintain complete payroll records and payment evidence to demonstrate compliance with the revised WPS requirements during regulatory reviews.

The Government of the UAE announced the establishment of the Federal Authority for Artificial Intelligence and Data as a national authority to unify the country’s artificial intelligence, data governance and digital government framework. The Authority is intended to strengthen the UAE’s readiness for AI-driven digital transformation by setting national standards, managing data platforms, supporting AI-enabled government services, and coordinating federal and local digital systems.

Key Highlights

  1. The UAE has established the Federal Authority for Artificial Intelligence and Data to consolidate national efforts relating to artificial intelligence, data governance and digital government.
  2. The Authority will be responsible for developing and enforcing standards relating to artificial intelligence, data management and digital transformation.
  3. The Authority’s mandate includes managing national data platforms, leading the national AI strategy and supporting integration between federal and local government systems.
  4. The Authority will oversee proactive AI-enabled digital government services and support cybersecurity, research and development, and international cooperation in the field of artificial intelligence and data.
  5. The establishment of the Authority is aimed at improving government service delivery, decision-making, innovation and the UAE’s position as a global hub for artificial intelligence and data-driven governance.

Recommended Actions

  1. Monitor future regulatory developments issued by the Federal Authority for Artificial Intelligence and Data that may affect AI governance, data management and digital government interactions.
  2. Assess existing AI and data governance frameworks to determine readiness for future UAE-specific AI and data governance requirements.
  3. Identify AI and data use cases across the organisation to support future compliance with any sector-specific guidance or reporting obligations.
  4. Establish cross-functional governance involving legal, compliance, IT and data teams to monitor and respond to future requirements issued by the Authority.
Bangladesh and its regulations

Bangladesh Regulatory Updates

National Board of Revenue, Bangladesh revises VAT return filing, online registration and Books of Accounts requirements

The National Board of Revenue, Bangladesh has notified the S.R.O. No. 125-Law/2026/330/Musak (the Order) which has amended the Value Added Tax and Supplementary Duty Rules, 2016 (the Rules). Effective 01.07.2026, the Order has introduced the following changes to the Rules:

  1. Instead of filing a single VAT return under form Musak 9.1, registered traders are required to submit VAT return in form Musak 9.1.1 and persons listed for turnover tax under the Value Added Tax and Supplementary Duty Act, 2012 are required to submit turnover tax return as per form Musak 9.2.
  2. The online VAT registration process has been automated. Applicants will now receive the VAT registration certificate on his/her registered e-mail immediately upon application if the application meets the system-defined criteria. Upon successful registration a registration notification will be automatically sent to the concerned revenue officer and divisional officer, later to which the concerned revenue officer will conduct on-site verification.
  3. The Divisional officer concerned can issue show cause notice to the concerned taxpayer in case of discrepancy or irregularity observed during on-site verification after immediate issuance of BIN, requiring response to the notice within 15 days from the date of its issuance. No response to the notice can cause suspension of registration or limitation in scope of service provided to the taxpayer.
  4. Registered persons must maintain books of accounts for sale in form Musak 6.3 along with Musak 6.2.

Key compliance takeaways:

  1. Review VAT registration status and determine the correct return form applicable effective 1 July 2026.
  2. Implement procedures for tracking and responding to show cause notices within the prescribed 15-day period.
  3. Prepare for post-registration on-site verification by ensuring business records and premises are compliant.
  4. Maintain records of accounts in form Musak 6.3 and Musak 6.2.

The National Board of Revenue, Bangladesh has notified the S.R.O. No. 199-Law/2026/54/Customs (the Order) which has amended the Warehouse Licensing Rules, 2024 (the Rules). Effective since 11.06.2026, the Order has introduced the following changes to the Rules:

  1. Prior to applying for warehouse license, applicants are required to ensure that the audit of all the associated institutions are up to date and there are no outstanding arrears related to illegal removal of raw materials or fraud arise against them.
  2. In submitting application of lien bank approval and changing branch of lien bank, a warehouse license holder is required to provide no-objection letter from all relevant lien banks instead of the earlier requirement to provide no-objection letter from only the concerned lien bank.
  3. Importers and exporters having central bonded warehouse are now required to submit general bond of 5 crore taka for import, export, storage and utilization of goods.
  4. Warehouse license holders who are limited company can avoid the interview of outgoing and incoming directors for transfer ownership by changing the ownership through the due legal process of the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms and obtaining NOC from all relevant departments and lien-holding banks.
The Ministry of Finance, Bangladesh has introduced the Rules for the Procurement and Export of Goods as Raw Materials or Inputs by Direct Exporter Industrial Enterprises from Warehouse License-holding Enterprises, 2026 under the Customs Act, 2023 on 8th June, 2026. The Rules regulate the licensing requirements, conditions regarding export of raw materials or materials for manufacturing the goods to be exported, issuance of bond of warehouse license holders and direct export oriented industrial establishment dealing with Yarn and Accessories as specified in Schedule 1 to the Rules. Effective from 8th July, 2026, warehouse license holders and direct export oriented industrial establishment are required to fulfil the below given obligations:
  1. Prior to conducting export operations, direct export oriented industrial establishments must fulfil the following condition:
    • they must hold an Industrial IRC and must be VAT compliant,
    • they must obtain a Sales Contract or Master LC or Purchase Order from the foreign buyer organization,
    • they must obtain a utilization declaration issued by BGMEA/BKMEA against the Sales Contract or Master LC or Purchase Order.
  2. Industrial establishments must establish back-to-back letters of credit in foreign currency in favour of the warehouse license holder from the lien bank included in the e-VAT System.
  3. The warehouse license holder must obtain utilization permit before supplying goods and must supply the goods through VAT invoice (i.e. in form Musak 6.3).
  4. Prior to receiving the supply of goods, the exporting industrial establishment must submit application as per Appendix 2 to the Rules along with a bond of 2000 taka in non-judicial stamp of 1 crore taka, attested by all the concerned lien banks, along with the signatures of its directors in the case of a limited company to the Commissioner of the concerned Customs, Excise and VAT Commissionerate.
  5. The direct export oriented industrial establishments must also submit declaration of raw material usage account as per Appendix-3 to the Commissioner of the concerned Customs, Excise and VAT Commissionerate at the end of each tax period.
  6. Goods manufactured from the collected raw materials must be exported within 12 months from the date mentioned in the VAT invoice issued during the collection of raw materials from the warehouse license holder.
  7. Direct export oriented industrial establishments must submit all documents related to the export of goods against the export order received from the foreign buyer to the concerned Customs, Excise and VAT Commissionerate for audit for each audit period.

The Bangladesh Government has repealed the Smoking and Using of Tobacco Products (Control) (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025, issued by the interim government, by notifying the Smoking and Use of Tobacco Products (Control) (Amendment) Act, 2026.

The following changes are effective since 10.04.2026:

  • Use of tobacco products in public places is now prohibited in addition to smoking.
  • The definition of public place has been expanded to include hotels, restaurants, coffee houses and any other place of social gathering including the premises of the said public playgrounds, community centres, public toilets, children’s parks, fairs, any queue of people for the purpose of receiving services including queues for passengers waiting to board public transport or any other place.
  • Application of the Act to private companies has been clarified by altering the words “non-government office” with “government offices, semi-government offices, autonomous offices and private offices”.
  • Now, broadcasting advertisement of tobacco products or Electronic Nicotine Delivery System (ENDS) in theatre, website, webmail, OTT or manufacturing, selling, distributing any other product or product packaging, packet or container similar to or identical with the brand name or packaging, packet or container of tobacco products or advertising the same are prohibited.
  • Penalty for non-compliance to certain obligations have also been increased.
  • Additional prohibitions like sale of tobacco or tobacco products within the premises of educational institution, hospitals, clinics, playgrounds; import, export, sale, distribution and advertisement of ENDS or its parts, heated tobacco products or emerging tobacco products, Kumbhi leaves or Tendu leaves have been introduced.

Key compliance takeaways:

  1. Prohibit smoking and use of tobacco products within private office premises.
  2. Update workplace tobacco control policies to cover the expanded restrictions under the amended Act.
  3. Display “No Smoking/No Tobacco Use” notices at conspicuous locations within business premises.

In view of the Bangladesh Labour (Amendment) Act, 2026, the Bangladesh Government has amended the Bangladesh Labour Act, 2006 significantly. The Act introduces changes in the rights of workers relating to compensation on death, resignation, lay-off; right to maternity benefits; enhanced penalties on the part of employers for non-compliance and also introduces new provisions regarding establishment of safety committee, Employment Injury Scheme Fund, disposal of complaints of unfair labour practices and anti-trade union discrimination and provision of remedies for unfair labour practices by the employer, formation of Complaint Redressal Committee etc. The Act has also repealed the Bangladesh Labour (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025 passed by the interim government.

Key Highlights:

  • Workers who have completed 3 months of continuous service under an employer and whose name is included in worker’s register can only claim compensation upon lay-off as against the earlier eligibility criteria of only continuous employment of 3 months. Amount of compensation payable to a worker laid-off for more than 45 days in a year is increased from one-fourth to half of total of the basic wages and dearness allowance and ad-hoc or interim pay, if any and the full amount of housing allowance, if any.
  • Pregnant female workers are now entitled to 120 days maternity leave post-delivery of child or date of notifying their employer as against the earlier duration of 8 weeks.
  • Compensation must be paid to a worker upon resignation who has completed a continuous service of 3 years under an employer as against earlier criteria of 5 years continuous service.
  • Establishments having 50 or more workers must establish a safety committee to inform the management and its members about the identified risks, accidents, dangerous incidents and diseases.
  • Establishments now have to distribute the total amount deposited into the Participation Fund instead of two-third of the amount, in equal proportion among all beneficiaries.
  • Establishment of provident fud is now mandatory for private sector. However, employers are exempted if workers opt for the universal pension scheme (Progoti) introduced by the National Pension Authority.
  • Employers must form a Complaint Redressal Committee consisting of 5 members with majority being female representatives and headed by a female, to investigate complaints of discrimination, violence and harassment in the relevant field. 2 members from the committee should be from institutions working on gender and sexual harassment issues.
  • Discrimination against workers including direct or indirect discrimination, sexual harassment and forced labour is now a penal offence under the Act.

Key compliance takeaways:

  1. Update lay-off policies to apply the revised eligibility and enhanced compensation requirements.
  2. Prior to giving lay-off compensation to any employee verify that the employee has completed 3 months of continuous service and his/her name is in the employee register.
  3. Revise maternity benefit policies to provide 120 days of post-delivery maternity leave.
  4. Establish a safety committee upon employing 50 or more workers.
  5. Establish provident fund for workers.

Global Compliance management process simplified

Request a demo
UK and its regulatoy environment

UK Regulatory Updates

UK Notifies 4th Tranche Commencement of Employment Rights Act 2025, Revising Unfair Dismissal Protections from 2027

The Government of United Kingdom has notified the commencement of 4th tranche of the provisions of Employment Rights Act 2025 by the Employment Rights Act 2025 (Commencement No. 4 and Transitional and Saving Provisions) Regulations 2026 (the 2026 Regulations). The Employment Rights Act 2025 (the 2025 Act) has introduced amendments to the Employment Rights Act 1996 and it is being enforced in tranches. The 2026 Regulations notifies 01.01.2027 as the commencement date of Section 25 and Schedule 3 of the 2025 Act which amends the right of employees against unfair dismissal under the Employment Rights Act 1996.

However, para 5 of Schedule 3 to the 2025 Act is coming into effect from 01.07.2026 which gives scope to make further amendments.

Since 01.01.2027, the following changes are effective:

  1. The qualifying period of the right against unfair dismissal will be 6 months instead of 2 years. It means employers must not unfairly dismiss any employee who has been under his/her employment for a period of minimum 6 months. This will also apply to employees who are dismissed prior to 01.01.2027 but the effective date is after 01.01.2027.
  2. The limit of compensation which an employer will be bound to pay to the employee who has suffered unfair dismissal is being dispensed with. Employers can be ordered by tribunal to make good the loss of the employee without considering any cap.
  3. The dismissal of an employee shareholder on the ground of his/her political opinions or affiliations or on medical grounds will amount to unfair dismissal under the Employment Rights Act 1996.

Key compliance Takeaways:

  1. Update dismissal policies considering the 6-month qualifying period for unfair dismissal claims from 1 January 2027.
  2. Check all dismissals taking effect on or after 1 January 2027 against the revised unfair dismissal threshold.
  3. Maintain record of reasons, evidence and procedure followed before dismissing any eligible employee.
  4. Avoid dismissing employees on the ground of political opinions or affiliations or on medical grounds.

For a detailed read on the amendments introduced by the Employment Rights Act 2025 please refer to our blog on the “UK Employment Rights Act 2025: Key compliances and action points for Employers“.

The UK Government has notified commencement of 4th tranche of the provisions of the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act 2025 (the 2025 Act) by Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act 2025 (Commencement No. 4) Regulations 2026 (the Regulations). The Regulations bring into force Section 48 of the 2025 Act on 01.10.2026 which amends the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 by extending the prohibition on illegal working beyond traditional employment arrangements.

Key highlights:

  1. The illegal working regime under Sections 15 to 24 of the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 will extend to other working arrangements, including engagement of individuals under a worker’s contract, engagement of individual sub-contractors and sharing service provider details to potential crimes and customers through online matching services.
  2. References to “employment”, “employer” and “employee” under the illegal working provisions will now include these wider working arrangements, meaning businesses may be treated as employers even where the individual is not engaged under a traditional employment contract.
  3. A person who is contracted to provide or arrange work or services will be treated as employer of the individual who personally performs such work or services, even where there is no direct contractual relationship with that individual or where the person does not know that the individual is performing the work or services.
  4. Contractors, Sub-contractors are prohibited to engage individuals into work in UK who are disqualified from employment.

Key compliance takeaways:

  1. Check whether employees engaged via contractors, sub-contractors, online service providers are allowed to work in UK from 01.10.2026.
  2. Include right-to-work verification duties, evidence-sharing obligations and audit rights into supplier, contractor and platform agreements.
  3. Maintain record of right-to-work checks and contractual compliance controls for workers engaged directly or through labour supply chains.

The UK Government has notiifed the Immigration (Restrictions on Employment and Residential Accommodation) (Prescribed Requirements and Codes of Practice) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 (“the Regulations”) which amends the Immigration (Restrictions on Employment) Order 2007, the Illegal Working Compliance Orders Regulations 2016 and the Immigration (Residential Accommodation) (Prescribed Requirements and Codes of Practice) Order 2014. The Regulations will come into force on 01.10.2026.

The key changes introduced by the Regulations are given below:

  1. The Regulations replace the existing identity document validation technology framework with the new Digital Verification Services (DVS) framework for right to work and right to rent checks.
  2. Employers using digital right to work checks must use a Right to Work Digital Verification Service Provider (RtW DVSP) registered in the DVS register and must obtain confirmation that the provider is registered and provides services in accordance with the applicable supplementary code.
  3. Where facial recognition technology is used for right to work checks, employers must obtain and securely retain clear copies of the facial images and the confirmation from the RtW DVSP for at least 2 years after the employment ends.
  4. Persons contracting work or services through subcontracting chains and online matching services must engage into contract with the subcontracting party with specific terms on right to work compliance, restrictions on further subcontracting without written consent, audit rights, enforcement provisions and cooperation with Home Office investigations.
  5. Employers must maintain systems and processes to ensure that the individual providing the work or services is the same individual who was checked, including where substitution of workers is permitted.

Key compliance takeaways:

  1. Update right to work check procedures to align with the new DVS framework from 01.10.2026.
  2. Confirm registration of RtW DVSP in the DVS register prior using digital checks.
  3. Maintain records of facial recognition check for at least 2 years after employment ends.
  4. Businesses who have engaged contractors, subcontractors, substituted workers or online matching services regarding work arrangement must update contractual terms with them to include right to work compliance, audit, enforcement and cooperation clauses.

The Government of United Kingdom has issued the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 (Consequential Amendments and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2026 (the Regulations). The Regulations notify commencement of certain provisions of Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 which has amended various statutes in the United Kingdom.

The Regulations will come into force when Section 119 of the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, which deals with transfer of functions to the Information Commission, is fully brought into force, subject to specific commencement provisions provided under Schedule 1.

The key changes introduced by the Regulations are given below:

  1. The amendments coming into effect by virtue of the Regulations establishes the Information Commission as the governing body in place of the Information Commissioner by vesting the functions of the Information Commissioner to the Information Commission.
  2. It also notifies the commencement of certain provisions of the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 which amends several laws like Freedom of Information Act 2000, Data Protection Act 2018, Investigatory Powers Act 2016, Online Safety Act 2023, Digital Economy Act 2017 and Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 etc.
  3. The Regulations also amend certain Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland laws to align references and functions with the newly established Information Commission.

Key compliance Takeaway:

  1. Although this does not make any significant change to the compliance framework, businesses must update references in internal compliance documents, privacy notices, DSAR templates, complaint handling SOPs, regulatory correspondence templates, and policies where they refer to the “Information Commissioner” or “ICO” as the statutory authority.

Digitize Your Contract Lifecycle Management Process

Request a demo
Sri Lanka regulatory environment

Sri Lanka Regulatory Updates

Sri Lanka Govt. reduces quarterly turnover threshold for Social Security Contribution Levy registration from LKR 15 million to LKR 9 million

The Social Security Contribution Levy (Amendment) Act, No. 10 of 2026 has amended the Social Security Contribution Levy Act No. 25 of 2022. Effective since 9th April, 2026, the amendment has changed the turnover threshold for obtaining social security contribution levy registration as it has been reduced from LKR 15 million to LKR 9 million rupees for a quarter and 60 million rupees to 36 million rupees for aggregate of 4 consecutive quarters, for period starting 01.07.2026.

Key Highlights

  1. The amendment reduces the quarterly turnover threshold for Social Security Contribution Levy registration from LKR 15 million to LKR 9 million.
  2. The aggregate turnover threshold for four consecutive quarters has been reduced from LKR 60 million to LKR 36 million.
  3. The revised thresholds will apply for the period commencing from 1st July 2026.
  4. The amendment expands the scope of persons required to obtain Social Security Contribution Levy registration by bringing smaller businesses within the registration requirement.

Key Compliance Takeaways

  1. Obtain registration under the Social Security Contribution Levy Act.
  2. Pay social security contribution levy to Commissioner General on monthly basis.
  3. Furnish quarterly returns to Commissioner-General.

In view of the recent amendments to Sri Lanka’s Inland Revenue Act effective 5th June 2026, the following changes have come about in Sri Lanka:

  1. Profits earned from the realization of motor vehicles is excluded from calculation of gains or profits from other sources.
  2. Every withholding agent is now required to provide withholding certificate to the withholdee free of cost.
  3. A registered and an incorporated company in Sri Lanka is required to obtain a Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) from the Commissioner-General of the Inland Revenue Department, regardless of its turnover.
  4. The rate of tax for partnerships and individual’s taxable income from gains from the realization of investment assets has been increased from 10 percent to 15 percent and the rate of tax for trust, mutual fund and NGO’s taxable income from gains from the realization of investment assets has been increased from 10 % to 30 %.
  5. Instalment payers who were earlier required to submit statement of estimated tax payable to Commissioner-General annually, are not obligated to do so with respect to the year of assessments.
  6. Investment in depreciable assets having value of USD 250,000 to USD 3 million except tangible assets is qualified for an enhanced capital allowance of 100% of the investment.

Key Compliance Takeaways

  1. Ensure that the company obtains a Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), irrespective of turnover.
  2. Withholding agents should update their processes to issue withholding certificates to payees free of charge.
  3. Businesses planning qualifying capital investments should evaluate whether they can benefit from the enhanced 100% capital allowance.
  4. Review tax policies, accounting systems and compliance procedures to align with the amended Inland Revenue Act.

The Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development has introduced Imports and Exports (Control) Regulations No.06 of 2026. Effective 19th June 2026, it has strengthened effective monitoring and oversight of outward remittances made from Sri Lanka in respect of import transactions. Additionally, it is now required for an importer to be registered with the Sri Lanka Customs Department as an eligible importer before effecting advance payments in relation to imports.

Key Highlights

  1. The amendment strengthens regulatory oversight over outward remittances made from Sri Lanka for import transactions.
  2. Importers must be registered with the Sri Lanka Customs Department as eligible importers before making advance payments in relation to imports.

Key compliance takeaways:

  1. Register with the Sri Lanka Customs Department as eligible importers before making any advance payments for imports.
  2. Update internal import and payment processes to incorporate the new registration requirement.
  3. Retain evidence of Customs registration and import-related remittances to demonstrate compliance.

The Minister of Labour has introduced the Employment of Women, Young Persons and Children (Amendment) Bill on 25.06.2026. The Bill proposes increasing the existing monetary penalty from a fine of rupees ten thousand to a fine of rupees one hundred thousand for employing a child in a public or private industrial undertaking or in a branch or employing a person under the age of eighteen years in any hazardous occupation.

Key Highlights

  1. The proposed amendment seeks to increase the monetary penalty for child employment-related violations.
  2. The fine for employing a child in a public or private industrial undertaking or branch is proposed to be increased from LKR 10,000 to LKR 100,000.
  3. The same enhanced penalty of LKR 100,000 applies to the employment of a person below 18 years of age in any hazardous occupation.

Companies can use the proposed increase in penalties as an opportunity to review compliance with child labour and young person employment requirements as below:

Key compliance takeaways

  1. Track the Bill’s enactment and update internal compliance policies once the revised penalties come into force.
  2. Ensure employment practices comply with the minimum age requirements under the Act.
  3. Maintain adequate age verification records before hiring young workers.
  4. Confirm that no employee below 18 years of age is engaged in hazardous occupations.
  5. Update recruitment and onboarding procedures to prevent the employment of underage workers in prohibited roles.
  6. Where contractors or labour suppliers are engaged, verify that they also comply with the child labour requirements.

The Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA), under the powers conferred by the Consumer Affairs Authority Act, No. 9 of 2003, issued an Order on 10 June 2026 prohibiting manufacturer, packer, trader or distributor from selling, exposing or offering for sale, displaying for sale locally packaged/ bottled Drinking Water above the Maximum Retail Price.

Key Compliance Takeaways:

  1. Comply with direction on price marking, labelling and packeting of goods issued by the Authority.
  2. Prohibition on selling or offering to sell goods above the marked price. The price of packaged/ bottled Drinking Water of volume 500ml – 999 ml is Rs. 80, 1 litre – 1.499 litre is Rs.120, 1.5 litre – 1.999 litre is Rs.150, 2 litre – 2.499 litre is Rs. 180 and 5 litre – 6.999 litre is Rs.400.
Australia regulatory environment

Australia Regulatory Updates

Australia Govt. raises National Minimum Wage from AUD 948.00 per week / AUD 24.95 per hour to AUD 1,004.90 per week / AUD 26.44 per hour; Effective 01.07.2026.

The Australian Government has increased the National Minimum Wage and minimum award wages effective 01.07.2026. The Fair Work Ombudsman has updated its Pay and Conditions Tool and pay guides to reflect the revised wage rates following the Annual Wage Review 2026 by the Fair Work Commission. The new rates apply from the first full pay period starting on or after 01.07.2026.

Key Highlights

  1. The National Minimum Wage has increased to AUD 1,004.90 per week or AUD 26.44 per hour from 01.07.2026.
  2. The revised National Minimum Wage applies to employees who are not covered by an award or enterprise agreement.
  3. Minimum award wages have increased by 4.75% from the first full pay period starting on or after 01.07.2026.
  4. The lowest rate in any award applying to ongoing employment must be at least AUD 1,004.90 per week or AUD 26.44 per hour.
  5. Any entry-level award rate applying to the first six months or less of employment must be at least AUD 978.10 per week or AUD 25.74 per hour.
  6. Wage increases for trainees under the National Training Wage apply from the same date as award minimum wage increases.
  7. Employers covered by enterprise agreements must ensure that base pay rates under the agreement are not lower than the applicable award base pay rates.
  8. Other workplace law changes effective 01.07.2026 include new payday super rules, increase in unpaid flexible parental leave, increase in government-funded Parental Leave Pay, and revised high income threshold, contractor high income threshold and compensation cap.

Key Compliance Takeaways

  1. Review employee classifications and determine whether employees are covered by the National Minimum Wage, an award, enterprise agreement, or National Training Wage.
  2. Update payroll systems to apply the revised National Minimum Wage and minimum award rates from the first full pay period starting on or after 01.07.2026.
  3. Check all award-covered employees to ensure that their pay rates reflect the 4.75% increase and do not fall below the new minimum thresholds.
  4. Review enterprise agreement pay rates to ensure that base rates are not lower than the relevant award base rates.
  5. Update employment contracts, payroll records, salary templates, pay guides and internal HR documentation to reflect the new rates.
  6. Update superannuation payment processes to comply with payday super rules from 01.07.2026, requiring superannuation contributions to be paid at the same time as wages.
  7. Update parental leave policies to reflect the increase in unpaid flexible parental leave and government-funded Parental Leave Pay to 130 days.
  8. Update HR and legal review processes to reflect the revised high income threshold and contractor high income threshold of AUD 190,100, and the increased unfair dismissal compensation cap of AUD 95,050.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has increased annual review fees for proprietary companies and company registration fees for Australian companies effective 01.07.2026. This has taken effect owing to an increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI).

The reform would increase the cost of company registration and the annual review fee that proprietary enterprises must pay, requiring companies that are registered or operating in Australia to update their compliance budgets, corporate secretarial calendars and renewal planning.

Key Highlights:

  1. A company’s registration fee will rise from AUD 611 to AUD 636.
  2. A Proprietary Company will pay an annual review fee of AUD 342 instead of AUD 329.

Key Compliances:

  1. Companies that are registered or conduct business in Australia must amend their corporate secretarial calendars and compliance budgets to reflect the updated ASIC costs as of July 1, 2026.
  2. In order to prevent payment deficits, processing delays, late fees or non-compliance with ASIC filing duties, Companies must make sure that the updated fee amounts are used for timely lodgements and renewals. This change affects both new company registrations and annual review payments.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has increased business name registration and renewal fees effective 01.07.2026. The fee increase has been made in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) increase for the March quarter. GST does not apply to ASIC fees.

Key Highlights:

  1. ASIC business name registration or renewal fee for one year has increased from AUD 45 to AUD 47.
  2. ASIC business name registration or renewal fee for three years has increased from AUD 104 to AUD 108.
  3. The revised fees apply effective 01.07.2026.
  4. The GST does not apply to ASIC business name registration and renewal fees.

Key Compliance Takeaways

  1. Businesses should update compliance calendars and renewal trackers to reflect the revised ASIC business name registration and renewal fees effective 01.07.2026.
  2. Businesses applying for a new business name registration should budget AUD 47 for one-year registration and AUD 108 for three-year registration.
  3. Businesses renewing existing business names should ensure that renewal payments are made using the revised fee amounts.

The Australian Government has enacted the Paid Parental Leave Amendment (More Support for Working Families) Act 2024 to expand the Paid Parental Leave scheme under the Paid Parental Leave Act 2010. The amendment increases the maximum number of flexible Paid Parental Leave days in stages, with the entitlement reaching 130 flexible PPL days for a child born on or after 01.07.2026. This is equivalent to 26 weeks based on a 5-day work week. The Act commenced on 26.03.2024, with the increased entitlement applying progressively based on the child’s date of birth.

Key Highlights:

  1. The maximum flexible Paid Parental Leave entitlement has been increased in stages based on the child’s date of birth.
  2. For a child born before 01.07.2024, the maximum entitlement remains 100 flexible PPL days.
  3. For a child born between 01.07.2024 and 30.06.2025, the entitlement increases to 110 flexible PPL days.
  4. For a child born between 01.07.2025 and 30.06.2026, the entitlement increases to 120 flexible PPL days.
  5. For a child born on or after 01.07.2026, the entitlement increases to 130 flexible PPL days.
  6. Where the claimant has a partner, the claimant-specific limit is also revised, with part of the entitlement reserved for the other claimant.
  7. The amendment also updates eligibility-related provisions, including rules for stillbirth or death of a child, exceptional circumstances, newly arrived resident waiting periods, premature birth, and pregnancy-related complications or illness.
  8. Transitional rules apply to claims made before commencement, during the transition period, and claims relating to children born before or after 01.07.2024.

Key Compliance Takeaways:

  1. Update parental leave policies, HR manuals and employee guidance to reflect the staged increase in flexible Paid Parental Leave days.
  2. Recognise that employees with children born on or after 01.07.2026 may be eligible for up to 130 flexible PPL days, equivalent to 26 weeks based on a 5-day work week.
  3. Check the child’s date of birth before advising employees on the applicable Paid Parental Leave entitlement.
  4. Update internal leave management systems to capture the revised entitlement periods and distinguish claims based on the applicable birth date range.
  5. Ensure that employees are directed to Services Australia for claim eligibility and payment administration, while employment-related leave arrangements are managed internally in line with workplace policies and applicable employment laws.
  6. Train HR and payroll teams on the phased entitlement structure, especially for employees whose expected or actual child birth date falls around 01.07.2024, 01.07.2025 or 01.07.2026.
  7. Review communications issued to employees about parental leave so that the entitlement is not incorrectly stated as a fixed 20-week entitlement for all claims.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has launched the SMS Sender ID Register, effective 1 July 2026, to protect Australians from SMS impersonation scams. Under the new framework, businesses and organisations that send branded SMS/MMS using a sender ID, such as a business or government agency name, must register their sender IDs.

Key Highlights:

  1. From 1 July 2026, SMS/MMS sent with an organisation’s name at the top of the message must use a registered sender ID.
  2. If a sender ID is not registered, the text message will be labelled as “Unverified” and grouped with other unverified messages, including potential scam messages.

Key Compliances:

  1. Businesses and organisations sending branded SMS/MMS to Australia should contact their telco or messaging provider to register their sender IDs.
  2. Organisations with an Australian Business Number (ABN) should ensure that their authorised contact or service of notice email address in the Australian Business Register is updated before registration.
Indonesia regulatory environment

Indonesia Regulatory Updates

Indonesian Govt. rolls out new Rules concerning Outsourcing Work

The Minister of Manpower (MoM) has issued Regulation No. 7 of 2026 concerning Outsourcing Work. This regulation establishes a framework for companies that outsource certain work to outsourcing companies and for registered business entities providing outsourcing services. It sets the requirements on the type of work that may be outsourced, contents of outsourcing agreements, worker protection standards, registration of agreements, and operational obligations of outsourcing companies.

Key Highlights:

  1. The regulation applies to companies that outsource work to outsourcing companies and to business entities registered to provide outsourcing services.
  2. It introduces limitations on the types of work that may be outsourced.
  3. Every outsourcing agreement must clearly specify the scope of work, work location, number of workers, and contract period.
  4. Outsourcing agreements must include worker protection provisions covering wages, overtime, working hours, rest periods, annual leave, Occupational Safety and Health (K3), social security, religious holiday allowances, and termination rights.
  5. Outsourcing agreements must be submitted to the local Manpower Office within three working days from the date of signing for review and registration
  6. Non-compliant outsourcing agreements may result in suspension of registration.
  7. Outsourcing companies must implement K3 standards and commence business activities within one year of obtaining the business permit.

For the key compliance takeaways relating to this regulation please read our blog post on this subject.

  1. Businesses outsourcing work should review whether the outsourced activities fall within the permitted categories under the regulation.
  2. Businesses should update outsourcing agreement templates to include mandatory details such as scope of work, work location, number of workers, contract period, and worker protection clauses.
  3. Businesses should ensure that outsourcing agreements are submitted to the local Manpower Office within three working days of signing.
  4. Businesses should maintain records of outsourcing agreement registration, Manpower Office submissions, review outcomes, and any correspondence with the authority.
  5. Outsourcing companies should ensure compliance with wage, overtime, working hours, rest period, annual leave, social security, religious holiday allowance, termination, and K3 obligations for outsourced workers.
  6. Outsourcing companies should implement K3 systems, procedures, training, and workplace safety controls before deploying workers.
  7. Outsourcing companies should track the one-year timeline from business permit issuance and ensure business activities commence within the prescribed period.
  8. Businesses using outsourcing services should conduct vendor due diligence to confirm that the outsourcing company has the required business permit, registration, K3 arrangements, and manpower compliance controls.

The Legislative Body (“ Baleg ”) of the House of Representatives of the Republic of Indonesia (“ DPR RI ”) has proposed to regulate data integration between the government and the private sector through the One Data Indonesia (“ SDI ”) Bill (“ RUU ”). This regulation aims to strengthen the national database, particularly in strategic sectors such as Natural Resources (“ SDA ”) and energy

Key Highlights:

  1. The Bill seeks to regulate integration of government and private sector data under the One Data Indonesia framework.
  2. It aims to strengthen national data governance, especially for strategic sectors such as natural resources and energy.
  3. The Bill mandates data interoperability between ministries, institutions and private sector entities.
  4. It requires coordination and data sharing while recognising protections for trade secrets and intellectual property rights.
  5. Businesses may be required to classify internal data based on sensitivity, including general data, strategic data, trade secrets and intellectual property-related data.

Private sector entities may need to align their data and metadata standards with the One Data Indonesia framework.

Key Compliance Takeaways

  1. Monitor the progress of the One Data Indonesia Bill and any implementing regulations issued under it.
  2. Companies operating in strategic sectors such as natural resources, energy, infrastructure or other regulated sectors should assess whether they may be required to integrate data with the One Data Indonesia system.
  3. Initiate mapping internal data categories, including general operational data, strategic data, confidential business information, trade secrets and intellectual property-related data.
  4. Review your data governance policies to ensure proper classification, access control, retention, sharing and protection of sensitive information.
  5. Assess whether your data systems can support interoperability, metadata standardisation and secure data exchange with government platforms.
  6. Prepare for possible future reporting, data submission, system integration or verification requirements under the One Data Indonesia framework.

The Minister of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises has issued Regulation No. 2 of 2026 (“Regulation 2/2026”)on Guidelines for the Classification and Development Stages of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises. Regulation 2/2026 introduces a new dual-tier classification system that encompasses standard criteria and additional criteria. These criteria will now be used as a reference during determinations of the UMKM category and development stage.

Key highlights are as follows:

  1. This Regulation has replaced the previous Regulation 3/2021 and provides updated classification and development criteria for UMKM, applicable to central and regional governments, as well as other relevant stakeholders.
  2. Classification now includes dual-tier criteria: standard criteria (business capital and annual sales) and additional criteria (workforce size, investment values, local content/TKDN, incentives, and adoption of green technology).
  3. Businesses that fail to comply with data submission, green technology adoption, or TKDN tracking will face restrictions in accessing government incentives or advancement in development stages.
  4. Development stages are now scored through SAPA UMKM and include four phases: initiation (0–25%), growth (25–50%), development (50–75%), and ready-to-scale-up (75–100%), based on legality, governance, marketing, financing, and partnerships.

Key Compliance Takeaways:

  1. Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (UMKM) should reassess their classification under the new dual-tier framework to determine whether they continue to qualify under the applicable category.
  2. Periodically review internal governance, record-keeping and compliance processes to support accurate classification, facilitate assessments and demonstrate compliance with the revised framework.
  3. As green technology adoption is one of the additional criteria’s for classification, companies should assess opportunities to adopt environmentally sustainable technologies and maintain supporting records.
  4. Central and regional government-linked stakeholders should update UMKM assessment, support, incentive and development programme procedures in line with the new classification framework.
  5. UMKM businesses should monitor further implementation guidance on SAPA UMKM scoring, documentation requirements, incentive access and development-stage advancement.
Corporate setup with a person working

About Lexplosion

Lexplosion Solutions Pvt. Ltd. is a leading legal tech company in India providing legal tech solutions across. Among several solutions, we specialize in compliance management, legal risk management, legal governance, regulatory audits, contract, contract management and litigation management across India and abroad.

Disclaimer

This newsletter is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice or establish an attorney-client relationship. The content herein summarizes recent changes in laws across various jurisdictions based on publicly available information and is not intended to be a comprehensive analysis of all applicable laws or their implications. Legal interpretations and applications vary by jurisdiction, and the information provided may not reflect the most current legal developments at the time of your reading.

We are not engaged in the practice of law by publishing this newsletter. The information contained herein should not be relied upon as a substitute for professional legal advice tailored to your specific circumstances. Before taking any action based on the information in this newsletter, you should consult a qualified legal professional licensed in the relevant jurisdiction(s).

The authors, publishers, and distributors of this newsletter make no representations or warranties, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, completeness, or suitability of the information provided. We expressly disclaim any liability for any errors, omissions, or consequences arising from the use of or reliance on this newsletter, including but not limited to any direct, indirect, incidental, or consequential damages.

Law and regulations are subject to change, and their application may depend on specific facts and circumstances. This newsletter is not intended to address the particular needs of any individual, entity, or organization. Readers are urged to seek independent legal counsel to ensure compliance with applicable laws in their jurisdiction.

To stay updated with the latest regulatory changes, subscribe to our newsletter or follow our social media handles.

Linkedin Facebook Twitter Youtube

https://lexplosion.in/

Lexplosion Solutions Private Limited is a pioneering Indian Legal-Tech company that provides legal risk and compliance management solutions through cloud-based software and expert services.

Contact Us