Disclosure obligations

Registered organisations, branches and their office holders (officers) are required to disclose information as follows: 

• officers to disclose to their organisation or branch information about certain payments received and, in some cases, about their material personal interests 
• organisations and branches to disclose to their members information about remuneration that highly ranked officers receive, as well as about payments made to related parties and declared persons or bodies. 

Organisations and branches are also required to lodge a copy of their disclosures with the Commission.

These requirements are set out in Part 2A of Chapter 9 of the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009 (the RO Act).

This page briefly outlines what organisations, branches and their officers are required to do. 

To find out more about these disclosure obligations see:

Guidance Note for disclosures required by office holders

Guidance Note for disclosures required by organisations and branches.

 

Disclosures by officers of organisations and branches

Officers must make disclosures to their organisation or branch

All officers must disclose to their organisation, or branch, remuneration they are paid:

• because they are a member of a board as an officer or were nominated to the board by the organisation, branch or peak body
• by a related party of the organisation or branch in connection with their duties as an officer.

Additionally, if an officer has financial management duties, they must disclose any material personal interests they have that relate to the affairs of the organisation or branch. 

The Guidance Note for disclosures required by office holders has more information about material personal interests.

Failure to make the disclosures could result in penalties imposed by the Federal Court.

When officers must disclose 

Office holders should disclose remuneration and new material personal interests as quickly as possible. Alternatively a standing notice can be made.

How officers disclose

Disclosures by officers about remuneration they receive from boards or related parties must be made in writing to the Committee of Management of the organisation or branch.

Disclosures about material personal interests can be made either orally or in writing to the Committee of Management. The disclosure must include sufficient details about the nature and extent of the interest, as well as how it relates to the affairs of the organisation or branch.

Disclosures by organisations and branches

Organisations and branches must make disclosures to their members

Organisations and their branches must disclose information to their members about relevant remuneration and non-cash benefits of highly ranked office holders, as well as about payments made to related parties and declared persons or bodies. This is called an Officer and Related Party Disclosure Statement (ORP). A copy of the statement must be lodged with the Commission.

A template statement is available to help organisations with making these disclosures.

Statements lodged with the Commission are published on this website.

What organisations and branches must disclose 

Organisations and branches must prepare an ORP which discloses:

• the identity of the officers ranked, by relevant remuneration, no lower than fifth
• the relevant remuneration of the officers in the top five rankings 
• the value and type of non-cash benefits received by the officers in the top five rankings 
• some payments made by the organisation or branch to related parties
• payments made by the organisation or branch to declared persons or bodies. 

In addition to remuneration received from the organisation and branch, relevant remuneration includes the payments from boards and related parties described above. 

Failure to make the disclosures could result in penalties imposed by the Federal Court.

An organisation can apply to the Commission for an alternative disclosure arrangement in certain circumstances. Find out more about alternative disclosure arrangements in the Disclosures fact sheet.

When to disclose 

Organisations and branches must create an officer and related party disclosure statement as soon as practicable after the end of the financial year. It must be provided to members and a copy lodged with the Commission within six months of the end of the financial year.

How to disclose 

You can use this ORP template form. Organisations and branches can decide how to provide it to members. Lodge with the Commission by emailing the statement to regorgs@fwc.gov.au.

To find out more see the Guidance Note for disclosures required by organisations and branches.

A risk-based approach to the assessment of Officer and Related Party Disclosure Statements

The Commission takes a risk-based approach to the assessment of officer and related party disclosure statements. This approach allows the Commission to effectively manage disclosure requirements and efficiently use resources to help organisations to comply.

The majority of officer and related party disclosure statements are given a primary assessment each year. The assessment focuses on key elements of compliance including whether the statement was signed by an officer and lodged on time. An advanced assessment is a more comprehensive review. Many factors including identified patterns of non-compliance may trigger an advanced assessment.

To assist organisations and branches to understand how the Commission assesses officer and related party disclosure statements, the checklists are available on our tools and resources page.