Standards Australia is seeking public feedback in relation to a discussion paper released today titled Supply chain standards to reduce the black economy.

The black economy, also known as the shadow economy or cash economy, refers to a range of activities that have an impact across the economy and society. This may include under-reporting or not reporting income, paying for work cash-in-hand, committing visa fraud, hiding behind or misquoting an Australian Business Number (ABN), or excise evasion.

In Australia, it has been estimated that the black economy today could be as large as 3% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This number is up to 50% larger than the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ 2012 estimates.

In response to growing concerns about the black economy domestically, the Australian Government established a taskforce which released the Black Economy Taskforce Report. In May 2018, the Australian Government responded to the recommendations of the report, committing itself to a range of measures, including the development of standards to support supply chain integrity.

Standards Australia is consulting with the Australian community to examine how standards and other guidance materials can support the taskforce’s recommendation. The consultation process will be shaped by online responses to this discussion paper and face-to-face consultation sessions held in November and December 2018 in six capital cities.

Details on the dates and locations of consultation sessions as well as instructions on how to submit feedback online can be found in the discussion paper.

All feedback will shape a final report to be released in March 2019 providing clear options to Treasury on next steps.

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