The Government has introduced the Unexplained Wealth Legislation Amendment Bill 2018 into the House of Representatives.

If passed the Bill will amend the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (Cth) to create a national cooperative scheme on unexplained wealth.

UPDATE 6 August 2018: The Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee has recommended that the Bill be passed.

Passed by Senate 19 September 2018, Royal Assent was given on 3 October 2018.

The national scheme will provide a national approach to target unexplained wealth, enabling all participating jurisdictions to work together to effectively deprive criminals of their wealth, irrespective of the jurisdiction in which they operate.

The Bill defines “unexplained wealth” as meaning “property or wealth that might not have been lawfully acquired”.

The Bill extends Commonwealth unexplained wealth orders to State and Territory offences.

It also allows State and Territory law enforcement to apply for production orders and issue notices to financial institutions for unexplained wealth investigations and litigation under State and Territory ‘unexplained wealth legislation’.