Obligations for foreign entities – local agents and accreditation requirements

Question

With respect to Obligations for foreign entities, there is a line which states that: 'If a foreign business does need to become accredited to provide services under the CDR, then they will need to have an local agent and address in Australia.'

1. Does the 'Local Agent' need to be a subsidiary of the 'Foreign Entity' or can it be a Business Partner or 'Affiliated Entity' of some form?
2. Either way, what are the accreditation and/or certification requirements/commitments of the 'Local Entity' and the 'Foreign Entity' to participate in CDR?
3. If a Local Entity, without being a subsidiary of the Foreign Entity, can combine with them to potentially become an ADR and participate in CDR, are there any specific requirements/certifications (eg. monetary, insurance, security, IT, etc) that the Local Entity must comply with participate?

Answer

1. A local agent does not need to be a subsidiary of a foreign entity.
2. Any entity needs to be accredited in order to participate in the CDR. Further information and guidance on the accreditation requirements and how to lodge a valid accreditation application is set out in the ACCC’s Accreditation Guidelines.
3. Having a local agent is a requirement of the rules to ensure that any foreign entity wishing to become accredited has an address for service in Australia.  
   
   A local agent otherwise would not be able to participate in the CDR (for example by collecting or using CDR data itself) unless it was either a) accredited in its own right; or b) an outsourced service provider to a person who was accredited.  Outsourced service providers are covered by Rule 1.10 of the CDR Rules.