Illegal Logging Prohibition Amendment (Strengthening Measures to Prevent Illegal Timber Trade) Act 2024.

The Act expands and clarifies the prohibition regime by establishing fault-based, strict liability, and civil penalty provisions for importing or processing timber and timber products derived from illegally logged sources, including where such products fall within the category of “regulated timber products.” It strengthens compliance obligations by mandating the implementation of formalised due diligence systems for both importers and processors, requiring written procedures designed to identify and mitigate the risk of illegal timber entering the supply chain. These obligations are reinforced by requirements to submit declarations to the relevant authority and to provide advance or contemporaneous notices regarding importation and processing activities. The amendments confer information-gathering and oversight powers on the Secretary, including the authority to compel the production of documents, require audits, and mandate the provision of notices. Inspectors are granted powers to enter premises, conduct examinations, and test timber products, including those subject to biosecurity or customs control. In addition, the Act establishes an information management regime permitting the use and disclosure of regulatory information across domestic agencies, foreign governments, and enforcement bodies, subject to specified safeguards.