Complete your Australian Industry Participation plan

The Australian Jobs Act 2013 (the Jobs Act) requires proponents of major public and private projects in Australia with a capital expenditure of $500 million or more to prepare and implement an Australian Industry Participation (AIP) plan.

A major project includes establishing or upgrading an eligible productive facility.

AIP plans

The plans provide detail on:

• expected opportunities to supply key goods and services to the project
• how proponents will communicate project opportunities and pre-qualification requirements to potential Australian suppliers. This may include communicating via procurement websites.
• how proponents will assist suppliers to develop capability and integrate into global supply chains

Project proponents

Project proponents must submit an AIP plan for each major project.

Projects with two or more project proponents must nominate one proponent to prepare and submit the AIP plan on behalf of the others. The AIP plan is binding for everyone involved. The actions of the nominated project proponent have consequences for the other project proponents if the legislative requirements are not met.

AIP plans that cover more than one project

Generally, the Jobs Act requires a separate AIP plan for each project worth $500 million or above. If you are undertaking a number of interrelated major projects with a common purpose, you may be able to combine them under one AIP plan.

Contact the AIP Authority on 02 6213 6404 or email aip@industry.gov.au for advice.

Submitting your AIP plan

You must submit your draft AIP plan to the AIP Authority 90 days before the trigger date for the project.

The AIP Authority has introduced the SmartForm system for submission of AIP plans. The SmartForm will speed up the completion of plans as there are fewer questions and more pre-populated responses.

Proponents must complete their AIP plans online using their project’s SmartForm link provided by the AIP Authority.

If you do not have your link contact the AIP Authority on 02 6213 6404. Do not use the previous AIP plan template.

Read the User guide for Australian Industry Participation plans [2.9MB PDF] [1.8MB DOCX] for more information.

Feedback on draft AIP plans

After you submit your plan online using the SmartForm, we will assess the AIP plan’s activities against the requirements of the Jobs Act. We will provide feedback within 10 business days if required.

Submitting an AIP plan before project conditions are satisfied

An AIP plan must be submitted based on the project’s trigger date regardless of conditions or approvals that are outstanding. Most projects are subject to various conditions such as:

• gaining environmental approval
• securing funding (including government funding), or
• achieving a positive final investment decision from the board before they can proceed

For the purposes of the Jobs Act it is assumed these conditions will be satisfied. You must not wait until all conditions are satisfied before submitting an AIP plan.

Using a consultant

You may use consultants to assist you to develop your AIP plan. You will need to authorise the consultant (using a Letter of Authorisation or similar) to discuss particulars of a specific project with the AIP Authority.

Project proponents must complete and submit the AIP plan online and take responsibility for its implementation. A project proponent cannot discharge their obligations except to another project proponent.

AIP plan summary

The AIP Authority will generate a summary of your draft SmartForm AIP plan. This will occur when the plan is submitted for the first time. Proponents do not need to prepare a separate summary.

The summary describes the actions from your AIP plan you will undertake to provide Australian businesses with access to opportunities. They include an indicative list of goods and services valued $1 million and above to be procured for the project.

The AIP Authority publishes the summaries on the AIP plan summaries page within one business day of receiving them. Proponents may preview their summary from within their SmartForm AIP plan.

AIP plan approval

The AIP Authority will take all reasonable steps to make a decision within 30 days of receiving your AIP plan. 

The AIP Authority will email you to advise on any decision regarding approval of the AIP plan. If the draft AIP plan is approved it will become the approved AIP plan for the project from the date of approval.

What if my AIP plan is not approved?

If the AIP Authority does not approve your draft AIP plan, you will need to revise and resubmit the plan within 30 days. If you disagree you may make an application to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) for a review of the decision.

The decisions made by the AIP Authority that may be reviewable by the AAT are under Section 112 of the Jobs Act.

Next steps

After your AIP plan is submitted and approved, you must implement and manage your plan.

Read more

• Find out about current major projects with an AIP plan.
• Find out if your major project needs an AIP plan.

Connect with us

Subscribe to the AIP Bulletin

Contact us

• Email aip@industry.gov.au
• Phone 02 6213 6404