Co-operative Housing and Starr-Bowkett Societies Regulation 2025

Part 1 Preliminary

1 Name of regulation

This regulation is the Co-operative Housing and Starr-Bowkett Societies Regulation 2025.

2 Commencement

This regulation commences on 1 September 2025.

Note—

This regulation replaces the Co-operative Housing and Starr-Bowkett Societies Regulation 2020, which is repealed on 1 September 2025 by the Subordinate Legislation Act 1989, section 10(2).

3 Definitions

In this regulation—

inner envelope, for Schedule 1—see Schedule 1, section 1.

outer envelope, for Schedule 1—see Schedule 1, section 1.

returning officer, for Schedule 1—see Schedule 1, section 1.

the Act means the Co-operative Housing and Starr-Bowkett Societies Act 1998.

Note—

The Act and the Interpretation Act 1987 contain definitions and other provisions that affect the interpretation and application of this regulation.

Part 2 Management of societies

4 Prescribed registers

For the Act, section 117(1) and (2), the following registers are prescribed—

(a)  a register of loans made to members and securities taken that contains the following particulars—

(i)  the name of each member to whom a loan is made,

(ii)  the amount of the loan,

(iii)  the date the loan was approved,

(iv)  a reference identifying the account created for the loan,

(v)  the date and amount of each advance made in relation to the loan,

(vi)  if the loan is secured by the mortgage of real property—the address and particulars of title of the property and a reference identifying the mortgage agreement,

(vii)  if the loan is secured by another kind of security—particulars of the security taken and a reference identifying the security agreement,

(viii)  the location of documents relating to the security taken for the loan,

(ix)  the date of the final repayment for the loan,

(b)  a register of loans raised and securities given.

5 Register of members

For the Act, section 119(1)(c), the following information is prescribed—

(a)  in relation to shares held by members—

(i)  the date the shares were subscribed, and

(ii)  the amount paid on the shares,

(b)  the date and reason a person’s membership ended.

6 Annual returns

(1)  For the Act, section 148(1), a return must be—

(a)  in the approved form, and

(b)  lodged with the Registrar within 3 months after the end of each financial year of the society.

(2)  For the Act, section 190, the Act, section 148(1) is prescribed.

Part 3 External administration

7 Modification to application of Corporations Act—schemes of arrangement and reconstruction

For the Act, section 173(d), a reference to an explanatory statement in the Corporations Act, section 412 must be read as a reference to an explanatory statement in the approved form.

8 Modifications to application of Corporations Act—winding up

(1)  For the Act, section 177(1)(d), the modifications specified in this section are prescribed.

(2)  The Corporations Act, section 461 is modified by replacing section 461(1)(h) with the following—

  

(h)  the Registrar has, because of an investigation under the Co-operative Housing and Starr-Bowkett Societies Act 1998 into the affairs of the society, stated that—

(i)  the society cannot pay its debts and should be wound up; or

(ii)  it is in the interests of the public or of members or creditors that the society be wound up; or

(3)  The Corporations Act, section 462 is modified by omitting section 462(2)(h).

(4)  The Corporations Act, section 464 is modified—

(a)  by omitting “Where ASIC is investigating, or has investigated, under Division 1 of Part 3 of the ASIC Act:” from section 464(1), and

(b)  by inserting instead “If the Registrar is conducting or has conducted an investigation under the Co-operative Housing and Starr-Bowkett Societies Act 1998:”.

(5)  The Corporations Act, Part 5.6 is modified by inserting the following after section 543—

  

543A Distribution of surplus funds

(1)  In a winding up of a society, the surplus funds of the society must be distributed to another society, or a similar organisation not related to the society.

(2)  The distribution—

(a)  must be approved at a general meeting of the society being wound up; and

(b)  must be approved by, and made in accordance with, the directions of the Registrar.

(3)  In the absence of another society or similar organisation, the Unclaimed Money Act 1995 applies to surplus funds of a society in the same way it applies to unclaimed money within the meaning of that Act.

(4)  In this section—

surplus funds, of a society, means the funds of the society remaining after—

(a)  satisfaction of the debts and liabilities of the society; and

(b)  the costs, charges and expenses of the winding up of the society.

(6)  The Corporations Act, Part 5.7B is modified by omitting sections 588J–588L and 588Q.

Part 4 Miscellaneous

9 Additional functions of associations

(1)  For the Act, section 183(b), the following functions are prescribed—

(a)  to guarantee the payment of amounts a relevant society is or will be liable to pay,

(b)  to make secured loans to members of a relevant society for purposes supporting the objects of the society,

(c)  to make secured loans to body corporates if a relevant society can purchase shares in the body corporate under the Act, section 53(1)(c).

(2)  In this section—

relevant society means a society that is a member of the association.

secured loan means a loan secured by mortgage, including debenture, lien or charge, given by the person to whom the loan is made that makes property of the person liable as security.

10 Voting by postal ballot

For the Act, sections 115(1)(b) and 153(4)(b), a postal ballot must be conducted in accordance with Schedule 1.

11 Fees

(1)  For the Act, section 225(1A), the fees set out in Schedule 2 are prescribed.

(2)  The fee payable for a matter relating to the Registrar under the Corporations Act as applied by the Act, sections 173, 174 and 177 is—

(a)  the fee specified in Schedule 2 for the matter, or

(b)  if no fee is specified—the fee payable under the Corporations (Fees) Act 2001 of the Commonwealth.

(3)  For the Act, section 225(1B)(b), the Registrar may waive, reduce or refund, in whole or in part, a fee payable or paid under this section if the Registrar is satisfied the refund is appropriate because—

(a)  the person who must pay, or has paid, the fee is suffering financial hardship, or

(b)  special circumstances exist.

Example of special circumstances—

circumstances involving a natural disaster or recovery from a natural disaster

12 Repeal and savings

An act, matter or thing that, immediately before the repeal of the Co-operative Housing and Starr-Bowkett Societies Regulation 2020, had effect under that regulation continues to have effect under this regulation.

Schedule 1 Postal ballots

section 10

1 Definitions

In this schedule—

inner envelope means a blank unsealed envelope.

outer envelope means a large unsealed envelope that—

(a)  is addressed to the returning officer, and

(b)  includes space on the back of the envelope for a member’s name and address.

returning officer means the person appointed by the board of directors of the society to exercise the functions of a returning officer under this schedule.

2 Ballots

A society conducting a postal ballot must—

(a)  appoint a returning officer for the ballot, and

(b)  set dates for—

(i)  the sending of ballot papers to members, and

(ii)  the close of the ballot.

Note—

See the Act, section 153 regarding the statement required to be sent to members about a proposed merger or transfer of engagements.

3 Returning officers

(1)  The returning officer may appoint a person to assist the returning officer in the performance of the returning officer’s functions.

(2)  A director of a society must not be appointed—

(a)  as a returning officer, or

(b)  to assist a returning officer.

4 Preparation of voting roll

(1)  The returning officer must prepare a roll of the names and addresses of members of the society.

(2)  For joint members, only the name of the primary joint member may be included on the roll.

(3)  Only members included on the roll may vote in the ballot.

5 Preparation of ballot papers

(1)  The returning officer must prepare ballot papers that include the following—

(a)  details of the proposed special resolution and merger or transfer of engagements,

(b)  space for the member to vote “YES” or “NO” to the proposal,

(c)  the date of the close of the ballot,

(d)  the initials of the returning officer or an appointed assistant.

(2)  The ballot paper may include directions the returning officer considers appropriate for—

(a)  recording a vote, or

(b)  returning the ballot paper to the returning officer.

(3)  The returning officer must, at least 21 days before the close of the ballot, send the following to each member included on the roll—

(a)  a ballot paper,

(b)  an inner envelope,

(c)  an outer envelope.

6 Duplicate ballot papers

(1)  The returning officer may send a duplicate ballot paper and inner and outer envelopes to a member before the close of the ballot if the returning officer is satisfied—

(a)  the member has not received the original ballot paper, or

(b)  the original ballot paper received by the member has been lost or damaged and the member has not already voted in the ballot.

(2)  An outer envelope enclosing a duplicate ballot paper must include the word “duplicate”.

7 Voting

To vote in a ballot, a member must do the following—

(a)  record a vote on the ballot paper in accordance with the directions on the ballot paper,

(b)  place the completed ballot paper in the inner envelope,

(c)  seal the inner envelope,

(d)  place the inner envelope in the outer envelope,

(e)  seal the outer envelope,

(f)  record the member’s name and address on the back of the outer envelope,

(g)  return the outer envelope to the returning officer so it is received before the close of the ballot.

8 Ballot box

(1)  The returning officer must keep a ballot box that is locked—

(a)  immediately before ballot papers are sent to members under this schedule, section 5, and

(b)  until the close of the ballot.

(2)  The returning officer must place each outer envelope received before midday on the date set for the close of the ballot in the ballot box.

9 Rejection of ballot papers

(1)  The returning officer must reject an outer envelope and not place it in the ballot box if—

(a)  the envelope is received after midday on the date set for the close of the ballot, or

(b)  a name or address is missing from the back of the envelope, or

(c)  the person named on the back of the envelope is not included on the roll.

(2)  For all other outer envelopes, the returning officer must draw a line through the name on the roll for the ballot that corresponds to the name on the back of the envelope.

(3)  The returning officer must not open an outer envelope in determining whether to reject the envelope.

10 Scrutineers

(1)  The returning officer may, on the written application of a member who has an interest in the outcome of the ballot, appoint the member as a scrutineer for the ballot.

(2)  The returning officer may appoint as many scrutineers for a ballot as the returning officer considers necessary to ensure the proper scrutiny of the ballot.

11 Determining result of ballot

(1)  The returning officer must, as soon as practicable after the close of the ballot and in the presence of any appointed scrutineers, determine the result of the ballot in accordance with this section.

(2)  The returning officer must—

(a)  remove the outer envelopes from the ballot box, and

(b)  if a duplicate outer envelope has been issued and the original outer envelope is received—reject the original envelope, and

(c)  open each remaining outer envelope and remove the inner envelopes, and

(d)  remove the ballot papers from the inner envelopes, and

(e)  examine each ballot paper, and

(f)  count the votes and determine the result of the ballot.

(3)  The returning officer must reject a ballot paper—

(a)  that is not initialled by the returning officer or an appointed assistant, or

(b)  from which the member’s vote cannot be ascertained by the returning officer, or

(c)  that contains writing or another mark that the returning officer considers could enable the voter to be identified, or

(d)  that has not been completed in accordance with the directions included on the ballot paper.

(4)  The returning officer must not reject a ballot paper under subsection (3)(d) for containing writing or another mark that is not authorised or required under this schedule if—

(a)  the returning officer can ascertain the member’s vote, and

(b)  the returning officer considers the writing or mark could not enable the voter to be identified.

(5)  The returning officer must include the word “rejected” on—

(a)  an outer envelope rejected under subsection (2)(b), and

(b)  a ballot paper rejected under subsection (3).

12 Notice of result

(1)  The returning officer must, as soon as practicable after determining the result of the ballot, give the secretary of the society written notice of the result that includes the following—

(a)  the number and proportion of votes in favour of the proposal,

(b)  the number of votes against the proposal,

(c)  the number of envelopes and ballot papers rejected.

(2)  If two-thirds of the votes counted in the ballot were in favour of the proposal, the special resolution is taken to have passed on the day the returning officer gives notice of the result of the ballot.

(3)  As soon as practicable after the returning officer gives notice of the result, the society must include an entry in the minutes kept under the Act, section 116 that—

(a)  includes the details specified in subsection (1), and

(b)  states whether the special resolution has been passed.

(4)  The society must give written notice of the result of the ballot to all members as soon as practicable.

13 Keeping ballot papers

After determining the result of the ballot, the returning officer must keep in secure storage for at least 8 weeks after the close of the ballot the following used in connection with the ballot—

(a)  the roll,

(b)  rejected outer envelopes,

(c)  ballot papers.

Schedule 2 Fees

section 11

Item	Provision of Act	Type of fee	Fee
1	section 23(1)(a)	Inspection of document	$25
2	section 23(1)(b)	Certified copy of document—
		(a)  for the first page	$28
		(b)  for each subsequent page	$3
3	section 25	Application for extension or abridgement of time	$54
4	section 67(1)	Registration of alteration of society’s rules	$23 per rule to a maximum of $206
5	section 80(2)	Application for issue of amended or new certificate of incorporation	$108
6	section 80(4)	Application for approval to use name other than registered name	$54
7	section 115(7)	Submission of special resolution for registration	$23
8	section 148(1)	Lodgment of return—
		(a)  on or before due date	Nil
		(b)  1 or more days, but less than 28 days, after due date	$151
		(c)  28 or more days after due date	$308
9	section 149(1)	Application for order for relief from accounts and audit requirements	$410
10	section 152	Application for certification that co-operative housing societies are of same type	$108
11	section 153(1)	Application for registration of merger or transfer of engagements	$108
12	section 153(2)	Application for determination that co-operative housing societies’ boards may approve proposed merger or transfer of engagements	$108
13	section 153(3)	Application for approval of statement to be sent to members about proposed merger or transfer of engagements	$410
14	section, 153(5)	Application for exemption from requirement to send statement to members	$108