Fines for Importing Goods With Fake or Altered Trade Marks
Customs Legislation Amendment (False Trade Marks Infringement Notices) Bill 2026
House of Representatives
Senate
Assent
Topics
consumer protection counterfeit goods criminal penalties import goods import regulations intellectual property trade marks
Introduced by: The Hon Julian Hill MP (ALP)
Links to official parliament websites
Effects of this bill
If this bill passes, it means that:
The Debate
What different members said when this bill was debated:
Julian Hill ALP
“I move: That this bill be now read a second time. The Australian government is committed to protecting Australians from dangerous fake goods and protecting the rights of genuine businesses from fraud and intellectual property theft. This change toughens existing regulatory measures that exist to deter and penalise those who bring counterfeit items into our country.”
Andrew Hastie LIB
“Today I rise to speak on the Customs Legislation Amendment (False Trade Marks Infringement Notices) Bill 2026. Up front, the coalition position is this: the coalition recognises that counterfeit imports are a serious and growing problem frequently linked to organised crime. They undermine legitimate Aussie businesses, distort markets and can expose consumers to unsafe or substandard products.”
Anthony Chisholm ALP
“I move: That this bill be now read a second time. I seek leave to have the second reading speech incorporated in Hansard. Leave granted. The speech read as follows— The Australian Government is committed to protecting Australians from dangerous fake goods and protecting the rights of genuine businesses from fraud and intellectual property theft.”
Susan McDonald LNP
“The Customs Legislation Amendment (False Trade Marks Infringement Notices) Bill 2026 deals with a serious and growing issue, the importation of counterfeit goods into Australia. At its core, the bill does two things. Firstly, it introduces a new strict liability offence for importing goods that bear false trademarks. Secondly, it brings that offence within the customs infringement notice scheme.”
David Shoebridge GRN
“The Greens won’t be opposing this bill, but we do have a series of concerns we wish to put on the record. First, as the Law Council has pointed out in its submissions to the inquiry, there is the question of strict liability. And I note that the Law Council said in their submission to the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee’s inquiry into this bill that that creates significant concerns.”
Nita Green ALP
“I want to respond very briefly to Senator Shoebridge’s comments and, rather than answer the particular questions he has raised, offer him a briefing from our minister on these particular issues and note the complexity of the law that we’re talking about today and how quite a lot of the provisions we’re talking about need to be taken in the context of the broader guidance the ABF uses and the defen…”