SYDNEY, April 30 (Reuters) - Australia will overhaul its foreign investment framework by streamlining lower-risk deals and stepping up scrutiny of higher-risk proposals, as the country vies for global capital at a time of heightened geopolitical risks.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers will outline changes to the foreign investment framework in a speech on Wednesday, designed to make Australia a more attractive place to invest while safeguarding its national interest.
Changes include "dedicating more resources to screening foreign investment in critical infrastructure, critical minerals, critical technology, those that involve sensitive data sets, and investment in close proximity to defence sites," according to a copy of the speech seen by Reuters.
"We are ensuring our framework can evolve to respond to the changing global and economic environment we face," said Chalmers.
Australia, with its vast resources sector, has been an attractive destination for foreign investors but Chalmers has blocked several Chinese-linked investment in the lithium and the rare earth companies, citing national security concerns.
The government will bolster its compliance team to better enforce the conditions that Canberra has put on transactions and boost its capacity to undertake on-site visits.
In the meantime, it will also reduce wait times and compliance costs for known investors in non-sensitive sectors. It will aim to process 50% of these cases within the initial statutory timeframe of 30 days from next year.
