Data-center law in Fiji

Town Planning Act (Cap. 139), ss. 6-7, 44

Effective 1946-08-01 · Applies to both

The Town Planning Act (Chapter 139) was originally Ordinance No. 12 of 1946. It commenced on 1 August 1946 and has since been amended by later ordinances and by Act No. 22 of 1973. Section 6 lets the Minister, on application by the Director or a local authority, order that an area be a town planning area. Section 7 requires the permission of the local authority for any development of land carried out within a town planning area before a scheme for that area has been finally approved.

A person who carries out development without the required permission, contravenes a condition of the permission, or obstructs the local authority's exercise of its powers under section 7 commits an offence, liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $100 or imprisonment not exceeding 3 months, plus a further fine not exceeding $20 for every day the contravention continues after conviction.

Section 44 sets a general penalty of the same fine and imprisonment term for a breach of the Act or the regulations for which no other penalty is provided.

Source: Full text of law

Environment Management Act 2005 (Act No. 1 of 2005), ss. 27-28, 45-46

Applies to both

The Environment Management Act 2005 (Act No. 1 of 2005) received presidential assent on 17 March 2005. Section 1 provides that the Act comes into force on a date the Minister appoints by notice in the Gazette. The Minister may appoint different dates for different Parts of the Act, and no commencement notice has been located.

Part 4 requires an approving authority to examine every development proposal it receives and determine whether the proposed activity is likely to cause significant environmental or resource management impact. It sets out a five-stage environmental impact assessment process of screening, scoping, preparation of an EIA report, review of the report, and a decision on the report. Section 45 makes it an offence to discharge a waste or pollutant without lawful authority. Section 46 sets a general penalty for any other offence against the Act for which no penalty is provided.

Source: Full text of law

Electricity Act 2017 (Act No. 13 of 2017), ss. 7-9, 16, 62

Applies to both

The Electricity Act 2017 (Act No. 13 of 2017) received presidential assent on 28 March 2017. It comes into force on a date or dates the Minister appoints by notice in the Gazette, and no commencement notice has been located. The Act's transitional provisions let a person already lawfully generating, transmitting, distributing, or retailing electricity immediately before the commencement date continue to do so without a licence for up to 6 months after it.

Section 7 makes it an offence for a person to generate, transmit, or supply electricity for the purpose of giving a supply to premises unless authorised by a licence or exemption. The fine and imprisonment term for that offence are left to be prescribed by regulations rather than stated in the Act itself. Proceedings for the offence may be instituted only by or on behalf of the Minister or the Regulator.

Section 8 lets the Minister exempt a person or a class of persons from the licensing requirement. Section 16 lets a person self-supply electricity by providing details of the self-supply to the public electricity supplier.

Source: Full text of law

Investment Act 2021 (Act No. 5 of 2021), ss. 6, 18, 22

Applies to private

The Investment Act 2021 (Act No. 5 of 2021) received presidential assent on 3 June 2021. It comes into force on a date or dates the Minister appoints by notice in the Gazette, and no commencement notice has been located. The Act repeals the Foreign Investment Act 1999. It preserves rights and registration certificates granted under that Act before this Act's own commencement. Section 6 requires a foreign investor to register its business under the Companies Act 2015 before establishing in Fiji.

That registration does not replace any other clearance, licence, or registration required under another written law. Part 4 lets the Government provide fiscal or non-fiscal investment incentives to attract and promote investment. Section 18 requires an incentive to be precisely targeted to a specific policy objective, granted under transparent and non-discretionary pre-defined eligibility criteria, and based on a cost-benefit analysis with periodic monitoring.

Section 22 lets the Minister make regulations prescribing offences and penalties for breach of the Act, capped at a fine not exceeding $50,000 or imprisonment not exceeding 10 years for a natural person and a fine not exceeding $1,000,000 for a body corporate.

Source: Full text of law