British artists will now earn new royalties when their artwork is
resold in Australia, thanks to the UK-Australia Free Trade
Agreement (FTA).
The new rules, introduced under the FTA today [31 March], will
mean UK artists will be able to claim resale royalties each time
their art, such as paintings, sculptures, prints, photographs, is
resold in the Australian professional art market.
The Artist's Resale Right (ARR) provides artists with a vital
income stream. According to the Alliance for IP, UK artists earn
on average £5,000 a year in royalties, with over 80% using their
ARR for living expenses and art materials.
British artists exported £10 million of items to Australia in
2021, and art sales in the Australian market were worth over
AUS$140 million in 2023.
Trade Policy Minister Greg Hands said:
“British artists are renowned the world over, and from today they
will be yet another beneficiary of the UK's post-Brexit free
trade agenda.
“By ensuring that British artists are paid fairly for their work
around the world, we are helping to nurture the next generation
of Hogarths and Constables – so we can see their work hanging on
the walls of global galleries for generations to come.”
Creative Industries Minister Julia Lopez
said:
“We will continue to do all we can to maximise the potential of
the creative industries, and our creative talent. Thanks to this
new Free Trade Agreement, British artists will be fairly rewarded
for their efforts, and be able to claim resale royalties in line
with the system Down Under. This is just one part of our plan to
grow our booming creative industries even further, benefiting
talented British artists that are in demand around the
world.”
Under the new legislation passed by the Australian parliament, UK
artists are now entitled to resale royalties in line with the
Australian system – currently 5% of the sale price of artworks
sold commercially for AUS$1,000 or more. Previously, British
artists would not have received any royalties when their artwork
was resold in Australia.
In addition, from 1 April ARR royalties in the UK will be
calculated in pounds rather than euros. This post-Brexit change
reflects the UK market better and reduces costs to UK businesses
when calculating royalty payments.
The UK's creative industries are an integral part of the UK,
employing 2.4 million people and contributing £125 billion to the
economy according to latest figures. The Design and Artists
Copyright Society (DACS) and Artists' Collecting Society (ACS)
distributed over £12 million in ARR royalties to UK artists in
2022 alone.
Chairman of the Artists' Collecting Society Harriet
Bridgeman CBE said:
“We, at the Artists' Collecting Society, are extremely pleased on
behalf of the artists and artists' estates which we represent
that Australia has entered a reciprocal agreement with collecting
societies in many countries including the United Kingdom. This is
a welcome development and will make a substantial difference to
the Australian artists and artists' estates whom we
represent.
“We look forward to collecting ARR royalties on behalf of our
members from 1st April 2024.”
Chief Executive of The Design and Artists Copyright
Society Christian Zimmerman said:
“We are delighted with this development and the official
recognition of reciprocity of the Artist Resale Right between the
UK and Australia, and we hope this to be the first of many such
international developments.
“The expansion of ARR reflects our commitment to fostering
fairness and equality within the art market and supporting
artists worldwide. It represents a significant step towards
creating a more equitable and collaborative global art ecosystem.
We are looking forward to being able to collect resale royalties
for Australian artists here in the UK and to receive such
royalties for UK artists from Australia.”
The UK-Australia FTA, which entered into force on 31 May 2023,
also reduces Australian tariffs on all UK exports to 0% and has
made it easier for UK creative professionals and young Britons to
travel to Australia professionally or spend time there developing
their creativity.
