Operations Report (Form 5) – expenditure on mining tenements

Sections 51, 68, 70H and 82 of the Mining Act 1978 and regulations 16, 22, 23E and 32 of the Mining Regulations 1981 provide that:

• an Operation Report (Form 5) shall be filed with the Department either by lodging -
• electronically through the Mineral Titles Online system; or
• in person at any Mining Registrar’s office or the Department Head Office in Perth or by postal mail, and
• within 60 days after each anniversary of the commencement of term of the tenement or within any period of extension as approved under Section 162B of the Mining Act 1978.

If a Form 5 is not lodged within the required period, or any approved period of extension, notice of intention to forfeit proceedings will be initiated on the basis of non-compliance with the reporting and/or expenditure conditions.

The Auditing of Reports on Operations – Form 5s guidelines summarises the policies and procedures used by the Department when the auditing of a Report on Operations (Form 5) is required to be undertaken.

It is important to make sure that one of the appropriate attachments required to accompany the Form 5 is completed:

• Attachment 1 is to be completed only if exploration or mining activities have taken place on the tenement during the relevant period. If both exploration activities and prospecting activities were carried out on the tenement, then the prospecting activities can be included on this form.
• Attachment 2 is to be completed only if prospecting or small scale mining has taken place on the tenement during the relevant period.

When completing a Form 5 report, the following details are required to be included:

• whether the report is an annual report or final report for the tenement;
• the period covered by the report (from the 12 month anniversary of the commencement of term to end date for that expenditure year, the date of forfeiture or the surrender date);
• the type of tenement (including mining leases and prospecting, exploration and retention licences), and the tenement number;
• brief details of any operations carried out during the period of the report (various suggested headings are on the front page of the Form 5);
• the expenditure amount claimed for each type of operation together with the total amount expended on the tenement;
• the cost and detailed description for each activity claimed under Part A 'mineral exploration activities' or Part B 'mining activities (development and production)' in attachment 1;
• details of any related annual mineral exploration report; and
• mineral commodity details.

Expenditure on mining tenements is required to be recorded and reported on an annual basis. The Goods and Services Tax (GST) component of expenditure in connection with mining tenements should be included in the calculation of annual expenditure reported on the Form 5.

Form 5s must be signed either manually (wet signature) if they are being lodged via the post or in person over the counter, or with an approved electronic signature generated through Mineral Titles Online. Completing a Form 5 in Microsoft Word and typing your name on the document, or inserting a photograph of your signature is not an approved form of electronic signature, nor is it sufficient to certify the document as required.

Detailed technical reports (Mineral Exploration Reports) are also required to be lodged in accordance with Section 115A for mining tenements when certain geoscientific activities are undertaken in the search for minerals.

A mineral exploration report is required where 'mineral exploration activities' have been claimed on the Form 5.

If a Mineral Exploration Report is required to be lodged please refer to the department’s website.

When the minimum required annual expenditure will or has not been met for a particular year, an application for exemption from expenditure conditions (Form 18) must be completed and applied for by the tenement holder or an authorised agent and lodged within 60 days after the end of the year to which the proposed exemption relates. (Exemption from expenditure conditions).

To lodge a form 5 online please go to Mineral Titles Online. Instructions on how to complete and lodge a Form 5 either online or manually is available for download.

Failure to use the online lodgement system in the manner described below is not the responsibility of DMIRS. Incorrectly lodged applications may result in non-compliance which may see forfeiture action being commenced.

Incomplete or incorrect Form 5s lodged will not be processed or entered in the Tenement Register until the form complies with requirements.

The Aboriginal Heritage Survey Assistance Program provides support to the mining industry to offset the increasing costs of conducting Aboriginal Heritage Surveys (AHS) throughout Western Australia.

Eligible prospecting licence or exploration licence holders who are actively undertaking works and incurring AHS costs may apply for a rebate.

Applicants will need to complete and lodge their regular Operations Report (Form 5), together with the Heritage Assistance Rebate Form.

More information can be found in the Guidelines for Aboriginal Heritage Survey Assistance Program.