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Submissions

The Taxation Institute is the most respected and influential contributor to the development of tax policy and administration in Australia. As part of this contribution, we prepare top level submissions on tax policy, administration and technical matters at both Federal and State levels. Non-confidential submissions prepared from 1996 onwards and covering legislation, ATO and Treasury consultative documents and papers, as well as rulings, determinations and a range of other ATO opinion and guideline documents, are available here.

• Proposed section 8AAZLGA of the Taxation Administration Act 1953

  22 Feb 2012

  The Tax Institute and the Taxation Committee of the Business Law Section of the Law Council of Australia (together the Professional Bodies) thank the Treasury for the opportunity to make a submission in respect of proposed s. 8AAZLGA of the Taxation Administration Act 1953 (s. 8AAZLGA).
  
  Two observations are required at the outset: the first concerning consultation time frame and the second concerning the complete absence of appropriate checks and balances.

• Business Tax Working Group Interim Report

  22 Feb 2012

  Our submission below addresses the issues raised in the interim report by setting out our
  views on:

  • Scope of the interim report and the BTWG’s consultation efforts;
  • The principles that should in our view drive the tax treatment of losses in Australia; and
  • Our proposed reform plan in relation to the tax treatment of losses (including implementation date, transitional measures and our comments on each of the elements set out in the interim report).

• Fringe Benefits Tax Reform: Living-away-from-home benefits

  15 Feb 2012

  The Tax Institute is pleased to provide our submission in response to Treasury’s Consultation Paper entitled “Fringe Benefits Tax Reform: Living-away-from-home benefits” (“Consultation Paper”).
  
  In addition to the questions posed in the Consultation Paper, we have also made additional comments in relation to the issues raised in the Consultation Paper and the related Media Release issued by the then Assistant Treasurer on 29 November 2011 (“Media Release”) as set out below.

• Modernising the taxation of trust income – options for reform

  15 Feb 2012

  The Tax Institute also welcomes the issue of the Consultation Strategy accompanying the Consultation Paper. The strategy document provides much needed certainty in relation to the timing of changes and is of significant assistance to the taxpayers associated with the 600,000 trusts in Australia.

• Proposed Amendments to the Corporations Act

  30 Jan 2012

  We note that the range of taxation issues that have arisen from the recent and proposed reforms (as set out on page 11 of the Discussion paper) have resulted in significant uncertainty for a range of taxpayers. As such, we strongly urge implementation of reforms necessary to bring this uncertainty to an end.

• Alleviating the double tax burden for Australians working overseas Submission on ATO interpretation of the Medicare Levy and the Foreign Income Tax Offset provisions

  08 Sep 2011

  The ATO is currently assessing the income tax returns of Australians who are working overseas temporarily, and paying foreign taxes, on the basis that a Foreign Income Tax Offset (FITO) cannot be applied to reduce the Medicare levy obligation of an individual taxpayer.  This means that where an Australian is, say, working in PNG on as resources project, and incurs foreign tax which is greater than the individual’s Australian tax, the individual receives a credit for (in this case) the PNG tax but cannot obtain a credit against their Australian Medicare levy income tax.

• Discussion Paper: Privilege in relation to tax advice

  19 Aug 2011

  Our submission considers the current operation of the Commissioner of Taxation’s “Guidelines to accessing professional accounting advisors’ papers” and Chapter 7 of the ATO’s “Access and Information Gathering Manual” (the “accountants’ concession”) and the potential advantages and disadvantages of implementing a statutory protection for tax advice.

• ATO Interpretive Decision ATO ID 2011/58

  04 Jul 2011

  On 22 July 2011 the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) published ATO Interpretative Decision ATO ID 2011/58 (ATO ID 2011/58). The topic was „Income tax: whether trust distributions can be assessed under section 6-5 of the ITAA 1997?. ATOID 2011/58 has significant implications, not only for insurance companies to which it is addressed but the many businesses which are taxed on revenue account on a net profit basis with respect to their interests in trusts, such as banks and other financiers, construction firms, developers etc.
  
  We therefore would like to highlight a number of issues we see in the reasoning provided by the ATO in ATO ID 2011/58. Because of the importance of the topic we consider it should be identified as a high priority technical issue and escalated to the rulings process for review by the Public Rulings Panel

• State Tax Review Discussion Paper

  11 Apr 2011

  Our submission below sets out the high level principles which in our view should drive tax reform in Tasmania. As a result, our submission does not address all of the consultation questions set out in the Discussion Paper. However, where specific consultation questions are addressed, we have noted the relevant question for ease of reference.

• Improving the taxation of trust income

  08 Apr 2011

  A summary of our position is as follows:

  • The government’s intention of removing doubt around certain aspects of the operation of Division 6 is timely and responsive.
  • We urge the government to implement an “interim solution” for the income year ending 30 June 2011. Our proposed interim solution is that the ATO’s previous administrative practice, set out in the (now withdrawn) PS LA 2005/1 and TR 92/13, should be codified in the legislation.