The ATO on Wed 12.11.2014, released a speech delivered by ATO Assistant Deputy Commissioner Superannuation, Stuart Forsyth, at the ICAA National SMSF Conference on 11 September 2014. Mr Forsyth provided an update on compliance activities and the regulation of SMSFs. Some key points made by Mr Forsyth include: Compliance activities – In the past year, the ATO undertook a…
From 1 July 2013, any excess concessional superannuation contributions are automatically included in an individual’s assessable income and taxed at their marginal tax rate (plus an interest charge). Individuals can elect to release up to 85% of their excess concessional contributions from their superannuation fund to the Tax Office as a “credit” to cover the additional personal…
This Determination, issued on Wed 19.11.2014, sets out the Commissioner’s view that a payment made as a result of a partial commutation of an account based pension that is a transition to retirement income stream (TRIS) counts towards the “minimum annual amount” required to be paid from the pension account under reg 1.06(9A)(a) of the…
The AAT has upheld an excess contributions tax assessments after ruling that there were no “special circumstances” to reallocate excess concessional contributions made late via a clearing house. The husband and wife taxpayers are directors and employees of an electrical services company. On 27 June 2008, the wife, as the company’s bookkeeper, processed a superannuation contribution payment…
ASIC on Tue 11.11.2014, announced that it has commenced proceedings in the Supreme Court of NSW seeking interim and final orders to prevent property investment promoter, Park Trent Properties Group Pty Ltd (Park Trent), from carrying on an unlicensed financial services business. Park Trent’s business promotes the use of self-managed super funds (SMSFs) to purchase…
The ATO on Wed 12.11.2014, issued Draft GST Ruling GSTR 2014/D5 which explains the GST treatment of particular transactions arising in the context of development lease arrangements entered into between government agencies and private developers. It broadly states that the identification of the supplies that are made for consideration arising under a development lease arrangement…
The AAT has allowed an engineering company part of its claims for input tax credits (ITCs) in respect of various acquisitions. The Commissioner audited the taxpayer, a structural engineering services company, and issued a notice of assessments of net amount that increased its GST liability on the basis it had not reported all of its…
A taxpayer has been unsuccessful before the Federal Court in challenging a decision of the AAT, which had varied the Commissioner’s decisions concerning GST assessments covering 6 quarterly tax periods from 1 July 2009 to 31 December 2010. The taxpayer operated (via a unit trust) a business of repairing, maintaining and hiring motor vehicles. The AAT concluded that the…
The AAT has allowed some of a taxpayer’s input tax credit (ITC) claims and remitted the matter to the Commissioner to issue an assessment in accordance with its reasons. The taxpayer was in dispute with the Commissioner with respect to his entitlement to claim ITCs totalling $6,795 in the tax periods between 1 January 2009 to 31 March 2011…
The further hearing of the Commissioner’s appeal against the Full Federal Court decision in MBI Properties Pty Ltd v FCT [2013] FCAFC 112 began on Tue 4.11.2014 before a Full Court of the High Court in Canberra. It is expected this will be the final day of the appeal. The Full Federal Court had overturned…