It [has been reported in the press] that Tax Institute, Senior Tax Counsel: Robert Jeremenko has been appointed as Chief of Staff for the Government’s Tax Reform White Paper Unit. The Tax Institute said it has long been an advocate for tax reform and looked forward to the impending Discussion Paper and White Paper. The Australian Financial…
The Treasurer [on Tue 3.3.2015] announced that Australia and Switzerland have agreed to increase cooperation to tackle tax evasion. Mr Hockey said the countries have “agreed to take another step in the fight against evasion and automatically exchange information with Switzerland based on the OECD’s common reporting standard (CRS).” Under the agreement, the ATO will automatically receive…
Tax and Transfer Policy Institute report on tax reform, 02 March 2015 The Tax and Transfer Policy Institute (TTPI) at The Australian National University has released a on Australia’s tax system. In particular, the report: reviews the economic and social challenges which the Henry Review identified and identifies new ones which have come to the fore…
The Federal Opposition has announced that it will “shut down loopholes that allow big multinationals to send … profits overseas”. Labor has announced that, in government, it would implement the following measures: *Worldwide Gearing Ratio – Tax deductions would be based on a company’s entire global operations, not just what they do in Australia. Hybrid Mismatches – Labor proposes to standardise…
Labor to shut down multinational tax evasion loopholes, 02 March 2015 The Australian Labor Party has announced a package of measures to shut down loopholes, which allow big multinational companies to send profits overseas. According to estimates by the Parliamentary Budget Office, Labor’s plan will bring in at least $1.9b in tax over the next…
The ATO handles most disputes satisfactorily; however some disputes go off the rails, according to a report tabled [on 26.3.15] by Chair of the House Tax Committee, Bert van Manen MP. The committee inquiry found that some disputes can go awry because of the ATO’s strong powers, the fact that the ATO does not engage…
The Treasurer Mr Joe Hockey has released a 203-page tax discussion paper which includes the challenges the Australian tax system faces, the way it currently operates, potential opportunities for reform and some of the trade-offs that would need to be considered. Challenges – according to the discussion paper, the challenges are as follows: the rise of the digital…
A package of 8 Bills were [introduced on Thur 26.3.2015] in the House of Reps. The Bills propose to make substantial changes to the governance arrangements for Norfolk Island. They also propose to extend the federal taxation and social welfare systems to Norfolk Island. The Tax and Superannuation Laws Amendment (Norfolk Island Reforms) Bill 2015 proposes to…
The Tax and Superannuation Laws Amendment (Employee Share Schemes) Bill 2015 was introduced in the House of Reps [on Wed 25.3.2015]. The Bill proposes to amend the ITAA 1997 to improve the taxation of employee share schemes (ESSs) by: reversing some of the changes made in 2009 to the taxing point for rights for employees of all…
A notice has been gazetted specifying the repayment incomes and repayment rates for the Higher Education Loan Program (HELP) for the 2015-16 financial year. The details are as follows. HELP repayment thresholds and rates 2015-16 For repayment income in the range Repayment % to be applied to income Below $54,126 Nil $54,126 to $60,293 4.0% $60,294 to…