The Federal Court has dismissed a taxpayer’s application to prevent ATO officers who were to conduct an interview of him under s 264 of the ITAA 1936 from using evidence he had previously given in an examination by the Australian Crime Commission (ACC) in relation to a Project Wickenby investigation. The taxpayer, a director of an…
In a test case decision handed down [on Thursday 19.2.2015], the Federal Court has dismissed a taxpayer’s appeal concerning its entitlement to input tax credits (ITCs) for certain acquisitions relating to mining accommodation in WA. The taxpayer, Rio Tinto Services Ltd, is the representative member for the Rio Tinto Ltd GST group, which includes Hamersley…
The Federal Court has held that for the purposes of determining the “allocable cost amount” (or cost base) of an asset that came to be owned by a consolidated group on consolidation – in circumstances where the asset was originally a pre-CGT asset that had been subject to a roll-over that preserved its pre-CGT status…
The Federal Court has found that a taxpayer had impliedly waived his right to legal professional privilege in relation to legal advice he had obtained, which he partially disclosed in sworn affidavits to support his appeal against assessments raised by the Commissioner. The assessments related to offshore transactions involving tax havens and the creation of…
The Federal Court has found that a promoter of a scheme, involving the purchase and donation [of] pharmaceuticals to charities with foreign operations, engaged in conduct that resulted in himself, and 2 other entities being a promoter of a tax exploitation scheme. As a result, civil penalties totalling id=”mce_marker”.5m were imposed. The Court said the…
The ATO advises that the High Court will hear the appeal by AusNet Transmission Group Pty Ltd (formerly SPI Powernet Pty Ltd) on 9 April 2015. The appeal concerns the deductibility under 8-1 of the Tax Act of a payment under the Electricity Industry Act 1993 by AusNet as holder of a licence to transmit…
The Senate Economics References Committee is conducting an inquiry into corporate tax avoidance. The Committee is looking at tax avoidance and aggressive minimisation by corporations registered in Australia and multinational corporations operating in Australia. It is due to report by the first sitting day in June 2015 ie 1 June 2015. The Committee has received many submissions, including from…
In his address at the National Press Club on Mon 2.2.2015, the Prime Minister announced that a “bigger parental leave scheme is off the table”. He also announced that the Government is working on a small-business and jobs package. He said at the heart of that package will be a small business company tax cut…
The following Bills received Royal Assent on 25 February 2015: Treasury Legislation (Repeal Day) Bill 2014 – Assent as Treasury Legislation (Repeal Day) Act 2015, Act No 2 of 2015 – makes various amendments, including rewriting ss 6AA and 7A of the ITAA 1936 into the ITAA 1997 and the Taxation Administration Act 1953. Amending Acts 1970…
The Tax and Superannuation Laws Amendment (2014 Measures No 7) Bill 2014 and Excess Exploration Credit Tax Bill 2014 were both passed by the House of Reps [on Wed 25.2.2015] without amendment and now move to the Senate. The Measures No 7 Bill contains amendments: transfer the tax investigation function from the Commonwealth Ombudsman to…