Treasury has updated (to 10 August) its fact sheet, Extension of the JobKeeper Payment, to incorporate the further revisions to JobKeeper 2.0 announced by the Prime Minister on 7 August 2020. Those changes will adjust the employee eligibility reference date to 1 July 2020 and revise the turnover test. See below for details. [Tax Month – August 2020]
On Fri 14.8.2020, the ATO issued Taxpayer Alert TA 2020/3 expressing concern about arrangements involving interposed offshore entities, to avoid Australian tax on the Australian profits and interest withholding tax liabilities on the off-shore interest payments. See below for details. [Tax Month – August 2020]
On Friday 21.8.2020, The Tax Institute posted a report by their Senior Advocate: Robyn Jacobson entitled A stocktake of unenacted measures in their weekly emailed newsletter: TaxVine (No.32 of 21.8.20). This covers things merely announced (5 items), announced measures introduced as a Bill (10 items), that is still before Parliament and recently enacted measures (6 items). This…
Late on Friday 14 August 2020, the Treasurer registered a legislative instrument which changes the reference date for determining the eligibility of employees under JobKeeper from 1 March 2020 to 1 July 2020. This means that more employees will be eligible for JobKeeper. See below for details. [Tax Month – August 2020]
On 31 July 2020, the Federal Court found against the Commissioner, who was attempting to recover a refundable tax offset, after Innovation and Science Australia, repudiated the registration of the R&D project. The Commissioner was out of time to issue an amended assessment and tried to use a provision in the ‘running balance provisions’ of…
On 3.8.20, the ATO has issued an update on residency and source of income. It deals with the issue from the perspectives of an Australian resident and a foreign resident in the context of a change of residency due to COVID-19. See below for details. [Tax Month – August 2020]
On Mon 3.8.2020, the ATO released a Draft Legislative Instrument proposing to provide an in-house asset exemption for an asset that is attributable to the deferral of rental income measures implemented to provide financial relief as a result of COVID-19. See below for details. [Tax Month – August 2020]
On 5 August 2020, the Assistant Minister for Superannuation: Jane Hume, issued a media release signalling that the ATO is aware that deadline for the Superannuation Guarantee Amnesty is approaching (7.9.20) at a time when the economy is reeling from the effects of the COVID pandemic, the restrictions and the ensuing economic turmoil and damage.…
On 30 July 2020, the ATO released Draft PS LA 2020/D1, setting out proposed guidelines on the remission of additional super guarantee charge (SGC) after the SG amnesty ends on 7 September 2020. Under Pt 7 of the Superannuation Guarantee (Administration) Act 1992 (SGAA), this additional SGC (Part 7 penalty) is up to 200% of the SGC…
On 30 July 2020, the SA Government announced an extension of its land tax relief of up to 25% reduction on eligible landlords’ 2019-20 land tax liability on affected properties – provided the landlords pass on the full benefit in land tax relief to their impacted tenants. The land tax relief scheme will be extended…