Monthly Archives: September 2021

IGTO’s survey results on ATO communication of taxpayers’ rights – 60% unaware of ‘ATO Complaints’

The Inspector-General of Taxation and Taxation Ombudsman (IGTO) has released its survey results into the effectiveness of the ATO’s communication of taxpayers’ rights to complain, review and appeal decisions or actions. The survey was conducted between August and September 2020 with participation from taxpayers and tax professionals. Key take-aways include: the majority respondents confirmed that the ATO regularly communicates taxpayer’s right…

IGTO’s IGoT News! edition 17 released – reporting tax debts to credit bureaus, undisputed tax debts (and more … )

The Inspector-General of Taxation and Taxation Ombudsman (IGTO), Karen Payne, has released edition 17 of the IGTO’s newsletter – “IGoT News”. This edition provides: a summary of IGTO’s website “refresh” and improvements; a summary of the ATO’s approach in reporting business tax debts to Credit Reporting Bureaus, which commenced in August 2021; confirmation from the ATO that a practitioner’s…

TPB – Federal Court injunction to stop unregistered tax agent practising

The TPB has released a media release stating that the Federal Court, following the TPB’s application, has ordered an unregistered tax agent to stop preparing and lodging income tax returns while not a registered tax agent with the TPB. The unregistered tax agent is alleged to have illegally charged clients fees to lodge returns on their behalf.…

IGTO’s report on ATO’s JobKeeper enrolment deferral decisions – should have applied the ‘fair and reasonable threshold’ (not ‘exceptional circumstances’)

The Inspector-General of Taxation and Taxation Ombudsman (IGTO) has released its latest report in the investigation of the ATO’s administration of JobKeeper enrolment deferral decisions. The IGTO has investigated at least 20 taxation complaints (to date). Initially (up until around April 2021), the IGTO investigations did not observe the ATO applying the ‘fair and reasonable threshold’, as…

TA 2021/2 – Disguising undeclared foreign income as gifts or loans from related overseas entities

The ATO, on Fri 17.9.2021, issued taxpayer alert TA 2021/2: Disguising undeclared foreign income as gifts or loans from related overseas entities. The Alert highlights the ATO’s concern where Australian-resident taxpayers derive income or capital gains offshore (foreign assessable income) but fail to declare it in their Australian income tax returns. [Assuming the worst, but how…

NSW land tax: NSW Commissioner v McIntosh Bros Pty Ltd (in liq) – land used for primary production exempt – despite 4 uses by independent persons with meagre profits

On 16 September 2021, the NSW Supreme Court, Court of Appeal held that a taxpayer, who owned land, was exempt from NSW land tax, based on the ‘primary production’ tests – in circumstances where there were there were a number of different uses, by different persons, one of which included agistment, with the ‘commerciality’ and…

Legal professional privilege – a background briefing, to the ATO’s Federal Court challenge to PwC’s claims (relating to its work for client: JBS)

The ATO is running a high profile case in the Federal Court, against PwC, challenging its claims that large amounts of information, relevant to its client: JBS, is subject to legal professional privilege (LPP) – pressing its right to get access, to that which is not privileged. This case is making news (see related TT…

Legal Professional Privilege ‘carve-out’ from obligation to produce information – ATO, PwC & Amicus Curiae ‘duke it out’ in the Federal Court (with client: JBS looking on) – be part of the action: ‘fun for everyone’

The ATO commenced action in the Federal Court against professional services firm: PwC, to challenge its claim that information, related to its client: JBS, is subject to ‘legal professional privilege’ (LPP), which, PwC contends, puts that information, beyond the reach of the ATO’s statutory right, to access particular types of information. The action commenced Monday…

Fairfax, Nationwide & Australian News v Dylan Voller – news outlets social media pages left them potentially liable for ‘publishing’ 3rd party allegedly defamatory comments

And now for something important – even though, only tangentially relevant, to tax. On 8 September 2021, the High Court found in favour of Dylan Voller, on the issue of whether various news outlets had published allegedly defamatory comments, made by third parties, in the ‘comments’ function on their respective ‘Facebook’ pages, where they’d posted…

High Court holds that using social media made a person potentially liable for 3rd party allegedly defamatory ‘comments’ on a news article – by ‘facilitating’ their publication

On 8 September 2021, the High Court brought down a defamation decision of very considerable significance – even to tax practitioners. It found that the host of a Facebook page, could be liable for defamatory comments made, by a third party, in response to a news article they had published. The basis was that they…