Tax Month – November 2021

T a x  T e c h n i c a l  –  M o n t h l y  N e w s – November 2021 Edition – ‘Tax Developments’ for tax practitioners by a tax practitioner.   Compiled by F John Morgan A member of the Victorian Bar (www.FJMtax.com) Table of Contents ______________________________________________________________________________  …

Wood v CofT – Taxpayer loses ‘serious hardship’ appeal – $91,000 for renting a large house, $110,724 in private school fees

The Federal Court has dismissed a taxpayer’s appeal against a decision not to release him from his tax liabilities on grounds of serious hardship. The taxpayer was a paediatric surgery registrar and surgical assistant who managed his tax affairs poorly. He failed to lodge on time his tax returns for most years from 2007 to 2017…

IGTO report: The effectiveness of the ATO’s communication of taxpayers’ rights to complain and appeal etc.

On Thursday 14 October 2021, the Inspector-General of Taxation and Taxation Ombudsman (IGTO), Karen Payne today released her latest report, “An investigation into the effectiveness of the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) communications of taxpayer rights to complain, review and appeal”. The report provides a detailed look at ATO communications in relation to a sample of…

Pandora Papers released; ATO to investigate for Australian links – but they don’t rely on leaks and not everything is illegal

The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) has released details of offshore tax planning activities contained in 11.9 million confidential files leaked from 14 offshore services firms –  the so-called “Pandora Papers”. This follows the release of the “Paradise Papers” in 2017 (TT article) and the 2016 “Panama Papers” (TT article). In a statement on 4 October 2021, the…

Deadline for Director Identification Number applications extended – to 30 November 2022 and 12 months later under a different Corporations Act

On Tuesday 5.10.2021, the Government registered legislative instrument Corporations (Director Identification Numbers—Transitional Application Period) Instrument 2021. The instrument extends the time available for persons who are eligible officers immediately before the commencement of the director identification number obligations to apply for a director identification number (“DIN”). The persons are required to apply for a DIN…

Digital transformation driving tax administration: ATO paper

The ATO has released a paper on how data and digitisation are driving the future of tax administration. The paper, delivered by Jeremy Hirschhorn, ATO Second Commissioner, Client Engagement was Paper delivered to the 2021 Pearcey Oration and Victorian Entrepreneur Award on 1 September 2021 and posted on the ATO website on 30 Sept 2021. It covers the following themes: thinking…

Section 100A ruling – soft launch at TTI ‘Trust Intensive’ – ‘hard copy’ about Christmas time or end of lockdowns

The Commissioner had a ‘soft launch’ of his proposed his draft ruling on s100A of the 1936 Tax Act, This was at The Tax Institute’s recent Trusts Intensive. The following notes were taken by an attendee at this trust intensive. The ruling will not be released until the new year, because the ATO does not want to…

Banking leak opens Pandora’s box of offshore accounts – Czech Minister, former UK Prime Minister, Jordan’s King & 400 Australians

More than 400 Australians have been named in a massive leak of offshore company and banking details which has revealed secret investments, real estate deals and artworks of celebrities, politicians and business figures who control more than $1 trillion in assets (see related TT article). The documents – the largest leak of offshore files in history…

What are the Pandora Papers? The biggest leak in history explained (bigger than ‘Panama’ and ‘Paradise’ leaks)

On Monday morning (4.10.21), 14 heads of state, 21 former heads of state and more than 130 billionaires woke to a shock. Their offshore banking affairs – usually extremely private – were suddenly public and would dominate global news headlines for days. They had fallen foul of the Pandora Papers, the largest leak of documents ever…