Daily Archives: January 18, 2022

Electronic surveillance reform – should the ATO be given ‘bugging’ powers?

Here’s one that could have ‘slipped under the [tax] radar’. On 5 Dec 2021, the Department of Home Affairs issued a discussion paper called: Reform of Australia’s electronic surveillance framework., which calls for submissions from the public by 11 Feb 2022. This has relevance to tax in that there is a proposal that the ATO get…

McDonald’s conviction for failure to deliver documents as required by notice

On 14 Jan 2022, the Commissioner posted an article saying that McDonald’s Australia had been convicted and fined, that day, for failing to provide documents to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). This conviction seems to have something to do with the Mussalli decision, where prepayments of rent, to McDonalds were held to be on capital…