On Thursday 12 July 2018, the Commissioner released his income tax ‘gap analysis’ of gap between the tax individuals (not in business) ought to have paid, had they been fully compliant and the tax they actually paid. The head line is that the ‘gap’ is bigger than the corporate sector, but there is more to…
T a x T e c h n i c a l – M o n t h l y N e w s – June 2018 Developments – This is a collection of developments in Australian tax law and practice that occurred in June 2018 which aims to be relevant to tax practitioners.[i] Compiled By F…
On Wed 27.6.2018, the Commissioner released a draft of a further Explanation section in his GST Ruling GSTR 2006/6. This ruling considers the meaning of the phrase “improvements on the land” for GST purposes. The draft seeks to provide further details and clarification of the ATO view in order to make it easier for relevant entities…
On 25 June 2018, the Commissioner updated his website page on his suspended ‘guidelines’ for income allocation for professional firms (which is really about how much income principals in professional firms can ‘split’ with family members, without attracting audit attention from the Commissioner). He suspended his previous guidelines on 14 December 2017, citing various alleged…
From 1 July 2018, purchasers of new residential premises or potential residential land are required to withhold an amount of the contract price and pay this directly to the ATO as part of the settlement process. The ATO has released instructions on how to complete the new GST property settlement forms. Purchasers of new residential premises or…
On 27 June 2018, the Commissioner issued TR 2018/4, setting out his determination of the effective life of depreciating assets, for the purposes of depreciation deductions under Division 40 of the ITAA97 (s40-25). Though taxpayers can choose their own ‘effective lives’ s40-100 allows the Commissioner to determine effective lives, which are widely used as they avoid…
A superannuation related Legislative Instrument: the Taxation Administration Member Account Transaction Service – the Reporting of Information Relating to Superannuation Account Transactions 2018 was registered on 27.6.2018. The Deputy Commissioner – Superannuation made the determination on 24 May 2018, but it was a little over a month until it was registered. The Determination will apply…
On Wed 27.6.2018, the ATO released Product Ruling PR 2018/6 (Deductibility of interest in relation to an investment in a Chan & Naylor Property Investor Trust). This ruling considers the tax consequences of investing in a trust offered by CNIP Pty Ltd, using borrowings that are on arm’s length and commercial terms. In particular, it…
Today [Wed 27.6.2018], the ATO issued an Addendum to Taxation Ruling TR 2005/8, its ruling on the government services articles in Australia’s tax treaties. The ruling is amended to: incorporate the revised DTA between Australia and Germany, which came into force on 7 December 2016; remove outdated guidance concerning s 23AG of the ITAA 1936; and remove the…
Taxation Determination TD 2018/10, issued on Wed 27.6.2018, setting out the amounts the Commissioner accepts, for the 2017-18 income year, as estimates of the value of goods taken from trading stock for private use by taxpayers in certain specified industries. These amounts (which exclude GST) are: Business type Adult/child over 16 years ($) Child 4-16…