GSJW v CofT – AAT gives the taxpayer a rare win, ‘releasing’ the taxpayer from $900k of GIC on ‘serious hardship’ grounds (leaving only $40k of ‘primary tax’)

A taxpayer has been able to secure partial release, from his tax debt, based on suffering ‘serious hardship’, if required to pay $949,365 in total tax related liabilities (about $910k of GIC or General Interest Charge and about $40k in primary tax). This matter came to the AAT, because the Commissioner had refused to exercise his ‘release’ power, under s340-5 of the Taxation Administration Act 1953 (TAA53), and then, the taxpayer applied, to the AAT, for a review of that decision, under s340-5(7) of the TAA53. This is one of the rare successes, for taxpayers, in this area.

See below for a summary of this case.

[Tax Month – December 2019]