The AAT has affirmed the Commissioner’s decision to impose super excess contributions tax (ECT) on a taxpayer in respect of the 2010 income year.
- The taxpayer was a NSW Government employee who as at 30 June 2010, was 66 years old.
- At that time, he was a member of 2 public sector funds (to which the taxpayer contributed through his employer) and a self-managed super fund (SMSF).
- The taxpayer made $80,590 in concessional contributions and id=”mce_marker”59,783 in non-concessional contributions in the 2010 income year.
- In September 2012, the Commissioner issued an amended ECT assessment for the 2010 income year for excess concessional contributions and non-concessional contributions. The Commissioner had also previously issued an ECT assessment for the 2009 income year.
The Tribunal held there were no “special circumstances” in the taxpayer’s case warranting the exercise of the Commissioner’s discretion under s 292-465 of the ITAA 1997.
The taxpayer had contended that when making arrangements in respect of the superannuation contributions including salary sacrifice employer contributions in the 2010 income year, he was unaware of the requirements to take into account notional contributions relating to his defined benefit interest in one of the public sector funds.
However, in this regard, among other things, the Tribunal noted that information on notional contributions was available via the fund’s website and on the ATO website. The Tribunal also found “that at the time [the taxpayer] made contributions it was reasonably foreseeable that [the taxpayer] would exceed the concessional contribution limit”.
(AAT Case [2013] AATA 643, Re Griffiths and FCT, AAT, Ref No: 2012/4861, Deutsch DP, 11 September 2013.)
[LTN 178, 13/9/13]