A taxpayer has been unsuccessful in its appeal to the Victorian Supreme Court, from a decision of the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, which ruled that it was not entitled to the primary production land tax exemption for various properties over a number of years.
The taxpayer was a land developer and lessor of land. At relevant times, the taxpayer owned land at Lyndhurst and Clyde North, Victoria. The taxpayer sought exemptions from land tax during the 2010 to 2015 land tax years on the basis that the Lyndhurst and Clyde North lands were used or were being prepared for use primarily for primary production. The taxpayer also owned rural land near Shepparton, Victoria. It asserted that the Shepparton land was exempt in 2013 and 2014 when it was used primarily for primary production.
At first instance in Frontlink Pty Ltd v Comr of State Revenue [2016] VCAT 1339, the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal affirmed the Commissioner’s refusal to allow the exemptions sought for the Lyndhurst and Clyde North lands. A key issue was the lack of evidence to satisfy the Tribunal that the exemptions applied.
On appeal, the taxpayer raised a number of questions of law for consideration, which turned on the legality of the Tribunal’s approach. However, the Court dismissed the grounds of appeal for a range of reasons including the taxpayer’s failure to establish the burden of proof that relevant lands were used for primary production It also found that some of the grounds of appeal were largely concerned with immaterial factual findings and were generally without merit.
(Frontlink Pty Ltd v Comr of State Revenue [2017] VSC 121, Supreme Court of Victoria, Kennedy J, 27 March 2017.)
[LTN 60, 30/3/17]