My Brand New Blog!
Well, this is it, my first entry on my blog. Its purpose is to vent all my frustration at the Australian Taxation Offices (ATOs) antics while at the same time highlighting some good developments and...
View ArticleIt’s February – what is new?
Lots of Exposure Drafts floating around and of course a very controversial draft ruling on Div 7A which came out just before Christmas – nice one Tax Office. Have to be wary now about: using assets in...
View ArticleAn issue concerning trusts not resolved by the Bamford & Ors v FCT [2010] HCA...
In March 2010, the High Court unanimously confirmed that it is correct to apply the percentage proportionate view where the net income of a trust for tax purposes exceeds its accounting income. The...
View ArticleThe ATO response to my Bamford query
The ATO response to my Bamford query I sent my scenario below to the Tax Office and this is their response – thank you. Sue, You talk about ‘a discretionary trust with a section 95 clause’. The answer...
View ArticleGovernment attacking small business with 76.5% retrospective tax
It is so frustrating to hear the Government advertising how it is planning to help small business (most of the changes announced don’t start til 1 July 2012) while right now it is attacking small...
View ArticleThe May 2011 Budget – what to look out for before 30 June 2011
The Treasurer handed down his Budget on 10th May 2011. He announced pages of tax changes, most of which won’t take effect until 1 July 2012. However you should be aware now of the following: The Fringe...
View ArticleCompany directors beware
Look out company directors. In the Budget it was announced that from 1 July 2011, the Government is going to substantially widen the director penalty regime. The effect will be that where a company has...
View ArticleIsn’t the Commissioner of Taxation bound by his Public Rulings?
The legislation states that public rulings are binding on the Commissioner of Taxation. Yet in two recent cases, the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) appears to have deliberately overruled its own...
View ArticleThe “Family Dog Test”
There has been a spate of cases recently on two important tax concepts: the residency rules; and what are commercial residential premises for GST purposes. There are detailed rulings and extensive...
View ArticleSmall Business hit by new discretion given to the Tax Office to hold onto...
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has a history of holding onto tax refunds where it suspects the refund should not be paid out. This can have a hugely negative impact on the cash flow of...
View Article
