Australia: New communications protocol for ATO objections
Australian Taxation Office (ATO) released PS LA 2023/2
Australian Taxation Office (ATO) released PS LA 2023/2
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) released PS LA 2023/2 - Communications protocol governing ATO objections, following the Inspector General of Taxation’s 2022 interim report on the ATO’s administration and management of objections.
Background
Part IVC of the Taxation Administration Act 1953 provides a process for taxpayers who are dissatisfied with an assessment, determination, notice or decision, or with a failure to make a private ruling, to object.
An objection receives an internal independent review by the Commissioner of Taxation of the original decision, and the objection officer is required to provide a “fair and impartial view.”
The communications protocol is an internal ATO document and instruction to staff setting out the responsibilities of the original ATO decision maker and objection officer, respectively, when the parties need to communicate as a result of the objection officer needing to contact the original decision-maker/ATO officers involved in making the original decision (including internal advisors) to better understand the facts, evidence and reasons supporting the original decision.
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