Australia: Legislation proposing tax enforcement enhancements
Legislation proposing to improve ability of ATO to target promoters of tax exploitation schemes
Legislation proposing tax enforcement enhancements
Legislation proposing to improve the ability of the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) to target promoters of tax exploitation schemes and boost the Tax Practitioners Board’s (TPB) investigation powers was introduced in Parliament.
The Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Accountability and Fairness) Bill 2023—introduced in the House of Representatives on 16 November 2023—proposes to:
- Increase the time the ATO has to bring an application for civil penalty proceedings to the Federal Court of Australia, increase the maximum penalty applicable, and expand the application of the promoter penalty laws
- Extend whistleblower protections to eligible whistleblowers who make disclosures to the TPB, as well as disclosures to certain other entities who may support or assist the whistleblower, and reverse the burden of proof for certain claims of protection
- Increase the information published on the register established and maintained by the TPB, remove the 12-month time limit for certain information to remain on the register, extend the timeframe that the TPB has to conduct an investigation, and better target the TPB’s delegation powers
- Allow taxation officers and TPB officials to share protected information with Treasury about misconduct arising out of breaches or suspected breaches of confidence by intermediaries engaging with the Commonwealth
- Allow taxation officers and TPB officials to share protected information with prescribed professional disciplinary bodies to enable them to perform their disciplinary functions
- Effectively cap the availability of deductible expenditure incurred by a person in relation to a petroleum project for a year of tax
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