Senate Economics Legislation Committee [Part 2], , 1:12:12 to 1:16:40
The ATO details a General Interest Charge (GIC) amnesty for taxpayers who self-assess historical trust mistakes, allowing for an 80% remission of charges until June next year.
Topics: Integrity, Law reform
Speakers: Jeremy Hirschhorn, Senator Andrew Bragg, Unknown Speaker
Senator, I'll have to take that on notice, but uh I would say this is not a um the AT does not have some sort of compliance strategy or uh project in relation to family trust elections and the and the distribution tax. Um there have been a sp you know a sporadic number of matters which have come up through other uh ordinary reviews.
>> Okay. So is there there's no target of revenue you're trying to raise? There is
no target of revenue we're trying to raise.
>> Okay. So, have there been cases where people have made m honest mistakes?
>> Well, Senator, it's I mean it's it's an people have planned parts of their group um you know a certain person being the reference individual. They have then done things which have been inconsistent I I think there's a question about whether that's in some cases that's sloppiness of uh in affairs either by them or their adviser. In some cases it's directly contrary to the spirit of the family trust election I I I think some of the angst in the public domain is that people who have perhaps taxpayers who have entrusted their affairs to their advisers and maybe sometimes on a change of advisers have uh not they've not deliberately been trying to uh avoid the rules or get around the rules. They have done but they have done things which have triggered the rules.
>> Okay. So, so um what do you have any you don't have any discretion do you
>> in these matters. Um so in terms of uh the the way the provisions work if somebody has breached the rules >> they have breached the rules it has triggered the liability and it is the owners as there is ordinarily in a self- assessment system is the taxpayer >> needs uh to self assess and notify us.
>> Yeah.
>> Um and pay the tax. We do have discretion around the the level of penalties and interest.
>> Okay. But there has to be a penalty and it could be very substantial if it it's cascading over many decades in some cases, isn't it? The general interest
>> So if if we do not remit the general interest charge,
>> right?
>> Um that general interest charge can uh build it compounds and um the general interest charge is is by policy set at a level which makes the ATO uh let's say not the most competitive of banks. >> Yeah. Okay. Um we have recognizing I suppose that the recent uh I suppose awareness of these issues um has caused a lot of taxpayers to look into their affairs and realize that they might have made mistakes or done things inconsistent with the rules. Um we have announced effectively a general interest charge amnesty of sorts where if people come forward and self assess as is their obligation
>> how long for
>> uh that's recently been extended I I think until June next year around June next year um they we will remit 80% of the general interest charge.
>> I think you've referred to the angst so to use your own words um Mr. to herin. I think some of the angst comes from the fact that this this never ends. So people have made a mistake decades ago. Um it never ends for them. So um well
well Senator I would say to the extent that uh they don't come forward you know the general interest charge acrru and so to the extent it's a general interest charge question yes it would acrue. Um we do have the power to uh consider remission requests and we have offered this Uh in terms of ongoing uh
>> that's it right ends this year
>> that ends this year but really just there there is an element of you can uh in a sense cleanse the past and going forward having looked at your elections make sure that you do not breach or trigger the rules again in the future.