Legal news
Without consultation, the Victorian Government has introduced the State Taxation Acts and Other Acts Amendment Bill 2023 (Bill) which will make a number of significant changes.
In our previous article, we discuss Revenue NSW’s announcement that it has determined that NSW surcharge purchaser duty and surcharge land tax are inconsistent with international tax treaties entered into by the Australian Federal Government and certain countries (Treaty Countries).
On 29 May 2023, Revenue NSW has updated its list of Treaty Countries to now include India, Japan, Norway and Switzerland.
On 21 February 2023 Revenue NSW announced that it has been determined that NSW surcharge purchaser duty and surcharge land tax (Surcharge Provisions) are inconsistent with international tax treaties entered into by the Australian Federal Government with New Zealand, Finland, Germany, and South Africa (Treaty Countries).
The recent Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal’s (Tribunal) decision in Petroulis v Commissioner of State Revenue [2022] VCAT 1054 dismissed the taxpayers’ request for review of the land tax assessments issued by the Commissioner.
Both federal and state tax legislations contain different tax rules for different forms of trusts. The recent Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (Tribunal) decision of Sharlin Pty Ltd v Commissioner of State Revenue (Review and Regulation) [2022] VCAT 378 has provided much-needed clarity and insights into relevant considerations to determine whether a hybrid unit trust is a unit trust or a discretionary trust for the purpose of the land tax exemption for primary production land (PPL).
The NSW Supreme Court’s (NSWSC) decision in Godolphin Australia Pty Ltd v Chief Commissioner of State Revenue [2022] NSWSC 430 (Godolphin Case) is instructive as it provides guidance into the ambit and scope of the land tax primary production exemption particularly in relation to the breeding of horses.
The primary production land tax exemption remains an important concession for farmers and the owners of farm land. The Civil and Administrative Tribunal of New South Wales has added to the list of recent land tax cases offering insight into the application of the primary production land tax exemption.
As discussed in Part 1 and Part 2 of this series, land tax is levied on the total taxable value of land held by a taxpayer in a particular jurisdiction. Land tax is then levied on a progressive graduated scale. That is, the higher the value of land that you own the higher the rate of land tax you pay.
As discussed in this Land Tax Series, land tax is a state and territory tax levied on the total taxable value of land held by taxpayers in particular jurisdictions. Land tax is assessed on a calendar year basis on the land you own at midnight on 31 December.
The recent Supreme Court of Victoria decision of Lotus Oaks Pty Ltd as trustee for the Bozzo Family Trust v Commissioner of State Revenue [2021] VSC 388 is significant as it provides further clarification on the application of the primary production land tax exemption for land located in greater Melbourne in an urban zone. This is part one in a series of three articles on this decision.
Part 2 of our series decision of Lotus Oaks Pty Ltd as trustee for the Bozzo Family Trust v Commissioner of State Revenue [2021] VSC 388 looks at the former requirement in section 67 of the Land Tax Act 2005 (Vic) (Act) which required the principal business of the Bozzo FT to be of the type carried on on the subject land.
This final part of our 3 part series on the Lotus Oaks Pty Ltd as trustee for the Bozzo Family Trust v Commissioner of State Revenue [2021] VSC 388 decision looks at the substantially full-time engagement requirement in section 67 of the Act.
The Victorian State Budget for the 2021-2022 year brings with it particularly broad-ranging state taxation measures that will impact a diverse cross-section of the Victorian community. The changes include increased land tax and transfer (stamp) duty rates as well as new tax measures such as the windfall gain tax on rezoned land and a mental health and wellbeing levy (payroll tax surcharge).
Many state and federal taxing provisions provide different tax outcomes on the trustees of trusts depending on what type of trust is involved. One example of this is contained in the NSW land tax rules which provides for a land tax surcharge on unit trusts that are “special trusts” rather than “fixed trusts”.
