ATO program to challenge planners
Financial planners and accountants will face some new challenges as a result of the Australian Taxation Office’s (ATO’s) compliance program for 2008-09, which will impact clients with investments in property, shares and other asset classes.
The compliance program, outlined by the tax commissioner, Michael D’Ascenzo, last week, will focus on capital gains from the sale of property, shares and other assets at the same time as looking at deductions for rental income and returns from managed funds.
The compliance program explanation provided by D’Ascenzo said that the ATO would be writing to people who purchased investment properties, shares or units in a managed fund in the past 12 months to inform them of their capital gains tax obligations if they disposed of these assets.
And, in a direct reference to those people who took advantage of the Commonwealth’s so-called ‘$1 million window of opportunity’, the explanation said the ATO would also review the cases of individuals who made a gain from disposing of assets to invest in superannuation.
D’Ascenzo said that by publishing the ATO’s compliance program it was letting the community know where it would be focusing its attention, thereby signalling the areas of risk they should avoid.
AUTHOR
Mike Taylor
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