Green light for MIS test case

The way has now been cleared for a test case on the tax status of registered agricultural managed investments schemes, with the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) having issued a final ruling this week.

The release of the final ruling was announced by the acting Taxation Commissioner, Greg Farr, who said that its final form had followed consideration of comments on the draft ruling and confirmed the ATO’s reconsidered view that investor contributions are capital in nature and, therefore, not deductible.

Farr acknowledged that the final ruling had cleared the way for the ATO and the industry to push ahead with a test case.

“We expect industry to present a test case in the near future that will be expedited through the Federal Court with a view to hopefully obtaining judicial guidance by the end of the transition period, June 30, 2008,” he said.

“To support this timeframe, we are also seeking consent from industry to jointly request an early hearing and for the case to be heard by the Full Federal Court, although both will be subject to agreement by the Federal Court,” Farr said.

He said that a test case would give both investors and the industry the highest level of certainty on the application of the law in the area of agricultural managed investment schemes.