Master Painters Australia
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Master Painters Australia |
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TAX CHEATS AND WHAT CAN BE DONE TO REMOVE THEIR UNFAIR ADVANTAGE OVER THOSE WHO PAY THEIR WAY
The Australian Taxation Office has sought advice from your Association about how they can make some inroads into the “black” cash economy in the building and construction industry.
Some members may remember the “dob in a tax cheat” activity among our members in regional NSW last year. Several members had complained about being undercut by a competitor working for cash. The subsequent “audit” swoop by the Tax Office reaped at least one prosecution and is now being used by Tax Office compliance officers as a “model”.
The view put by your Association to the Tax Office’s compliance team is that there is little more to be gained by auditing those in our industry who DO comply with MOST elements of the tax system. Compliance efforts should be aimed at the people who DON’T comply with ANY of it (eg. the 55% of contractors who were registered under the old PPS system who have not registered for GST). This non-GST-registered ex-PPS group should become a target in future compliance campaigns.
The Tax Office was also very interested in a recent “dob in a cheat” request from a member who had been working for an owner-builder. His client dumped him half way through the job when he found another contractor prepared to do the balance of the work for cash with no GST. The Tax Office will pay a visit to that owner-builder very soon. Your Association has asked the Tax Office to put owner-builders into high-non-compliance-risk group. The Tax Office will look at the feasibility of asking Local Governments for lists of owner-builder permits issued and using those lists to target cash and non-GST transactions between owner-builders and the contractors who work for them.
Your Association’s policy is that legitimate contractors should be congratulated and assisted rather than harassed with tax audits and compliance campaigns. The Tax office needs to enlist the help of legitimate operators to identify those whose non-compliance undermines their price competitiveness.
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