On 7 November 2013 the ATO released a Practice Statement (Practice Statement Law Administration 2013/5 (PS LA 2013/5)) which details the Commissioner’s policy (previously included in Chapter 35 of the ATO’s Receivables Policy) in relation to:

1. the collection of group liabilities from the Head Company, member entities and entities that have exited a Consolidated Group;
2. Tax Sharing Agreements (TSAs); and
3. the requirements for a member entity to make a “clear exit” from the Group.

The Tax Institute held its National Consolidation Symposium in Melbourne on Tuesday, 10
September 2013. Outlined in this article is a summary of some of the issues discussed at this year’s Symposium.

In his address at the Tax Institute’s 28th Annual Convention in Perth on 14 March this year, the newly appointed Commissioner of Taxation, Chris Jordan (Commissioner) prioritised the increasing use of dispute resolution processes to resolve taxpayer disputes in a timely manner.

On 10 May 2013, the High Court of Australia refused the taxpayer special leave to appeal FCT v Greenhatch [2012] FCAFC 84; [2011] AATA 479.

Accordingly, prior to 1 July 2010 and the amendments made by TLAM No 5 2011, differential streaming of capital gains between trust beneficiaries was ineffective. The beneficiaries of any trust that has differently streamed capital gains will have an exposure to audit activity, amended assessments and penalties.