Sladen snippet – does your discretionary trust hold residential land in NSW? If so, you may need to amend its deed by 31 December 2019

Sladen snippet – does your discretionary trust hold residential land in NSW? If so, you may need to amend its deed by 31 December 2019

As outlined in our previous article, under the proposed changes to New South Wales land tax and duty legislation, a trustee of a discretionary trust (including testamentary trusts) will be deemed to be a “foreign trust” if the terms of the trust do not prevent a foreign person from being a beneficiary of the discretionary trust. Importantly, these changes are proposed to have retrospective effect to the 2017, 2018 and 2019 land tax years and can catch dutiable transactions back to 21 June 2016.

Sladen Snippet – Full Federal Court Affirms No CGT Discount on Share Disposal

Sladen Snippet – Full Federal Court Affirms No CGT Discount on Share Disposal

The Full Federal Court in Hart v FCT affirmed the Federal Court’s decision in Paule v FCT that the capital gains tax (CGT) discount did not apply to the sale of shares owned by a trust.

Australian trusts, capital gains, and foreign beneficiaries: more controversy, more angst?

Australian trusts, capital gains, and foreign beneficiaries: more controversy, more angst?

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) recently released Taxation Determinations TD 2019/D6 and TD 2019/D7 (together the Determinations) that concern Australian discretionary trusts distributing capital gains to foreign beneficiaries.

Sladen Snippet - Access to the primary production land tax exemption to be further restricted for Melbourne farms

Sladen Snippet - Access to the primary production land tax exemption to be further restricted for Melbourne farms

Primary producers in Melbourne will soon be faced with a greater likelihood of paying land tax on their farms due to the proposed reform, and narrowing, of the primary production land tax exemption as proposed in the State Taxation Acts Further Amendment Bill 2019.

Super Death Benefits and Conflicts of Interest – The Latest Battleground

Super Death Benefits and Conflicts of Interest – The Latest Battleground

Challenging death benefit payments from superannuation funds has followed four broad categories over the years. Interestingly, they have developed in relatively discrete time periods.

Sladen Snippet - Further ATO Guidance on what is love and affection

Sladen Snippet - Further ATO Guidance on what is love and affection

On 6 February 2019, and as previously reported here, the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) withdrew its longstanding public guidance that a company could forgive a debt for “natural love and affection” under the exception in the commercial debt forgiveness rules (CDF Rules) in Division 245. At that time, the ATO said it is developing guidance on the issue.

The Payroll Tax Clampdown Against the Healthcare Industry Continues: the Optical Superstore Case

The Payroll Tax Clampdown Against the Healthcare Industry Continues: the Optical Superstore Case

The Victorian Supreme Court’s decision in favour of the taxpayer has been overturned by the Victorian Court of Appeal. We have previously discussed the Victorian Supreme Court decision.

Sladen Snippet – the super guarantee amnesty is back – maybe?

Sladen Snippet – the super guarantee amnesty is back – maybe?

The government’s previously announced amnesty for unpaid superannuation guarantee payments, which lapsed will the calling of the previous election, has been reintroduced into parliament in the  in the Treasury Laws Amendment (Recovering Unpaid Superannuation) Bill 2019.

Tax disputes: Part 4 - mitigation of interest and penalties

Tax disputes: Part 4 - mitigation of interest and penalties

When involved in a dispute with the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), dealing with the interest and penalties that may be imposed by the ATO in relation to a tax liability by seeking remission of those amounts, objecting, or having a reasonably arguable position opinion can be an important part of any dispute resolution strategy.

The new ‘economic entitlement’ provisions in Victoria

The new ‘economic entitlement’ provisions in Victoria

The ‘economic entitlement’ provisions are unique in Victoria. Pursuant to the amendments to the legislation as part of the Victorian 2019/20 budget, from 19 June 2019 these provisions now apply to impose duty where an economic entitlement is acquired in relation to Victorian land and any Victorian landholding entity.