Do you have any amounts of offshore income you haven’t declared to the ATO – perhaps interest from a foreign bank account? Even if it seems like a small amount, you must declare it. International data-sharing arrangements are making your overseas financial affairs increasingly transparent, so don’t get caught out.

The ATO is keen to emphasise that its techniques for detecting offshore amounts are becoming increasingly effective. Cross-border cooperation between different tax jurisdictions means your financial information is being shared more than ever before.

If you’re an Australian resident for tax purposes, you’re taxed on your worldwide income. This means you must declare all foreign income sources in your return.

If you’re a non-resident, you generally only pay tax on your Australian-sourced income.
TIP: The main test for tax residency is whether you “reside” in Australia. There’s no single factor that determines whether you meet this test.

What if you’ve already paid tax on the income overseas? You still need to declare it to the ATO. However, you may be able to claim an offset for the tax already paid in order to prevent double taxation.

Got any amounts you’ve overlooked? Now is a great time to get help from your tax adviser with making a voluntary disclosure. You’ll often receive a reduction in ATO penalties and interest that would otherwise apply – and the outcome is generally much more favourable if you make a disclosure before the ATO commences an audit of your tax affairs.

New figures released by the ATO estimate that almost 90% of income tax from small businesses is paid voluntarily or with little intervention from the ATO.
“This shows that the vast majority of small businesses in the tax system are trying to do the right thing”, Deputy Commissioner Deborah Jenkins said.
“Considering how much small businesses have on their plate, we’re grateful for the level of work they put in to get their tax right.”
The ATO estimates the 2015–2016 income tax gap for the small business sector to be approximately 12.5%, or $11.1 billion, with over $7 billion attributable to “black economy” behaviour.
TIP: Around 90% of small businesses use a registered tax professional to help them meet their obligations.
Get in touch today to see how we can support you.

The ATO has also reissued Practice Statement Law Administration PS LA 2011/13 Cross border recovery of taxation debts. This statement outlines options available for the ATO to recover a tax debt where the debtor is outside Australia, and sets out how the ATO deals with requests from other countries for assistance in recovering tax debts owing to the other country.