Income Tax Point-in-Time Service Updates

The Income Tax Point-in-Time Service has been updated to include the Treasury Laws Amendment (2020 Measures No. 3) Act 2020 (Cth) (Act No 61 of 2020), the Treasury Laws Amendment (2019 Measures No. 3) Act 2020 (Cth) (Act 64 of 2020), the Treasury Laws Amendment (Registries Modernisation and Other Measures) Act 2020 (Cth) (Act 69 of 2020) and the Income Tax Assessment (1936 Act) Amendment (Operation Orenda Eligible Duty) Regulations 2020 (Cth).

Act 61 of 2020

Schedule 1 to the Act amends the IMA Act to authorise the Minister, on behalf of Australia, to enter into loan agreements with the IMF. The amendments will also allow Australia to meet its funding obligations under any such agreements, as well as under the existing ‘New Arrangements to Borrow’ with the IMF.

Schedule 2 to the Act amends the ITAA 1997 to allow the following entities to be deductible gift recipients under the income tax law:

• The Samuel Griffith Society Inc. (ABN 50 670 165 165);
• Friends of Myall Creek Memorial Incorporated (ABN 87 040 729 116); and
• Toy Libraries Australia Inc. (ABN 40 557 982 129).

Schedule 3 to the Act updates existing provisions of the IMA Act to ensure that the Treasurer can, on behalf of Australia, continue to enter into agreements with other countries to provide them with financial assistance in support of a program of the IMF.

Schedule 4 to the Act amends the income tax law to allow a business with an aggregated turnover for the income year of less than $500 million to immediately deduct the cost of a depreciating asset (instant asset write-off). The asset must cost less than a threshold of $150,000 and be first used or installed ready for use for a taxable purpose by 31 December 2020. Without the amendments the $150,000 instant asset write-off would end on 30 June 2020.

Schedule 5 to the Act will amend the TAA 1953 to reduce the GDP adjustment factor for the 2020-21 income year to nil. The GDP adjustment factor is applied by the Commissioner to work out the amount of PAYG instalments payable by a taxpayer in certain circumstances.

Schedule 6 to the Act makes minor amendments to the Boosting Cash Flow for Employers (Coronavirus Economic Response Package) Act 2020 to clarify that the payments for which an entity can receive a cash flow boost payment include those for which an amount must be paid to the Commissioner under the special obligations applying to certain personal service income payments under Division 13 in Schedule 1 to the TAA 1953.

Act 64 of 2020

Schedule 1 to the Act amends the ITAA 1936 to ensure the tax concessions available to minors in relation to income from a testamentary trust only apply in respect of income generated from assets of the deceased estate that are transferred to the testamentary trust (or the proceeds of the disposal or investment of those assets).

Schedule 2 to the Act amends the Corporations Act to defer the transitional timeframes for existing providers to comply with the education and training standard requiring completion of an approved degree or equivalent qualification and the standard requiring the passing of an approved exam.

Schedule 3 to the Act makes a number of minor and technical amendments to laws relating to taxation, superannuation, corporations and credit. These amendments are part of the Government’s ongoing commitment to the care and maintenance of Treasury portfolio legislation. These amendments make minor and technical changes to correct typographical and numbering errors, bring provisions in line with modern drafting conventions, repeal inoperative provisions, remove administrative inefficiencies, address unintended outcomes and update references, ensuring Treasury laws improve to operate as intended.

Act 69 of 2020

This Act supports the Commonwealth Registers Act 2020 by making various amendments to support the creation of a new Commonwealth business registry regime. This includes replicating the provisions of the Commonwealth Registers Act in the Corporations Act, Credit Act, and Business Names Act, as well as various consequential amendments.

Schedule 2 amends the Corporations Act and the Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006 to introduce a director identification number (DIN) requirement.

Income Tax Assessment (1936 Act) Amendment (Operation Orenda Eligible Duty) Regulations 2020

This instrument amends the Income Tax (1936 Act) Regulation 2015 to ensure that duty performed by Australian Defence Force personnel serving on Operation Orenda is ‘eligible duty’ for the purpose of section 23AD of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936.    

These amendments have been updated in the Point-in-Time Income Tax Service current to 27 July 2020. (NB: subscription required).

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