2016 Amendments
State Revenue Legislation Amendment Act 2016
The State Revenue Legislation Amendment Act 2016 received assent on 11 May 2016.
The amendments commence on the date of assent unless otherwise indicated. Amendments were made to:
Corporate Reconstruction Transactions
These amendments commence from 22 March 2016.
An exemption from duty applies to corporate reconstruction transactions and corporate consolidation transactions, including transactions involving unit trust schemes.
The amendments extend references to anything done by or held by a trustee of a unit trust scheme as trustee to ensure that they include a custodian of the trustee of a managed investment scheme.
Substantially Renovated Homes
The definition of a substantially renovated home used for the purpose of establishing eligibility under the First Home—New Home scheme now has the same meaning as in the First Home Owner Grant (New Homes) Act 2000 (see below).
First Home Owner Grant (New Homes) Act 2000
These amendments commence from 1 July 2016.
Substantially Renovated Homes & Homes Built to Replace Demolished Premises
The first home owner grant scheme is available to first home buyers who purchase or build a new home. A new home includes a substantially renovated home and a home built to replace demolished premises.
The definition of a substantially renovated home now requires that the home must be created through renovations in which all, or substantially all, of a building is removed or replaced (whether or not the renovations involve the removal or replacement of foundations, external walls, interior supporting walls, floors or staircases).
The definition of a home built to replace demolished premises now requires that the home must be built on the same land as the demolished premises.
Unoccupied Land Intended to be Owner’s Principal Place of Residence
Unoccupied land may be exempt under the principal place of residence (PPR) exemption if the owner intends to use and occupy the land as his or her PPR at the completion of proposed building works. Before the amendments, if the land was used and occupied by a person other than the owner after its acquisition, the exemption applied for up to 4 tax years following the year in which building works physically commenced on the land.
The amendments simplify this exemption by allowing a period of up to 4 years following the year in which a person, other than the owner, ceases to use and occupy the land for residential purposes.
The owner will be entitled to claim the unoccupied land as his or her PPR if the Chief Commissioner of State Revenue is satisfied that significant steps enabling work to physically commence are taken by the end of the first of the 4 tax years concerned.
Local Government Business Entities
A wholly-owned subsidiary of a local council is exempt from the liability to pay payroll tax on wages that are paid or payable to a person for an activity conducted for the council.
This amendment extends the exemption to a body corporate wholly owned by 2 or more local councils if the wages are paid or payable to a person for an activity conducted for those councils.
Taxation Administration Act 1996
Interest on Refunds
Amendments to the Taxation Administration Act 1996 require the Chief Commissioner to pay interest on a refund made to a taxpayer (following a successful objection or review) to members of a group to which the taxpayer belongs under the Land Tax Management Act 1956 or the Payroll Tax Act 2007.
Return and Payment of Unclaimed Money
Enterprises holding unclaimed money on 30 June of each year are required to lodge a return relating to that money with the Chief Commissioner.
Before the amendments, money is not deemed to be unclaimed money if the amount does not exceed $100. The amendments now enable an enterprise to voluntarily report amounts that are not unclaimed money because they are $100 or less. If an enterprise chooses to report any such amount in a return, the amount must be paid to the Chief Commissioner for payment into the Consolidated Fund and may be recovered by the owner of that unclaimed money.
The amendments also give the Chief Commissioner the discretionary power to permit an owner of unclaimed money to claim that money even though the owner’s right to the money has been extinguished (being 6 years from the date that that unclaimed money has been paid to the Chief Commissioner).