Assistant Treasurer makes changes to transitional rule for code changes
Stephen Jones has made amendments to the transitional rule for the Code of Professional Conduct changes and will consult further on Sections 15 and 45.
The government has amended the transitional rule for Tax Agent Services (Code of Professional Conduct) Determination 2024 following consultation with professional bodies.
In correspondence with the joint bodies, Assistant Treasurer and Minister for financial services Stephen Jones has outlined that tax practitioners will no longer be required to take reasonable steps to establish, implement and update any systems or processes that are necessary to comply with the new obligations prior to the relevant start date.
The start date is 1 July 2025 for practitioners with 100 or less employees, and tax practitioners or 1 January 2025 for all other tax practitioners.
The Commonwealth Government has also aligned the duty to disclose all relevant matters to the client in section prospective in order to align with the transitional dates.
The Institute of Public Aaccountants explained that under the previous version, tax practitioners were required to consider matters arising from 2.5 years to 3 years earlier.
“Both these amendments are welcomed improvements on the previous amended determination,” said IPA general manager of technical policy Tony Greco.
Greco said the government has also committed to addressing the other substantive concerns from the bodies including section 15 (2)(c), the client dob in rules, and section 45, the requirement to advise all current and prospective clients of all relevant matters.
“These are important issues that need to be addressed prior to the transitional start dates, and we look forward to meeting with the Commonwealth Government next week to address our substantive concerns,” he said.
Jones plans to hold a rountable next week with Treasury and representatives from the accounting profession to discuss changes to section (2)( c) and section 45.
“Following this discussion, I intend to publicly consult on any draft amendments, explanatory statement and further TPB guidance,” said Jones in a letter to professional bodies.
“This will ensure all stakeholders, including your members, continue to have the opportunity to contribute.
“I hope this approach demonstrates my commitment to constructive engagement with you, your members and the broader community.”
