Legislation to ‘reduce admin burden of STP’ introduced into Parliament
A bill to implement changes to single touch payroll declarations and reforms to the foreign resident capital gains withholding payments regime has now entered the lower house.
The government introduced Treasury Laws Amendment (2024 Tax and Other Measures No. 1) Bill 2024 into Parliament last week, which will implement a raft of recently announced measures.
Schedule one of the bill implements the government’s plans to increase the withholding rate of the foreign resident capital gains withholding (FRCGW) regime from 12.5 per cent up to 15 per cent.
It will also remove the $750,000 threshold that currently applies under the regime, so that disposals relevant CGT assets by a foreign resident are subject to FRCGW requirements, regardless of the market value of the CGT asset.
Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones said the changes would “level the playing field between Australian and foreign investors by ensuring foreign investors selling a real property asset (such as a residential property) are subject to the same overall tax obligations as Australians”.
The bill will also implement a measure to allow employers to make single touch payroll declarations for extended periods.
“The bill reduces administrative burden for employers participating in STP through a tax or BAS agent by allowing an employer to make a standing declaration that covers multiple STP lodgements by the agent on the employer’s behalf,” the explanatory materials said.
“Previously, the law required the employer to lodge a declaration to their agent in relation to each STP lodgement.”
Jones said the bill will allow a business to make a standing declaration to their agent that covers multiple lodgements, for up to 12 months, on the employer’s behalf.
“This simple change simplifies the process, saving time and cutting unnecessary red tape,” he said.
The bill also extends the time in which a small or medium business taxpayer may apply to have a tax assessment amended. If passed, the bill will extend the period from two to four years after the Commissioner has given notice of an assessment.
Schedule four of the bill aims to reduce use cheques for refunds and modernise and streamline the payment of refunds.
The amendments provide the Commissioner with 90 days to seek the current Australian financial institution details from an entity to receive certain refunds.
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