The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) has agreed with the ATO’s decision that income a tapayer earned when working for the United States Army was not exempt from Australian income tax. The taxpayer, who was a mechanic and electrician, played a critical role in plant construction in Afghanistan.
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While the project the taxpayer worked on met the legal definition of an “eligible project”, the AAT decided that the exemption he had claimed under s 23AF of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 did not apply because the project was not one that the Trade Minister had approved in writing, and there was no evidence that the Trade Minister considered it “in the national interest”.
Important: Clients should not act solely on the basis of the material contained in Update. Items herein are general comments only and do not constitute or convey advice per se. Also, changes in legislation may occur quickly. We therefore recommend that our formal advice be sought before acting in any of the areas. This update is issued as a helpful guide to clients and for their private information.
