ATO stepping up efforts to combat tax havens   

        The following article was released by the ATO:
 
The ATO announced it has requested information from banks which it will use to identify Australian taxpayers who may have undisclosed offshore income or over-claimed deductions involving international transactions.

The announcement coincides with a gazettal notice which sets out the financial institutions the ATO has requested information from that operate in Australia.

“Once we receive the information from the banks, we will match it against our own data to identify people who may not have met their lodgement and payment obligations under Australian tax law,” Tax Commissioner Michael D’Ascenzo said.

The information relates to the period 1 July 2005 to 30 June 2009.

“There is nothing wrong with holding an offshore account or investing overseas as long as you pay any Australian tax due.

“Our aim is to identify people who may be deliberately trying to hide income or assets offshore.”

Contact us before we contact you

People can still come forward and make a voluntary disclosure.

They can declare undisclosed offshore income or over-claimed deductions involving international transactions and receive reduced penalties.

The offer ends on 30 June 2010.

“People who choose not to come forward run the risk of being audited in the future, in which case the penalties would be much higher,” Mr D’Ascenzo said.

“As we get access to more and more intelligence on offshore transactions, I urge people to come to us before we come to them.”

The initiative also allows people to approach the ATO anonymously for an indication as to whether we would undertake an investigation to determine if there is any potential breach of the criminal law.

People can make a voluntary disclosure to the ATO by calling 1300 132 346. More information is available on the ATO website at www.ato.gov.au.