Income Tax Point-in-Time Service Updates

Tuesday 21 January 2025 @ 10.30 a.m.

The Income Tax Point-in-Time Service has been updated to include the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Amendment Act 2024 (Cth) (Act No 110 of 2024), the Crown References Amendment Act 2024 (Cth) (Act No 115 of 2024), the Treasury Laws Amendment (Multinational—Global and Domestic Minimum Tax) (Consequential) Act 2024 (Cth) (Act No 134 of 2024), the Treasury Laws Amendment (2024 Tax and Other Measures No. 1) Act 2024 (Cth) (Act No 135 of 2024), the Treasury Laws Amendment (Fairer for Families and Farmers and Other Measures) Act 2024 (Cth) (Act No 136 of 2024), and the Treasury Laws Amendment (Responsible Buy Now Pay Later and Other Measures) Act 2024 (Cth) (Act No 138 of 2024).

Act 110 of 2024

This Act reforms Australia’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF) regime and repeals the Financial Transaction Reports Act 1988 (Cth) (FTR Act). Australia’s AML/CTF regime establishes a regulatory framework for combatting money laundering, terrorism financing and other serious financial crimes. There are three key objectives of the Act:

  • to extend the AML/CTF regime to certain higher-risk services provided by real estate professionals, professional service providers including lawyers, accountants and trust and company service providers, and dealers in precious stones and metals—also known as ‘tranche two’ entities;
  • to improve the effectiveness of the AML/CTF regime by making it simpler and clearer for businesses to comply with their obligations; and
  • to modernise the regime to reflect changing business structures, technologies and illicit financing methodologies.

Act 115 of 2024

Following the accession of His Majesty King Charles III, the Act makes minor amendments to various Commonwealth Acts to:

  • update references to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II to “the Sovereign”; and
  • provide flexibility to the application and operation of existing and future legislation, in the event of the accession of a new Sovereign.

Act 134 of 2024

This Act makes consequential and miscellaneous provisions necessary for the collection and recovery of the Global Anti-Base Erosion (GloBE) top-up tax and Domestic top-up tax.

Act 135 of 2024

This Act amends the Taxation Administration Act 1953 (Cth) (TAA 1953) to modify the Foreign residents’ capital gains withholding (FRCGW) regime to:

  • increase the withholding rate to 15 per cent (from 12.5 per cent); and
  • remove the threshold before which withholding applies so that disposals of relevant Capital gains tax (CGT) assets by a foreign resident are subject to FRCGW requirements regardless of the market value of the CGT asset.

These amendments seek to ensure better compliance by foreign residents with their Australian tax obligations and support the collection of tax liabilities from foreign residents. In addition, the Act also: 

  • seeks to reduce the administrative burden for employers reporting under Single Touch Payroll (STP);
  • amends the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 (Cth) to allow amendments to be made to the assessments of small and medium business taxpayers who apply to the Commissioner within four years after the day the Commissioner gave notice of an assessment;
  • amends the TAA 1953 to extend the circumstances in which the Commissioner may retain an entity’s tax refund to encourage taxpayers to provide the Commissioner with valid Australian financial institution account details to facilitate the faster, safer and cheaper payment of refunds.

Act 136 of 2024

This Act makes various and substantive amendments relating to the cessation of the Modernising Business Registers (MBR) Program, information and safety standards, Housing Australia, industry codes, taxation, corporations, financial services and foreign acquisitions and takeovers, and for other purpose.

Act 138 of 2024

This Act extends the application of the National Credit Code to Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) contracts and establishes Low cost credit contracts (LCCCs) as a new category of regulated credit. This Act also includes amendments to: 

  • the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (Cth) to list specified companies as deductible gift recipients; and
  • the Federal Financial Relations Act 2009 (Cth) to support Commonwealth payments to the States in accordance with the National Skills Agreement and any successor agreements.

These amendments have been updated in the Point-in-Time Income Tax Service current to 21 January 2025 (NB: subscription required).

If you are not already a subscriber to this or other Point-in-Time Services then please contact us to find out more or to take a free trial.