Posted by
Mark Six
17 yrs ago
If you are a non resident of Australia for tax purposes the changes will have no effect on you.
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As I said, this has NO EFFECT on you at all if you are a non resident for tax purposes, which is the majority of us working long term (basically greater than 6 months) in Hong Kong. It has nothing whatsoever to do with whether you have Aussie income.
Section 23AG (which is what is being amended) has nothing to do with non-residents. It applies to a different category of Australians working overseas - those who are still residents of Australia for tax purposes. I have worked under both "systems" and am quite familiar with the rules.
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Mate, I'm not an expert and don't want to give you the wrong advice. Your situation is a bit different to mine as you are being paid by an Australian company whereas I'm employed by a local company. When I was previously working outside Australia on short term cycles I came under Section 23AG but I was being paid by a local (non Australian) company. I never had to pay any tax in Australia on that income but under the new rules I would now be liable for Aussie tax on my foreign income. Glad I switched jobs and changed status. As far as I know you cannot be a non-resident for tax purposes and ALSO come under Section 23AG, so if you're definitely classed as a non-resident you should be okay. Better get a professional opinion if you're not sure.
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I agree with Mark Six. Achieving non-resident status is not automatic, and the ATO has some strange benchmarks. Anybody who intends to return to Australia eventually to live is especially advised to get professional advice.
You might think that you are a non-resident just because you got onto a plane and flew to Hong Kong to work. Life is not always so simple.
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One of the factors that the ATO looks at is whether or not you have a permanent address in another country. There are people who work more-or-less permanently outside Australia, on ships, and the like, who are classed as Australian residents just because they do not have a permanent overseas address.
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