Our approach is to obtain maximum voluntary compliance with the legislation we administer and promptly address risk-related issues. This supports the premise that most of our customers will comply if they are aware of their obligations and have access to the right advice, education, assistance and information.
Customers who may be in breach of legislative provisions are encouraged to come forward and make a voluntary disclosure, which is treated more favourably than if we discover non-compliance during an investigation.
In detecting non-compliance, we engage in investigations, field visits and other audits, IT-assisted research, risk analysis, data matching and data mining. Apart from recovering outstanding liabilities, penalties and litigation can result from investigations.
In ensuring compliance, we are assisted by data, information and audit results sourced from external agencies, including the Australian Taxation Office, WorkSafe Victoria and other Australian state and territory revenue offices.
With the harmonisation of some tax laws between Australian states, we also share technology and training materials with other jurisdictions.
In 2017-18, we assessed $464.2 million in outstanding liabilities from 8,877 cases. This was an increase in revenue of almost $44 million dollars on 2016-17 despite investigating 2,480 fewer cases.
Once again, the area where most revenue was collected ($162.4 million) via compliance activities involved the landholder provisions which relate to acquisitions of interests, being shares or units, in a company or unit trust scheme which has landholdings in Victoria of $1 million or more.
In addition, we made determinations in relation to:
- 188 acquisition statements, 99 lease ruling requests and five voluntary disclosures and private ruling requests relating to changes in beneficial ownership.
- Eight trust registration applications under the landholder provisions.
