# ATO: have your say by 31 August 2018 on ABN changes including possible renewal fee



## Jack Malarkey (Jan 11, 2016)

From the Australian Taxation Office's Small Business Newsroom:


*Have your say on ABN reform*









*31 July 2018*

The Australian Business Number (ABN) is a key business identifier used by business, government and the community. However, the Black Economy Taskforce found that the ABN system is also used by black economy operators to provide a false sense of legitimacy to their business.

The Australian Government is looking at the best way to strengthen and modernise the ABN system, and wants your feedback.

You can make comments and suggestions through a consultation process being run by Department of Treasury.

The consultation paper will discuss possible changes to the ABN system including adjusting ABN entitlement rules, imposing conditions on ABN holders, and introducing a renewal process including a renewal fee.

The closing date for making a submission is 31 August 2018.

This is your opportunity to consider improvements to the ABN system, which will better support ABN data and the growing use of ABNs across a wide range of purposes.

*Next step:*

Provide feedback on Designing a modern Australian Business Number systemExternal Linkconsultation paper.

(https://www.ato.gov.au/Newsroom/smallbusiness/General/Have-your-say-on-ABN-reform/?sbnews20180808)


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## Icecool (Feb 8, 2016)

I don’t like the abn renewals fees . More bull shit scam . It is becoming very hard to run a business or not worth with all this compliance cost . Have our says , it won’t matter the government will just change whatever they want .


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## Pen (May 14, 2018)

This is just another tax to pay for their costs, it will not fix any problems. Compliance cost is just another soft bit of terminology to not make it sound to bad.


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## Icecool (Feb 8, 2016)

Pen said:


> This is just another tax to pay for their costs, it will not fix any problems. Compliance cost is just another soft bit of terminology to not make it sound to bad.


Its easy money for them as it a compulsory fee every year . Even if it is only says $50 per Business . you look at how many business we have say about 5 Million thats $5,000,000 x $50= $25,000,000 in extract revenuge without them doing anything


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## Jack Malarkey (Jan 11, 2016)

2 days left to have your say.

[email protected] is the email address for submissions.

*Key documents*

Consultation Paper - PDF 116KB
Consultation Paper - DOCX 304KB
Friday 31 August 2018 is the last day for making submissions.


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## Jack Malarkey (Jan 11, 2016)

I have made the following submission:

1. Thank you for the opportunity to make this submission, which is informed in part by my present occupation as a rideshare driver with Uber, Ola and GoCatch.

NO ABN FEES

2. I consider that a sufficient case has NOT been made for registration and renewal fees for ABNs. To impose these fees would be an unfair imposition on small businesses in general and on rideshare drivers in particular.

3. Rideshare (and taxi) drivers already need to deal with the imposition of GST without the benefit of the annual $75,000 turnover threshold available to other enterprises. Additional fees would be an added burden.

4. The fees could in fact be reasonably regarded themselves as a type of tax. One of the key recommendations of the Henry Review into the system was to cut back the number of taxes.

5. The original rationale for introducing the ABN of facilitating the GST system remains valid and there’s no reason for explicitly going beyond that in the ABN’s legislative and conceptual underpinnings.

6. The idea that the relevant legislation should reflect a view that an ABN is somehow some form of a national licence to carry on business must be decisively stricken from the record and hurled into the dustbin of bureaucratic misadventure. 

7. There is no need for the legislative and conceptual framework to look to the interests of those who provide trade discounts or conduct surveys. They need to look after themselves.

8. Any upgrade to the ABN system (if needed at all) should be funded from the additional revenue brought in as a result.

9. The Australian Business Registrar should each year send emails to those on the ABN register of the need to update their details for any relevant changes. That’s a low-cost option that doesn’t involve the creation of a bureaucracy associated with the imposition of fees.

MANDATORY QUOTING OF ABN BY RIDESHARE DRIVERS

10. There is a case for requiring rideshare providers such as Uber to require drivers to provide their ABN. This would help avoid mismatches in the Tax Office’s data matching program and further reduce tax evasion.

Jack Malarkey


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## Jack Malarkey (Jan 11, 2016)

On 8 April 2019, I received the following email from Treasury as feedback to my submission above:

Dear stakeholder,

Thank you for speaking to us last year, or making a submission to our consultations on potential reforms to the ABN process.

The Government announced as part of last Tuesday's Federal Budget reforms to the ABN system in line with recommendations of the Black Economy Taskforce and informed by feedback from public consultations held last year. Details of this announcement are outlined below.

Black Economy - strengthening the Australian Business Number system

The Government will strengthen the Australian Business Number (ABN) system to disrupt black economy behaviour by requiring ABN holders:

• from 1 July 2021, with an income tax return obligation, to lodge their income tax return; and
• from 1 July 2022, to confirm the accuracy of their details on the Australian Business Register annually.

The new conditions will make ABN holders more accountable for meeting their government obligations, while minimising the regulatory impact on businesses doing the right thing.

Currently, ABN holders are able to retain their ABN regardless whether they are meeting their income tax return lodgement obligation or the obligation to update their ABN details.
See also the related 2018‑19 Budget measure Black Economy Taskforce - consulting on a new regulatory framework for Australian Business Numbers.

The Treasury and ATO plan to hold future consultations on how best to implement the announced measure and specific aspects around the announced reforms. We will provide you a further update when these plans are more settled.

We thank you for your time, effort and contributions made to date.

Black Economy Division
The Treasury, Langton Crescent, Parkes ACT 2600
Email: [email protected]

Visit the Black Economy website here.


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## Pen (May 14, 2018)

Thank goodness I'm in my twilight years of working. The redtape bullshit is getting too deep.


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## acme (Dec 7, 2016)

Pen said:


> Thank goodness I'm in my twilight years of working. The redtape bullshit is getting too deep.


I remember saying the exact same thing....25 years ago....?


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## Kyanar (Dec 14, 2017)

Pen said:


> Thank goodness I'm in my twilight years of working. The redtape bullshit is getting too deep.


I dunno, seems to me like they're saying "from 2021, the already mandatory thing will become _actually_ mandatory". It's less red tape than the red tape reduction of single touch payroll (where the ATO decided to reduce red tape for small business, they'd require reporting of payroll payments as they're paid, which actually seems like more red tape not less).


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