Motor Vehicle Data Matching

The Tax Office has acquired new motor vehicle data to improve compliance with tax obligations of particular groups of taxpayers by:

• helping people to understand and meet their fringe benefits tax (FBT) obligations, as well as other tax obligations
• assessing the overall level of compliance of various high-risk populations in the community, and
• taking action against individuals who were either operating outside the tax system or were otherwise not complying with their tax obligations.

This data collection is ongoing. They have undertaken two previous exercises, in which they concentrated on all transferred passenger and four-wheel drive vehicles, where the transfer and/or market value was $57,009 (the luxury car tax threshold) or greater.

The current data matching project will use the 2008 data, and the threshold will be lowered to $10,000 and greater – in order to capture lower valued vehicles that are increasingly provided as fringe benefits. Records relating to approximately 2.5 million individuals will be matched against buyers and sellers.

Project Objectives

The current data collection will allow them to:

• address the FBT non-compliance: cars valued below the luxury car tax threshold usually constitute the bulk of fleet vehicles. While there is general business use of these vehicles, it is often overlooked that home garaging, for example, constitutes ‘available for private use’ under the FBT law, which results in an FBT liability.
• continue to focus their attention on those taxpayers whose lifestyle appears at odds with their reported income – often an indicator of participation in the cash economy. This includes expensive purchases, such as motor vehicles.
• facilitate selection of businesses that could be assisted by education. For example, to raise awareness of government initiatives such as the PAYGI 20% reduction for small businesses and small businesses tax break for capital investments.

How Do They Collect Data

They work with the following state and territory government representatives within the motor vehicle registry sphere to obtain a better understanding of non-compliance trends. The ATO also requests they provide them with details on individuals or entities that have purchased or acquired a motor vehicle valued at $10,000 or higher. 
     

State/territory	Government representative
New South Wales	Roads and Traffic Authority, NSW
Queensland	Queensland Transport
Victoria	Vic Roads
Tasmania	Department of Infrastructure, Energy and Resources
South Australia	Department for Transport, Energy and Infrastructure (Transport SA)
Western Australia	Department for Planning and Infrastructure
Northern Territory	Northern Territory Department of Planning and Infrastructure (Transport Division)
Australian Capital Territory	ACT Road Transport Authority, Road User Services, Urban Services.

These details are electronically matched with their own data to identify non- compliance with tax obligations.

 

About the Author

Warren Kruger is an Australian Tax Specialist and Advisor.

For a FREE Report "7 Essential Strategies to Reduce Your Taxation NOW!",
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About The Author

Warren Kruger is an Australian Tax Specialist and Advisor. For a FREE Report “7 Essential Strategies to Reduce Your Taxation NOW!”,enter your name and email address in the Opt In Box located on the top right hand side of this article.

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