ATO bill. What now?

b2tf · 19-01-2012, 01:10 PM

My accountant rang this morning and has advised me that I'm going to get a bill from the ATO for a tax return back in 2010. The company I work for was bought out back then so I had 2 Group Certificates issued for that year and it seems one of them didn't get submitted.

That's something I am going to query with them (the accountants) because I am 99.9% sure I did submit both of them and if I did I dont see why I should be wearing this bill, but aside from that i'm unsure about how to pay back the ATO if it turns out I have to. i dont have the cash lying around (well, I do but i dont want to dump it all into paying a bill) so what options do you have when it comes to paying them back?

Kryton · 19-01-2012, 01:13 PM

You can make an agreement to pay an amount monthly or dont make an agreement and whatever you owe will be deducted from any future returns before you get it.

Check you return summary and see if it was submitted.
Either way, youll be footing the bill, the accountant wont be - there are clauses which state this.

Kryton · 19-01-2012, 01:13 PM

You can make an agreement to pay an amount monthly or dont make an agreement and whatever you owe will be deducted from any future returns before you get it.

Check you return summary and see if it was submitted.
Either way, youll be footing the bill, the accountant wont be - there are clauses which state this.

Black F6 · 19-01-2012, 01:28 PM

You will get the bill for it, but you shouldnt get any penalties. You can make an arrangement to pay it off with the ATO, but they will charge you interest on it

Cúl-Báire · 19-01-2012, 01:31 PM

Had a similar thing happen a few years ago, go through your paper work carefully and chances are you're likety to find the ATO has messed up on their end, not you.

In my case they had messed up the tax withheld, when processing my claim, dispite the fact that my group certificate, and return quite clearly stated a witheld amount of much higher...

If your accountant is at fault there is bound to be some recourse, although they are typically slippery, and you'll need proof that you provided them with all the documents.

Good luck!

JPFS1 · 19-01-2012, 01:41 PM

b2tf

I've had succussful dealings with the ATO in reversing a $20,000+ penalty they expected me to pay.

At the time, I agreed to pay a very small monthly contribution until the ATO considered all the evidence I had to prove that not only was my accountant (not anymore) at fault, but ALSO the ATO in applying a grossly incorrect penalty amount.

I had the amount reduced from 20K+ to just $750.

Just explain your situation, provide whatever evidence you can and they will likely offer a reasonable outcome hopefully.

Any GIC will be tax deductable if you have to pay it.

good luck.

b2tf · 19-01-2012, 01:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JPFS1

Any GIC will be tax deductable if you have to pay it.

good luck.

Thanks for the above - what's GIC stand for?

gcg2503 · 19-01-2012, 01:55 PM

General Interest Charge

Geez Louise · 19-01-2012, 02:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Black F6

You will get the bill for it, but you shouldnt get any penalties. You can make an arrangement to pay it off with the ATO, but they will charge you interest on it

Not necessarily....

The best thing to do is wait until you get confirmation from the ATO on the amount etc.

There is a process you can go through. fill out a form etc to dispute charges but it rarely comes to this, as a chat to the ATO 90% of the time resolves any issues.

Have you got copies of your tax assessment from 2010? That gives you a break down of exactly what you submitted.

Cheers
Col

Jim Goose · 19-01-2012, 02:16 PM

If you use an accountant it still falls back to you to make sure you submitt everything.... your also required to keep your paperwork for 7yrs, surely you have your receipts and paperwork from the accountant handy to check what was submitted?

Smoke Pursuit · 19-01-2012, 04:07 PM

That's what happens when you don't read what your signing... if you read the fine print its up to you to confirm what your signing. Its not like your likely to be penalised, they will just reassess you on the correct figure, so even if the accountant was at fault (everyone makes mistakes) then your really no worse off, your just paying what you should have in the first place.

They will likely give you a payment arrangement over a 12 month period if you ring and ask, but wait for the ammended assessment notice to come out first, then you can give them a call.

GT0132 · 19-01-2012, 05:07 PM

Wouldn't the fact your assesable income looked too low in that year alert you (or your accountant) to the fact that there may have been a problem and that 2 Payment Summaries may have been issued? Also, where was the 2nd one sent .... same place as your 1st one ? Did you not receive it? Usually the dates of employment for each employer would be stated on them as well. That should also raise a red flag.

Certainly check that there was in fact only one Payment Summary declared and not two.

If the ATO are right about the non declaration of income I believe you'll be charged a "shortfall interest charge" (SIC) due to the amended assessment and have 21 days to pay it taken from the time the amended assessment was advised to you. After that time has passed any unpaid monies will have the "general interest charge" (GIC) applied which is charged at a higher rate than the SIC.

As to penalties, these will usually be waived if you own up to any error before it is discovered. However, the fact that the ATO picked up the error could mean that penalties will also apply.

Your accountant can't be held responsible as you usually sign a declaration at the end of the tax return stating that you are responsible for ensuring its accuracy. However I'd be asking him/her to put forward a good case to the tax commissioner as to why they should show leniency and remit any penalties they would otherwise charge.

Good luck

MITCHAY · 19-01-2012, 06:13 PM

Here is some info straight from the horses mouth which may help. http://www.ato.gov.au/corporate/cont...66&mfp=001/001

More specifically http://www.ato.gov.au/corporate/cont...age=2#P43_2463

There are four links in the 'more information' part in the first section of the above link.

The best thing to do with the ATO is if you are aware of any potential problems is to contact them as early as possible.

Pub247 · 19-01-2012, 07:21 PM

I had a similar issue years ago, i was on centerlink for a while then had a job lost it then went back on centerlink. When i did my tax return i assumed centerlink sent one group certificate with everything on it, turns out they hadnt never got the first one (job i had was interstate). I ended up owing about $600 and they just took it out of my next tax return no interest was charged