Moore Park Gardens Management Pty Ltd v Chief Commissioner of State Revenue

Moore Park Gardens Management Pty Ltd (the taxpayer) appealed to the Court of Appeal of New South Wales against a decision of the Chief Commissioner of State Revenue (the Commissioner). The dispute concerned the application of payroll tax to payments made by the taxpayer, which managed a home unit complex. Following an audit, the Commissioner had assessed the taxpayer for payroll tax, including a 5% penalty for late remittance. The taxpayer sought to challenge the retention of this penalty by the Commissioner.

The central legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether the taxpayer was liable for payroll tax under the regime governing employment agency contracts introduced by section 3C of the *Pay-roll Tax Act 1971* (NSW) in 1998. Specifically, the court had to consider whether the taxpayer had complied with the requirement for a declaration to be given at the time an employment agency contract was entered into, which was necessary to qualify for an exemption under that section. The court also considered, but ultimately did not need to decide, whether the taxpayer was liable as a common law employer in any event.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the taxpayer's appeal. The court found that the taxpayer had not satisfied the conditions for exemption under section 3C of the *Pay-roll Tax Act 1971* (NSW) because the necessary declaration was not made at the time the employment agency contracts were entered into. Consequently, the taxpayer remained liable for payroll tax. The court ordered that the appeal be dismissed with costs.