Income Tax Assessment Act (No. 3) 1973

Legislation au C1973A00053 Not in force Act

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Income Tax Assessment Act (No. 3) 1973

No. 53 of 1973

 

AN ACT

To amend the Law relating to Income Tax in relation to Reviews and Appeals.

[Assented to 18 June 1973]

BE IT ENACTED by the Queen, the Senate and the House of Representatives of Australia, as follows:—

Short title and citation.

1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Income Tax Assessment Act (No. 3) 1973.

(2) The Income Tax Assessment Act 1936–1972, as amended by the Income Tax Assessment Act 1973 and the Income Tax Assessment Act (No. 2) 1973, is in this Act referred to as the Principal Act.

(3) Section 1 of the Income Tax Assessment Act (No. 2) 1973 is amended by omitting sub-section (4).

(4) The Principal Act, as amended by this Act, may be cited as the Income Tax Assessment, Act 1936–1973.


Commencement.

2. This Act shall come into operation on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.

Application for appeal or review.

3. Section 187 of the Principal Act is amended by omitting from paragraph (b) the words “either to the High Court or to the Supreme Court of a State “and substituting the words “to the Supreme Court of a specified State”.

4. Section 196 of the Principal Act is repealed and the following section substituted:—

Appeal or reference to Supreme Court.

“196. (1) The Commissioner or the taxpayer may appeal to the Supreme Court of a State from any decision of the Board which involves a question of law.

“(2) The Board shall, upon the request of the Commissioner or the taxpayer, refer a question of law arising before the Board to the Supreme Court of such State as is agreed on by the parties or, in the absence of any agreement, to the Supreme Court of such State as the Board considers appropriate.

“(3) An appeal or reference to the Supreme Court of a State under this section shall be heard by a single Judge of the Court.

“(4) Except as provided in sub-section (5), the decision of the Supreme Court of a State constituted by a single Judge on an appeal or reference under this section is final and conclusive.

“(5) The Commissioner or the taxpayer may, by leave of the High Court, appeal to the High Court against a decision of the Supreme Court of a State on an appeal or reference under this section.”.

5. After section 196 of the Principal Act the following section is inserted:—

Practice and procedure of Supreme Courts.

“196a. (1) Until regulations have been made under this Act for or in relation to the practice and procedure of the Supreme Court of a State in proceedings to which this section applies, and so far as regulations so made do not make adequate provision, the High Court Rules as in force immediately before the date of commencement of this section under the Judiciary Act 1903–1969 apply, so far as practicable, to and in relation to a proceeding to which this section applies in like manner as they applied immediately before that date to and in relation to the like proceeding in the High Court.

“(2) This section applies to a proceeding in the Supreme Court of a State, being—

(a) a proceeding in respect of an objection to an assessment that has, under section 187, been forwarded to the Supreme Court of that State;


(b) an appeal under section 196 to the Supreme Court of that State from a decision of the Board; or

(c) a reference under section 196 of a question of law arising before the Board to the Supreme Court of that State.”.

Constitution of Court on appeal.

6. Section 197 of the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by omitting the words “the High Court or”; and

(b) by omitting the words “Justice or”.

Regulations.

7. Section 266 of the Principal Act is amended by adding at the end thereof the following sub-section:—

“(2) Without limiting the generality of sub-section (1), the Governor-General may make regulations, not inconsistent with this Act, for or in relation to the practice and procedure of the Supreme Courts of the States in respect of proceedings to which section 196a applies, including regulations—

(a) prescribing matters relating to the costs of those proceedings and the assessment or taxation of those costs; and

(b) prescribing the court fees to be charged in respect of those proceedings.”.

Application and transitional provisions.

8. (1) Notwithstanding the amendments to Division 2 of Part V of the Principal Act made by this Act—

(a) an appeal to the High Court—

(i) in accordance with the provisions of section 187 of the Principal Act in respect of an objection in respect of which notice of the Commissioner’s decision was served on the taxpayer before the date of commencement of this section; or

(ii) in accordance with the provisions of section 196 of the Principal Act against a decision, of the Board of Review given before that date,

may be instituted, heard and determined; and

(b) an appeal to the High Court instituted before that date or a reference of a question of law to the High Court made before that date under Division 2 of Part V of the Principal Act may be heard and determined,

as if those amendments had not been made, and the provisions of Division 2 of Part V of the Principal Act continue to apply in relation to such an appeal or reference and matters arising out of such an appeal or reference.

(2) The High Court may remit to the Supreme Court of a State an appeal or reference referred to in sub-section (1) at any time and at any stage of the proceeding, and either with or without application by any of the parties to the proceeding.


(3) Where a proceeding is remitted by the High Court to the Supreme Court of a State under this section—

(a) all documents filed of record in the High Court in the proceeding shall be transmitted by the Registrar or other proper officer of the High Court to the Registrar or other proper officer of the Supreme Court;

(b) the Registrar or other proper officer of the High Court shall, unless the proceeding is remitted upon an application made by a party to the proceeding, cause the parties to the proceeding to be notified that the proceeding has been so remitted;

(c) the Supreme Court shall proceed as if the proceeding had been originally instituted in that Court and as if the same proceedings had been taken in that Court as had been taken in the High Court, and all subsequent proceedings shall be in accordance with the practice and procedure that would be applicable if it had been instituted in the Supreme Court after the commencement of this section;

(d) the proceeding shall be heard by a single Judge of the Supreme Court;

(e) except as provided in paragraphs (f) and (g), the decision of the Supreme Court constituted by a single Judge in the proceeding is final and conclusive;

(f) where the proceeding is an appeal in accordance with the provisions of section 187 of the Principal Act—the Commissioner or the taxpayer may appeal to the High Court against the decision of the Supreme Court in the proceeding; and

(g) where the proceeding is an appeal or reference in accordance with the provisions of section 196 of the Principal Act—the Commissioner or the taxpayer may, by leave of the High Court, appeal to the High Court against the decision of the Supreme Court.

(4) Where a taxpayer has, before the commencement of this section, requested the Commissioner to treat his objection as an appeal and forward it to the High Court, the taxpayer may, at any time before the request is forwarded to the High Court, by an amendment of the request, request the Commissioner to forward the objection to the Supreme Court of a State and thereupon the provisions of Division 2 of Part V of the Principal Act as amended by this Act apply as if the taxpayer had originally requested the Commissioner to forward the objection to that Supreme Court.

 

Overview

The Income Tax Assessment Act (No. 3) 1973 was enacted to amend the existing law regarding income tax, specifically addressing the processes for reviews and appeals. This Act was passed by the Queen, the Senate, and the House of Representatives of Australia, and it came into operation on the day it received Royal Assent. The primary objective of this legislation is to streamline and enhance the appeal and review processes within the income tax system by modifying the avenues through which taxpayers can seek judicial review of decisions made by the Board of Review. The Act also seeks to clarify and redefine the roles of the Supreme Court and the High Court in these proceedings, ensuring that appeals are handled efficiently and that legal questions are resolved by appropriate judicial authorities.

Scope and Application

The Income Tax Assessment Act (No. 3) 1973 is an Act of the Commonwealth of Australia designed to amend the law relating to income tax in respect of reviews and appeals. This Act applies to both the Commissioner of Taxation and taxpayers who are subject to the provisions of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936–1973, as amended by this Act and other related legislation. It pertains to the procedures and jurisdictional reach of appeals and reviews of decisions made by the Board of Review under the Principal Act. The Act specifies that appeals from decisions of the Board involving questions of law must be made to the Supreme Court of a specified State, rather than to the High Court or the Supreme Court of a State. The application and transitional provisions allow for ongoing or newly instituted appeals to the High Court to be remitted to the Supreme Court of a State, with the latter court proceeding as if the appeal had been originally instituted there. The Act also allows for the regulation of practice and procedure in the Supreme Courts of the States in respect of such proceedings, including matters of costs and court fees. Notably, this legislation does not create any new substantive rights or obligations for taxpayers or the Commissioner beyond those specified within its provisions and the regulations made under it.

Key Provisions

The Income Tax Assessment Act (No. 3) 1973 makes several significant changes to the existing Income Tax Assessment Act 1936–1972, particularly concerning appeals and reviews related to income tax assessments. The key provisions of this Act, as outlined in sections 3 to 7, amend the appeal process for income tax decisions, modify the practice and procedure of the Supreme Courts in these matters, and provide for the regulation of these courts' procedures. The Act also includes transitional provisions to ensure a smooth transition from the old system to the new one. Under this Act, the Commissioner or the taxpayer can now appeal decisions of the Board of Review to the Supreme Court of a specified State (section 3). The Board can also refer questions of law to the Supreme Court of a State upon the request of the Commissioner or the taxpayer (section 196). These changes ensure that appeals are heard by a single Judge in the Supreme Court of the State, and the decision of this court is generally final and conclusive, though there are avenues for further appeal to the High Court under specific conditions (section 196(5)). The Act also provides that until regulations are made under this Act, the High Court Rules apply to these proceedings (section 196a). The Act imposes several obligations on the Commissioner and taxpayers. They must follow the new procedures for appeals and references to the Supreme Court, which include adhering to the practice and procedure rules as outlined or as applicable from the High Court Rules (section 196a). The Governor-General has the authority to make regulations concerning the practice and procedure of these courts, including matters such as costs and court fees (section 7). For breaches of the provisions of this Act or related regulations, the Act does not explicitly detail specific offences or penalties. However, any breaches of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936–1972, as amended, could potentially lead to penalties as stipulated in that Act. The Act does allow for the High Court to remit proceedings to the Supreme Court at any stage, which could be an indirect consequence for non-compliance with procedural rules or regulations (section 8(3)).

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Area of Law
Taxation Law
Instrument
Act
Concepts
Commencement Provisions
Appeal or reference to Supreme Court
Practice and procedure of Supreme Courts

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Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 August 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au.