Commissioner of Taxation
NOTICE OF A DATA MATCHING PROGRAM
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) will acquire online selling data relating to registrants who sold goods and services to a value of $10,000 or more during the period 1 July 2014 to 30 June 2015.
Data providers are included in/excluded from the program based on the following principles:
The data owner or its subsidiary operates a business in Australia that is governed by Australian law
The data owner provides an online market place for businesses and individuals to buy and sell goods and services
The data owner tracks the activity of registered sellers
The data owner has clients whose annual trading activity amounts to $10,000 or more
The data owner has trading activity for the year in focus
Where the client base of a data owner does not present an omitted or unreported income risk, or the administrative or financial cost of collecting the data exceeds the benefit the data may provide, the data owner may be excluded from the program.
In accordance with the principles listed above data will be sought from eBay Australia and New Zealand Pty Ltd, a subsidiary of eBay International AG which owns and operates www.ebay.com.au
The data requested will include information that enables the ATO match online selling accounts to a taxpayer, including name, address and contact information as well as information on the number and value of transactions processed for each online selling account. This acquired data will be electronically matched with certain sections of ATO data holdings to identify possible non-compliance with taxation law.
It is estimated that records relating to between 15,000 and 25,000 individuals will be matched.
These records will be electronically matched with certain sections of ATO data holdings to identify non-compliance with registration, lodgment, reporting and payment obligations under taxation laws.
The purpose of this data matching program is to ensure that taxpayers are correctly meeting their taxation obligations in relation to business sales through online selling sites. These obligations include registration, lodgment, reporting and payment responsibilities. Its objectives are to:
Promote voluntary compliance and increase community confidence in the integrity of the tax system
Identify those apparently operating a business but failing to meet their registration and/or lodgment obligations
Gain insights from the data that may help to develop and implement treatment strategies to improve voluntary compliance; which may include educational or compliance activities as appropriate
Obtain intelligence to increase the ATO’s understanding of the behaviours and compliance profiles of individuals and businesses that sell goods or services via online selling sites.
Ensure compliance with registration, lodgment, correct reporting and payment of taxation obligations.
A document describing this program has been prepared in consultation with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner. A copy of this document is available:
at www.ato.gov.au/dmprotocols
by sending an email to SpecialPurposeDataSteward@ato.gov.au with reference to online selling data matching program
Overview
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) Notice of a Data Matching Program, gazetted in 2015, addresses the issue of potential non-compliance by individuals and businesses engaged in online selling activities. This initiative seeks to ensure that all parties are meeting their taxation obligations, specifically in relation to registration, lodgment, reporting, and payment. By acquiring online selling data from platforms such as eBay Australia and New Zealand Pty Ltd, the ATO aims to match this information with its own data holdings to identify discrepancies. The policy objective is to promote voluntary compliance, enhance community confidence in the tax system, and provide insights for developing effective compliance strategies. This program, developed in consultation with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, aims to ensure that those operating businesses through online platforms adhere to their taxation duties.
Scope and Application
The Commissioner of Taxation Notice of a Data Matching Program applies to registrants who have sold goods or services online with a total value of $10,000 or more in the specified period of 1 July 2014 to 30 June 2015. This program is implemented by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) to ensure that individuals and entities are meeting their tax obligations in relation to business sales through online selling sites. The ATO will acquire data from eBay Australia and New Zealand Pty Ltd, a subsidiary of eBay International AG, which operates an online marketplace for buying and selling goods and services within Australia. The data will include personal information of the sellers as well as transaction details, and will be matched with the ATO's data holdings to identify potential non-compliance with tax laws. The program aims to promote voluntary compliance, identify those not meeting their registration and lodgment obligations, gain insights to develop treatment strategies, and ensure compliance with tax obligations. The program is governed by specific principles that determine the inclusion or exclusion of data providers, such as the operation of the business in Australia and the annual trading activity of clients. Subordinate instruments may extend or restrict the application of this Act.
Key Provisions
The main operative sections of this legislation (C2015G01628) revolve around the Australian Taxation Office's (ATO) acquisition and use of online selling data to ensure compliance with taxation laws. Section 1 outlines the data matching program, which involves the ATO acquiring online selling data from eBay Australia and New Zealand Pty Ltd for the financial year 1 July 2014 to 30 June 2015. This data includes personal information such as name, address, and contact details, as well as transaction data like the number and value of transactions processed. This information will be used to identify possible non-compliance with taxation laws, particularly in relation to registration, lodgment, reporting, and payment obligations.
The obligations imposed by the Act on the parties it governs primarily concern data providers. Section 2 specifies that data providers must meet specific criteria to be included in the program. These criteria include the data provider being a business operating in Australia and governed by Australian law, providing an online marketplace for selling goods and services, tracking registered seller activity, and having clients whose annual trading activity amounts to $10,000 or more. Section 3 further clarifies that data providers may be excluded if their client base does not present a risk of omitted or unreported income, or if the administrative or financial cost of collecting the data exceeds its potential benefit.
Section 4 of the legislation outlines the potential consequences for breach of the obligations set out in the Act. While specific offences are not enumerated, the overarching aim of the data matching program is to ensure compliance with taxation obligations, including registration, lodgment, reporting, and payment. Failure to comply with these obligations may lead to investigations by the ATO and potential enforcement actions. The Act does not specify maximum penalties for breaches; however, general taxation laws provide for penalties for non-compliance, including fines and potential criminal charges in severe cases. The purpose of these provisions is to promote voluntary compliance and enhance community confidence in the integrity of the tax system.