Mergers and acquisitions

About this guide

This guide sets out the key compliance issues and common themes in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) transactions.

M&A transactions are becoming increasingly complex and involve tax outcomes at both the corporate and shareholder level.

When we are preparing rulings, doing client risk reviews (CRR) or undertaking audits that involve M&A transactions we:

• understand the commercial environment in which M&A transactions take place
• analyse the issues in a timely manner, including any compliance issues that arise
• understand how different parts of the law can interact to create unintended tax outcomes
• share experience and expertise across different capabilities and business lines.

To help our staff undertake these tasks, we developed the M&A Framework, which documents the key compliance issues and common themes in M&A activities. We have adapted this framework for the M&A community so they can improve their understanding of how we work and what we focus on.

When developing this guide, we researched the M&A environment to identify common themes and issues from these transactions. We also discussed M&As with members of the large business community and Australian Taxation Office (ATO) staff who are experienced in dealing with complex transactions.

We will use our ongoing dialogue and engagement with the large business community to ensure the framework is up to date and relevant.

We recommend you use this guide to help understand the tax outcomes and identify compliance issues for groups and shareholders as it documents a number of compliance issues we have identified. It is not an exhaustive list of all risks associated with M&A transactions; rather, it is an overview of the common themes and issues we see in current M&A activity.