Warning: This information may not apply to the current year. Check the content carefully to ensure it is applicable to your circumstances.
Employer obligations
Most government organisations are employers. They need to administer PAYG withholding (including employment declarations), make mandatory superannuation contributions and, where they reward their employees with non-cash benefits, report and pay fringe benefits tax.
We are working with the Department of Finance and Administration to help federal government agencies comply with their superannuation guarantee obligations, particularly in relation to contractors and consultants. Guidelines and a survey have been issued to 172 agencies, asking them to review their superannuation arrangements for contractors and consultants. Seminars have been conducted and visits are available to agencies who seek further assistance. The Australian National Audit Office is reviewing compliance by federal government agencies with fringe benefits tax and superannuation guarantee obligations. It is expected to report this year.
In checking compliance with employer obligations, we:
- contact employers by letter, phone or a visit to verify that they are complying with their PAYG withholding, fringe benefits tax and superannuation guarantee obligations
- investigate all cases where an employee tells us their employer has not paid the correct amount of superannuation on their behalf, and
- follow up any other issues noted by the Australian National Audit Office.
We select cases for review where there is an unexplained difference between what we would expect to be reported and what is actually reported. For example, where:
- the amount of PAYG withholding that an organisation has paid during the year is less than the total withheld amounts shown on their employees' payment summaries
- an organisation has the attributes of a fringe benefits taxpayer but has not reported or paid fringe benefits tax
- the reporting under one employer obligation, for example, superannuation contributions received by super funds, does not match the reporting under another employer obligation, for example, PAYG withholding, and
- an organisation's reporting of employer obligations changes unexpectedly, without corresponding changes in other reporting.
This year we plan to:
- do 25 reviews of employer obligations, and
- investigate all cases where an employee tells us their employer has not paid the correct amount of superannuation on their behalf.
GST issues
In helping government organisations understand their GST obligations, our focus includes ensuring that they:
- understand the distinction between grants and appropriations, and treat these correctly for GST purposes
- understand when non-taxable transitional contracts become reviewable, and therefore subject to GST
- treat government fees and charges correctly for GST purposes
- understand their GST obligations related to the disposal of assets, including land, and the operation of the margin scheme, and
- manage restructuring of government departments for GST.
- We select government organisations for a review of their GST obligations by:
- defining 'normal' behaviour and identifying the organisations that do not fit within expectations. We do this by analysing our information, including PAYG information, activity statements and annual reports. We focus on organisations with large refund claims; those whose GST-free supplies compared to total supplies are different from the norm; those that make particular types of supplies such as land sales; those that report information that is unexpected such as export sales; and those whose reported supplies and credits vary from one tax period to the next
- matching our information with information from other sources to identify unreported supplies, in particular, grants and asset disposals. For example, we compare asset disposals listed in annual reports with activity statement information to check whether the organisation has reported the supply. Similarly, we compare information obtained from third parties, such as agencies that monitor land sales, with activity statement information
- analysing private ruling requests to identify organisations that make particular types of transactions
- scrutinising media items to identify public issues and areas of potential risk
- analysing information received from consultative arrangements, and
- following up on complaints we receive.
This year we will undertake at least 190 GST audits of the largest government organisations.
Sections within F. Government organisations
Last Modified: Tuesday, 11 March 2008