Engage with us for advice

Early engagement is an opportunity for you and your advisor to discuss the tax outcomes of complex transactions with us before applying for formal advice. You can discuss your circumstances and identify any concerns before you act. We will work with you and your advisor to get things right.

On this page:

• When to contact us
• How to access early engagement
• What to expect

When to contact us

Early engagement is flexible and is tailored to your circumstances. You can request early engagement:

• if you are considering applying for a private ruling, class ruling or administratively binding advice
• when you are unsure of the most appropriate type of advice for your situation
• before, during or after you have entered into the transaction.

How to access early engagement

To access early engagement, you can:

• complete a Callback request form
• email us at eerequest@ato.gov.au
• submit an Early engagement (advice) request (PDF 1.34MB)This link will download a file

We will contact you to discuss your request and outline the early engagement process.

We will consult with you to:

• seek your timeframes and critical dates
• confirm details of the transaction
• identify the tax issues you are seeking advice on.

If you decide to proceed with early engagement, we will contact you to arrange an initial meeting.

What to expect

During early engagement, we adopt a collaborative approach to understand your situation. We may request information from you to establish the facts of the transaction, and the commercial context and drivers. You may also submit a draft ruling application for our consideration.

We will work with you to identify issues and concerns and ensure that relevant experts participate in our discussions. At the end of the engagement, we will give you advice tailored to your needs and circumstances.

See also:

• Mutual arrangements for certainty