Foreign vendor notification of non-IARPI declarations

When to notify us of a non-IARPI declaration

Foreign vendors need to notify us of a non-indirect Australian real property interest (non-IARPI) vendor declaration using the approved notification of non-IARPI declaration formThis link will download a file, if both of the following apply:

• You are providing a purchaser with a non-IARPI declaration.
• The combined value of the assets subject to the transaction, and any related transactions, is $50 million or more.

You will need to notify us using the approved form either:

• at least 28 days before settlement, if the period between entering the contract and settlement is over 31 days
• as soon as reasonably possible if the period between entering the contract and settlement is less than 31 days.

You will then need to declare to the purchaser, in writing, that you have notified us, before they can:

• rely on your non-IARPI declaration
• not withhold under the foreign resident capital gains withholding (FRCGW) rules.

You do not need to notify us if the value of the transaction and related transactions is less than $50 million.

How to notify us of a non-IARPI declaration

To notify us of a non-IARPI declaration, you must:

1. Complete the notification using the approved form.
2. Email the form to nonIARPInotification@ato.gov.au.

For your notification to be valid and to receive an acknowledgement, you must:

• fill out the form completely and correctly in accordance with the instructions
• send it to the above email address.

To fill out the form you will need information about the:

• vendor
• purchaser
• entity whose shares or units you're selling (the test entity)
• details of your interests or assets
• basis for making a declaration that the membership interests are not IARPI.

We will send you an acknowledgement that you've lodged after we receive your form. You can use this acknowledgement to inform the purchaser that you have notified us.

If you're providing non-IARPI declarations to multiple purchasers, you must complete an approved form for each purchaser.

Related transactions

Transactions are considered related when they would be considered a single transaction that has been split into smaller transactions. These are usually executed around the same time (but not necessarily on the same day). For example, a sale is done over time in instalments, or a transaction is broken down into multiple parcels of shares.

When purchasers can rely on a non-IARPI declaration

You need to ensure you meet all the requirements on this page so a purchaser can rely on your non-IARPI declaration where the transaction and related transactions are valued over $50 million. Otherwise, they may need to withhold 15% from the transaction under the FRCGW rules.

Penalties

For the vendor

You may be subject to a penalty if you make a false or misleading statement either to:

• us when you notify us of your non-IARPI declaration
• the purchaser that you've notified us of your non-IARPI declaration.

The amount of the penalty varies depending on the severity of the offence.

For the purchaser

A purchaser may be subject to a failure to withhold penalty if they rely on your non-IARPI declaration for a transaction that's $50 million or more (including related transactions). This is where either:

• You haven't declared to them that you've notified us in writing before settlement of the non-IARPI declaration and the date you notified us.
• The date you notified us was less than 28 days from settlement and the period between the contract signing and settlement was 31 or more days.

The penalty is equal to the amount that should have been withheld (15% of the purchase price).