ATO Interpretative Decision

ATO ID 2003/975 (Withdrawn)

Goods and Services Tax

GST and repeating an education course
FOI status: may be released

This ATO ID is withdrawn on the basis that it is a straight application of the law and does not contain an interpretative decision.

This document incorporates revisions made since original publication. View its history and amending notices, if applicable.

CAUTION: This is an edited and summarised record of a Tax Office decision. This record is not published as a form of advice. It is being made available for your inspection to meet FOI requirements, because it may be used by an officer in making another decision.

This ATOID provides you with the following level of protection:

If you reasonably apply this decision in good faith to your own circumstances (which are not materially different from those described in the decision), and the decision is later found to be incorrect you will not be liable to pay any penalty or interest. However, you will be required to pay any underpaid tax (or repay any over-claimed credit, grant or benefit), provided the time limits under the law allow it. If you do intend to apply this decision to your own circumstances, you will need to ensure that the relevant provisions referred to in the decision have not been amended or repealed. You may wish to obtain further advice from the Tax Office or from a professional adviser.

Issue

Is an entity, a supplier of education courses, making a GST-free supply under section 38-85 of the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (GST Act), when it supplies an education course, as defined in section 195-1 of the GST Act, to a student who is repeating the course?

Decision

Yes, the entity is making a GST-free supply under section 38-85 of the GST Act when it supplies an education course, as defined in section 195-1 of the GST Act, to a student who is repeating the course.

Facts

The entity is a supplier of education courses. The education course satisfies the definition of 'education course' in section 195-1 of the GST Act. The entity is supplying the course to a student who is repeating the course.

The entity is registered for goods and services tax (GST).

Reasons for Decision

The supply of an 'education course' is GST-free under section 38-85 of the GST Act. 'Education course' is defined in section 195-1 of the GST Act and includes a number of different types of courses which are also defined in section 195-1 of the GST Act. The definition of each type of course hinges on the nature of the course rather than the motive for undertaking the course.

The GST legislation does not require the motives or reasons of the student undertaking the course to be taken into account when determining whether the supply of an education course is GST-free under section 38-85 of the GST Act.

Where an education course meets the definition in section 195-1 of the GST Act its supply is GST-free:

•: regardless of the motives or reasons of the student, or
•: irrespective of whether the student is participating in that course for the first or a subsequent time.

Therefore, the entity is making a GST-free supply under section 38-85 of the GST Act when it supplies an education course, as defined in section 195-1 of the GST Act, to a student who is repeating that course.

Date of decision: 10 July 2002

Legislative References:
A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999
section 38-85
section 195-1

Keywords
Goods and Services Tax
GST free
GST education
Education courses

Business Line: GST

Date of publication: 31 October 2003

ISSN: 1445-2782

history

	Date:	Version:
	10 July 2002	Original statement
You are here	10 February 2006	Archived

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