ATO Interpretative Decision
ATO ID 2004/756 (Withdrawn)
Goods and services tax
GST and supply of a table with a tilt functionFOI status: may be released
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This ATO ID is withdrawn as it is a straight application of the law and does not contain an interpretative decision.This document incorporates revisions made since original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.
Status of this decision: Decision Withdrawn 15 December 2006
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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you will need to ensure that the relevant provisions referred to in the decision have not been amended or repealed.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 the entity, a supplier of medical aids and appliances, making a GST-free supply under subsection 38-45(1) of the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (GST Act), when it supplies a table that has a tilt function?
Decision
Yes, the entity is making a GST-free supply under subsection 38-45(1) of the GST Act when it supplies a table that has a tilt function.
Facts
The entity is a supplier of medical aids and appliances. The entity supplies a table that has a tilt function. The entity supplies the table to hospitals, private practitioners and occasionally to individuals for home use.
The table has a top with a mechanism that allows the top to tilt from horizontal to vertical and at required points in between. The function of the table is such that a patient is able to walk on and walk off safely when the table is at a full vertical tilt. The table is designed for providing physical therapy to patients.
The table is specifically designed for people with an illness or disability and is not widely used by people without an illness or disability.
There is no agreement between the entity and the recipient of the supply that the supply will not be treated as a GST-free supply.
The entity is registered for goods and services tax (GST)
Reasons for Decision
Under subsection 38-45(1) of the GST Act, the supply of a medical aid or appliance is GST-free where the medical aid or appliance:
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- is covered by Schedule 3 to the GST Act (Schedule 3) or specified in the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Regulations 1999 (GST Regulations)
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- is specifically designed for people with an illness or disability, and
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- is not widely used by people without an illness or disability.
Item 19 in the table in Schedule 3 to the GST Regulations (Item 19) lists 'tilt tables'. The term 'tilt table' is not defined in the GST Act. Where a term is not defined in the relevant Act, it takes on its ordinary meaning, unless the term has a special or technical meaning. Where a term has a special or technical meaning, it is necessary to determine its meaning by reference to the industry to which that term relates (Herbert Adams Pty Ltd v. Federal Commissioner of Taxation (1932) 47 CLR 222; (1932) 2 ATD 31).
Given the context in which the term 'tilt table' appears, the term is considered to have a special or technical meaning. The Stedman's Medical Dictionary (2000), 27th edition, Lippincott Williams & Williams, Baltimore, defines a 'tilt table' as:
a table with a top capable of being rotated on its transverse axis so that a patient lying upon it can be brought into the erect position as desired; used in experimental investigations and in physical therapy.
The table that the entity supplies has a top with a mechanism that allows the top to provide a tilt function from horizontal to vertical and at required points in between. The table is generally used for providing physical therapy to patients and the tilt function enables a patient to walk on and walk off safely when the table is at a full vertical tilt. As such, the table falls within the definition of a 'tilt table' and is covered by Item 19.
In addition, the table is designed for people with an illness or disability and is not widely used by people without an illness or disability. Therefore, the entity is making a GST-free supply under subsection 38-45(1) of the GST Act when it supplies a table that has a tilt function.
Date of decision: 17 August 2004
Legislative References:
A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999
subsection 38-45(1)
Schedule 3
Schedule 3
Schedule 3 table item 19
Case References:
Herbert Adams Pty Ltd v Federal Commissioner of Taxation
(1932) 47 CLR 222
(1932) 2 ATD 31
Other References:
Stedman's Medical Dictionary 2000, 27th edition, Lippincott Williams & Williams, Baltimore
Keywords
Goods and services tax
GST free
GST health
section 38-45 - medical aids & appliances
ISSN: 1445-2782
| Date: | Version: | |
| 17 August 2004 | Original statement | |
| You are here → | 15 December 2006 | Archived |
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