ATO Interpretative Decision

ATO ID 2006/59 (Withdrawn)

Excise

Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme: off-road - agriculture - loading hay bales on to vehicles to transport for sale
FOI status: may be released

This ATO ID is withdrawn from 1 July 2012, the date the Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme Act 2003 was repealed.
Despite its withdrawal, this ATO ID continues to be a precedential ATO view in respect of the period the Act was in force, 1 July 2003 up to and including 30 June 2012.

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you will need to ensure that the relevant provisions referred to in the decision have not been amended or repealed.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 the loading of hay bales, from an agricultural property or from a storage facility, onto a vehicle to transport for sale 'agriculture' for the purposes of subsection 22(1) of the Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme Act 2003 (EGCSA)?

Decision

No. The loading of hay bales, from an agricultural property or from a storage facility, onto a vehicle to transport for sale is not 'agriculture' for the purposes of subsection 22(1) of the EGCSA.

Facts

An entity conducts farming operations, growing crops.

Hay is baled on an agricultural property.

Hay bales can remain on the agricultural property or be moved to a storage facility.

An entity operates a diesel loader to load the hay bales, from either the agricultural property or from a storage facility, onto a vehicle to transport for sale.

Reasons for Decision

'Agriculture' is relevantly defined in subsection 22(1) of the EGCSA as:

(b)
the cultivation or gathering in of crops; or
...

and includes:

...

(i)
a sundry agricultural activity.

Agriculture includes 'cultivation or gathering in of crops' and 'pasturage.' These activities have occurred prior to the hay being received at the hay baling, packing and storage facility, and therefore the most relevant activities to consider is 'sundry agricultural activities.'

Sundry agricultural activity is defined in section 27 of the EGCSA. Activities that constitute sundry agricultural activities can be relevantly described as:

(b)
hay baling on the agricultural property where the hay was cultivated; or
...

(f)
the storage of produce of a core agricultural activity on an agricultural property where a core agricultural activity is carried on; or

Hay baling involves the packing of hay or straw into bales or bundles in paddocks for storage or transportation and any subsequent pressing and re-baling of that hay. For a hay baling activity to be a sundry agricultural activity, the activity must be carried out on the same agricultural property on which the hay was grown.

The gathering in of the crop ceases when it is physically collected together for the first time on a farm.

The sundry agricultural activity of hay baling ceases once the hay is baled and either remains on the agricultural property or moved to storage.

An entity loads the hay bales from the agricultural property or storage shed onto a vehicle to transport for sale.

The subsequent loading of the hay bales on to vehicles to transport for sale, from the agricultural property or from the storage facility, is not a qualifying activity as it occurs after the crop has been gathered in and hay is baled.

Date of decision: 25 November 2005

Legislative References:
Energy Grants (Credits) Scheme Act 2003
   paragraph 22(1)(b)
   paragraph 22(1)(i)
   paragraph 27(b)
   paragraph 27(f)

Related Public Rulings (including Determinations)
Product Grants and Benefits Ruling PGBR 2005/3

Related ATO Interpretative Decisions
ATO ID 2005/94
ATO ID 2004/952

Keywords
EGCS agriculture
EGCS hay baling
EGCS packing
EGCS storage

Business Line: Indirect Tax

Date of publication: 24 February 2006

ISSN: 1445-2782

history

	Date:	Version:
	25 November 2005	Original statement
You are here	1 July 2012	Archived

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