1051419761251 | Legal database

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Edited version of your written advice

Authorisation Number: 1051419761251

Date of advice: 13 September 2018

Ruling

Subject: Exempt foreign income

Question

Is your salary and wage income exempt from Australian income tax under section 23AG of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 for the period of your foreign service?

Answer

Yes

Having considered your circumstances, the relevant legislation and taxation rulings/determinations surrounding the exemption of taxation on foreign service income, we find that under section 23AG of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 your foreign service income will be exempt from taxation.

This ruling applies for the following period:

July 2016

The scheme commences on:

January 2015

Relevant facts and circumstances

You were employed by an Australian government agency.

Your work related solely to official development assistance.

You were posted in Country X for a total of more than 500 days.

You took various holidays during your deployment.

You used your entitled annual leave to take these holidays.

You used five days of annual leave you had accrued prior to your foreign service for your first holiday.

You were granted an additional 10 days of leave attributed to your foreign service posting.

All the holidays you took were accrued from foreign services in accordance to your employment terms and conditions.

Your salary and wage income was exempt from tax in Country X by operation of the Country A Convention on Diplomatic Relations [1968] ATS 3.

Your salary and wage income was exempt from tax in Country X by operation of a treaty between Australian and Country X.

Your deployment dates are shown in the table below:

*Country*	*Purpose*	*Days*	*Cumulative (Days)*
X	foreign service	58	58
AUS	Accrued foreign service Recreational Leave (FSRL)	13	76
AUS	Leave accrued before foreign service	5	76
X	foreign service	86	162
AUS	FSRL	10	172
X	foreign service	16	188
AUS	foreign service work travel	5	193
X	foreign service	58	251
AUS	foreign service work travel	2	253
X	foreign service	26	279
AUS	foreign service work travel	3	282
X	foreign service	14	296
AUS	FSRL	7	303
X	foreign service	25	328
Y	FSRL	24	352
X	foreign service	52*	404
AUS	foreign service work travel	4	408
X	foreign service	13	421
AUS	FSRL	9	430
X	foreign service	42	472
AUS	foreign service work travel	4	476
X	foreign service	44	520

*Leap year 29 days in February

Relevant legislative provisions

Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 section 23AG

Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 subsection 23AG(1)

Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 subsection 23AG(1AA)

Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 subsection 23AG(2)

Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 subsection 23AG(6)

Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 subsection 23AG(6A)

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