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Ruling

Subject: Society, association or club for the encouragement of a game or sport

Question 1

Is The Club exempt from income tax under section 50-1 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (ITAA 1997) as a society, association or club established for the encouragement of a game or sport pursuant to item 9.1(c) of the table in section 50-45 of the ITAA 1997?

Answer

Yes

This ruling applies for the following periods:

Year ending 30 June 2011

Year ending 30 June 2012

Year ending 30 June 2013

Year ending 30 June 2014

Year ending 30 June 2015

The scheme commences on:

1 July 2010

Relevant facts and circumstances

The Club was established in 19XX.

The Club's facilities are located at in a State in Australia and include:

· 40m bent grass bowls greens.

· An indoor bowls area.

· Squash courts.

· Undercover BBQ facilities.

· A Multi-purpose function room.

· A combined sports bar with TAB wagering facilities.

· Electronic gaming machines.

· A bistro facility.

The BBQ facility seats is used by The Club as a clubhouse for participating players enabling presentations and refreshments following each sporting events.

The multi-purpose function room is used by The Club for tournaments, pennant events, indoor bowls events, aerobics and as an after match area for the Squash and in-house Racquetball Sections.

Bistro facility catering at The Club is contracted to an external provider.

The number electronic gaming machines located at The Club's facilities will remain the same, post changes to the electronic gaming machine regime in the State in August 2012.

The objects of The Club as stated in their constitution are as follows:

The objects of the Association are to encourage, promote and foster the sports of Bowls, Squash and Golf and Local Community Organisations.

The Club constitution contains the following non-profit clause:

The assets and income of the Association shall be applied exclusively to the promotion of its objects and no portion shall be paid or distributed directly or indirectly to the members of the association except as bona fide remuneration for services rendered or expenses incurred on behalf of the association.

The Club constitution contains the following dissolution clause:

In the event of the Association being dissolved, the amount which remains after such dissolution and to the satisfaction of all debts and liabilities shall be paid and applied by the association in accordance with its powers to any organisation which has similar objects and which has rules prohibiting the distribution of its assets and income to its members.

The Club describe their membership categories in the following way:

· Ordinary Members

· Club Members

· Foundation Members

· Junior Members

· Honorary Life members

· Honorary Members

· Social Members

Club Members can play in Club events and use The Club greens for social bowls or training. Only Ordinary Members are entitled to represent The Club in pennant competition.

Only Ordinary Members, Club Members, Foundation Members and Honorary Life Members are entitled to nominate, vote for and stand as Directors of The Club.

The Club constitution limits the entitlement of Social Members to:

The use of the Association's facilities in accordance with the By-Laws made by the Committee.

Social Members do not have rights to vote at General Meetings, alter The Club constitution, nominate, stand or be elected as Committee Members.

The Club 68% of The Club's members are entitled to participate in the ir sporting activities. 32% of The Clubs members are social members.

The members of the Board and their involvement in the sports promoted by The Club are as follows:

President	Life Member
Vice President	Bowls
Secretary	Golf
Committee Members	Bowls

The Club operates the following sporting activities:

· Bowls section

· Golf section

· Squash section

· Racquetball section

The Club's 2010/2012 Bowls Section Fixture demonstrates extensive participation of The Club in men's and women's Lawn Bowls.

The Club's Weekly Bowls Calendar for the Period 1 September 2010 to 25 April 2011 is extensive.

The Club fields teams in various sections of the Saturday Bowls Pennant Competition with their local and district bowls association.

The Club fields numerous teams in various divisions of the Saturday Bowls Pennant Competition

The Club has achieved success in the Saturday Bowls Pennant Competition:

The Club fields teams in various sections of the Tuesday Bowls Pennant Competition with the local and District Ladies Bowls Association.

The Club has achieved success in the following in the Ladies Tuesday Bowls Pennant Competition.

The Club fields teams in Indoor Bowls in winter events with the local Indoor Bias Bowls.

The Club has achieved success in local Indoor Bias Bowls Association competition.

Club Members have participated in the District Championships for Ladies Singles Indoor Bowls and achieved success.

The Club conducts indoor social bowls on a regular basis.

To Promote Bowls The Club,

· Conducts charity day events for Bowls annually including:

· Has registered coaches and registered umpires accredited by Bowls of that State and the local bowls association, accreditation costs are met by The Club.

· Has delegate members who attend Bowls of that State meetings.

· Appoints Members as Bowls Press Secretaries with responsibility for liaising with media to report results and other items of bowls interest.

· Hosts the a major day tournament each year which attracts numerous players and top State Bowlers.

· Provides programs for the local primary school where pupils are taught Bowls, how to bowl, Bowls rules, etiquette and team environment. A similar program is conducted for indoor Bowls. All costs associated with obtaining working with children permits for The Club Members involved in these programs are met by The Club.

The Club has a long history in fielding Squash teams and maintains its squash courts in accordance with pennant standards and international rules.

The Club currently has registered players in the local Squash Racquetball Association. There are currently teams participating in various grades. There are three seasons per year for this competition and a formal fixture exists.

The Squash section of The Club has achieved success in competitions.

The Club utilises its courts for internal Squash and Racquet Ball Competitions which are conducted regularly on a weekly basis.

The Golf Section of The Club organises competitions and handicapping of players. There are approximately XX Golfing Members of the Golf Section playing 14 events per year with an average field of 36-40 players at each event.

The Golf Sub-Committee is responsible for arranging each type of event, the course to be played, the adjusting and allocation of all handicaps, sourcing of sponsors, allocation of prizes and arranging T-stewards for each event.

The Club supports other sporting activities in its region in the following ways:

· The Club promotes local Football and Netball Clubs in their respective fundraising activities by providing free use of Club facilities for fundraising events.

· The Club provides support to the local Football Club by providing free use of its bistro and multi-purpose room for fundraising events.

· The Club offers its facilities for summer sports events and the local little Athletics Club.

· The Club makes free provision of its bus to the local Primary School for the purposes of transporting students representing the school in sporting events.

The Club utilise their resources on the promotion of sport in the following way:

Year Ended 30 June	Expenditure on Sport as a % of Surplus
2008	81%
2009	104%
2010	63%

The Club estimate that Members contribute 790 hours of voluntary labour organising and conducting sporting events across the various sports conducted by The Club per annum.

The Club has approved a development works project for its greens which includes:

· One green will be re-topped with a natural bent grass surface at the conclusion of the 2011-12 season.

· Convert two greens to a synthetic surface.

· Add new green.

Significant capital works were undertaken in 2009 when The Club invested in a water retention and irrigation system to sustain its grass greens. The Club received a grant to assist with the purchase of two large storage tanks, pump system and new sprinkler system. Overall the project cost $X plus 397.5 volunteer man-hours assisting with the project.

The Club has provided their Annual Reports for the Years ending 30 June 2008, 2009 and 2010. Included in these Annual Reports are financial statements for the 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 years.

Relevant legislative provisions

ITAA 1997, section 50-1

ITAA 1997, section 50-45

ITAA 1997, section 50-70

Reasons for decision

Summary

Based on the information provided, we accept that the main purpose of The Club is the encouragement of a game or sport pursuant to item 9.1(c) of the table in section 50-45 of the ITAA 1997.

We consider that The Club is non-profit, pursues its objects in principally Australia and incurs its expenditure in principally Australia.

As such The Club is exempt from income tax under section 50-1 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (ITAA 1997) as a society, association or club established for the encouragement of a game or sport.

Detailed reasoning

Section 50-1 of the ITAA 1997 provides exemption from income tax to entities covered by item 9.1(c) of the table in section 50-45 of the ITAA 1997.

Item 9.1(c) of the ITAA 1997 refers to a society, association or club established for the encouragement of a game or sport which meets the special conditions contained in section 50-70 of the ITAA 1997.

Section 50-70 of the ITAA 1997 states:

An entity covered by item…9.1…. is not exempt from tax unless the entity is a society, association or club that is not carried on for the purpose of profit or gain of its individual members and that:

(a) has a physical presence in Australia and, to that extent, incurs its expenditure and pursues its objectives principally in Australia; or

(b) is a society, association or club that meets the description and requirements in item 1 of the table in section 30-15; or

(c) is a prescribed society, association or club which is located outside Australia and is exempt from income tax in the country in which it is resident.

Paragraph 7 of Taxation Ruling TR 97/22 Income tax: exempt sporting clubs sets out the tests considered relevant in determining an entities tax exempt status under Item 9.1(c) in section 50-45 of the ITAA 1997:

For a club to be exempt from income tax under section 50-45, it needs to satisfy three tests. It cannot be carried on for the purposes of profit or gain to its individual members. It must be for the encouragement of a game or sport. That encouragement must be the club's main purpose.

Thus, an entity which passes the above tests and satisfies one of the conditions in Section 50-70 (a), (b) or (c) will be exempt from income tax.

Not carried on for the purpose of profit or gain to its individual members

Paragraphs 9 and 10 of TR 97/22 state:

9. A club must not be carried on for the purpose of profit or gain to its individual members.

10. A club's memorandum and or Articles of Association or other constituent documents should contain a prohibition against a distribution of profits and assets among members while the club is functional and on its winding up… The club's activities should conform to the prohibition.

The Club's constitution states that:

The assets and income of the Association shall be applied exclusively to the promotion of its objects and no portion shall be paid or distributed directly or indirectly to the members of the association except as bona fide remuneration for services rendered or expenses incurred on behalf of the association.

The Club's constitution states that:

In the event of the Association being dissolved, the amount which remains after such dissolution and to the satisfaction of all debts and liabilities shall be paid and applied by the association in accordance with its powers to any organisation which has similar objects and which has rules prohibiting the distribution of its assets and income to its members.

It is considered that The Club's constitution contains sufficient prohibition against the distribution of profits and assets among members while it is functional and on it's winding up. The financials of The Club demonstrate that its activities conform to this prohibition. It is accepted that The Club is not being carried on for the purpose of profit or gain to its individual members.

It must be for the encouragement of a game or sport

Game or Sport

Paragraph 38 of TR 97/22 lists bowls, squash and golf as activities considered to be a sport for the purposes of section 50-45 of the ITAA 1997.

The objects of The Club contained in their constitution, are for the encouragement, promotion and fostering of the sports of bowls, squash and golf.

It is accepted that bowls, squash and golf meet the description of a game or sport as intended by section 50-45 of the ITAA 1997.

Encouragement of a game or sport

Paragraph 11 of TR 97/22 states:

Encouragement means 'stimulation by assistance' according to the Macquarie Dictionary. It is essential that the encouragement of a game or sport is the main or dominant purpose of a club. Encouragement can occur directly by:

§ Forming, preparing and entering teams and competitions in the game of sport;

§ Co-ordinating activities;

§ Organising and conducting tournaments and the like;

§ Improving the ability of participants;

§ Improving the standard of trainers and coaches;

§ Providing purchased or leased facilities for the activities of the game or sport for the use of club members and visitors; or

§ Encouraging, increasing and wider participation and improved performance

And can occur indirectly:

§ Through marketing; or

§ By initiating or facilitating research and development.

The Club divides its activities into sections based on the type of activity:

§ The Club Bowls Section has a fixture which demonstrates extensive participation of The Club in men's and women's Lawn Bowls. The Club participates in Tuesday and Saturday Pennant competitions in which they have enjoyed success. The Club maintains outdoor bowling greens, to competition standard. The Club undertakes social bowls including Mufti (casual clothes) Triples and barefoot bowls. The Club provides bowls programs for the students of the local Primary School educating them in how to bowl, etiquette and team environment. The Club hosts an annual bowls tournament.

In addition The Club provides Indoor Bowls facilities, competes in indoor bowls events and provides facilities for social bowls. The Indoor Bowls section have enjoyed success in competition.

§ The Club Squash and Racquetball Section have registered players in the local Squash Racquetball Association and have enjoyed success in competition. It maintains its squash courts in accordance with pennant standards and international rules. The Club utilises its courts for internal squash and racquetball competitions which are conducted regularly several times a week.

§ The Club Golf Section organises competitions and handicapping of players. The golfing members of the Golf Section play several events each year with an average field of 36-40 players at each event. The Club arranges each type of event, the courses to be played, the allocation of all handicaps, sourcing of sponsors, allocation of prizes and arranging T-Stewards for each event.

The Club provides significant assistance to sporting activities to the local football, netball and little athletics clubs. The Club also provides its bus to the local Primary School for the purposes of transporting students representing the school in sporting events.

Based on this it is considered that The Club, manifested in its purpose and activities, is encouraging the sports of bowls, squash, racquetball and golf.

That encouragement must be the club's main purpose

Paragraph 13 of TR 97/22 provides:

To be exempt, the main purpose of the club must be the encouragement of a game or sport.

Paragraph 14 of TR 97/22 states:

A club's main purpose can only be ascertained after objectively weighing all of the club's features described in paragraphs 15 and 16. The presence or absence of a feature may not conclusively determine that the club's main purpose is or is not the encouragement of a game or sport.

Paragraph 15 of TR 97/22 lists the following features as being highly persuasive in supporting a conclusion that the main purpose of the club is to encourage a game or sport:

(a) the club conducts activities in the relevant year that are directly related to the game or sport;

(b) the sporting activities encouraged by the club are extensive;

(c) the club uses a significant portion of its surplus funds in encouraging the game or sport; and

(d) the club's constituent documents emphasise the club's main purpose is to encourage a game or sport and the club operates in accordance with those documents.

Relevant but less persuasive features are listed at paragraph 16 of TR 97/22 and include:

(a) a high level of participation by members in the game or sport;

(b) the members of the committee, or persons who control the direction of the club are predominantly participants in or concerned with the encouragement of the game or sport (as distinct from the day to day management of the club;

(c) voting rights in the club vest only in members involved in encouraging the game or sport, whether by personal participation or by encouraging participation by others; and

(d) the club promotes itself to patrons and the public as one encouraging the game or sport, and its advertisements and publicity emphasise the game or sporting facilities provided.

The above features will now be considered as they apply to The Club.

Highly persuasive features

a) The club conducts activities in the relevant year that are directly related to the game of sport

The Club conducts activities directly related to the sports of bowls, indoor bowls, squash, racquetball and golf. It does this by participating in competitions, hosting competitions, maintaining facilities to pennant and international standards, providing registered coaches and accredited umpires. Additionally it encourages participation in bowls and indoor bowls by local school children, supports local sporting clubs and devotes significant portions of its resources to promoting its sporting activities.

b) The sporting activities encouraged by the club are extensive

The sporting activities conducted by The Club are comprehensive and its facilities are maintained to a high standard. Its historical and current activities indicate a strong and continuing association with the games of bowls, indoor bowls, squash, racquetball and golf. The Club is currently in the process of constructing a new bowling green and redeveloping the surfaces of its current greens.

c) The club uses a significant proportion of its funds in encouraging games or sports.

An analysis of The Club's financial statements for 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010 demonstrates that The Club generates a surplus from ordinary activities each year.

The Club has expended significant portions of its surplus each year on promoting its sporting activities:

Year Ended 30 June	Expenditure on Sport as a % of Surplus
2008	81%

Additionally The Club relies heavily on its Members each year for voluntary labour to sustain its sporting activities who provide 790 hours of volunteer labour.

The Club are committed to devoting its resources to maintaining and improving its sporting facilities. The Club has approved a development works project for its greens over the next four years.

Significant capital works were undertaken in 2009 when The Club invested in a water retention and irrigation system to sustain its grass greens. The Club received a grant to assist with the purchase of two large storage tanks, a pump system and a new sprinkler system. Overall the project utilised 397.5 volunteer man-hours assisting with the project.

Based on this it is considered that The Club devotes a significant portion of its funds and resources in the promotion of its sporting activities.

d) The club's constituent documents emphasise that the Club's main purpose is to encourage a game or sport.

In St Mary's Rugby League Club Limited v. Federal Commissioner of Taxation 97 ATC 4528 (St Mary's) at 97 ATC 4534 Hill J observed:

The Memorandum of Association records the significance of rugby league as the major object of the club. The Articles of Association both in the membership categories and in the conferring of control upon football members (or life members) point to the significance of the football activities over the social activities.

The objects of The Club as stated in clause 1.2 of their constitution are:

The objects of the Association are to encourage, promote and foster the sports of Bowls, Squash and Golf and Local Community Organisations.

The activities of The Club, as stated, reflect their commitment to promoting these objects. The Club also supports the sporting activities of local community groups including local football, netball, little athletics and the local Primary School.

The Club constitution limits participation in the management of The Club, including standing for office and electing committee members, to Members participating in the sporting activities of The Club. The current members of The Board and their involvement in the sports promoted by The Club demonstrate their involvement in the sporting activities of The Club.

It is accepted that The Club's constituent documents emphasise that The Club's main purpose is to encourage a game or sport.

Relevant but less persuasive features

a) High level of participation in sport encouraged by the club.

The Courts have been favourably persuaded by the number of members participating in sport:

§ In the St Mary's case, 2257 of its 6648 members were football members (players and ex players). The club fielded 32 teams of 450 players plus a reserve grade and a metropolitan cup team.

§ In Terranora lakes Country Club Ltd v. FC of T (1993) 93 ATC 4078 (Terranora), 2854 of 4076 members were sporting members

§ In Re Tweed Heads Bowls Club v FC of T 92 ATC 2087; (1992) 24 ATR 1068 (Tweed Heads), 830 of its 920 members were bowling members.

§ In Case W114 (Grand United Port Macquarie Bowling Club v. F.C. of T) 89 ATC 891, 1353 of its 2476 members were bowling members.

67% of The Club members belong to a membership class which entitles them to participate in one of the sports promoted by The Club.

The Club maintains an extensive fixture for its Bowls Section. The Club fields teams in the Saturday Pennant Competition with the local District Bowls Association and teams in the local District Ladies Bowls Association Pennant competition. The Club has enjoyed success in these competitions.

The Club also fields teams in the local Indoor Bias Bowls Association and has enjoyed success in this competition.

The Club promotes squash and racquetball and has fielded teams in pennant seasons in the local Squash Racquets Association Pennant Competition and has enjoyed success.

The Club Golf section arranges for The Club's golfing members to play several events annually.

It is accepted that a high level of participation in sport is encouraged by The Club.

b) The members of the committee, or persons who control the direction of the club, are predominantly participants in or concerned with the encouragement of the game or sport (as distinct from the day to day management of the club).

The constitution of The Club only permits members who participate in the sporting activities of The Club to stand for office and to vote for office bearers. This is reflected in the membership of the management committee as stated.

The Club contract out the operation and management of its bistro facility which indicates a desire to not be involved in activities not directly related to the promotion of sport.

It is accepted that the members of the committee, or persons who control the direction of The Club, are predominantly participants in or concerned with the encouragement of a game or sport.

c) Voting rights in the club vest only in members involved in encouraging the game or sport whether by personal participation or by encouraging participation by others.

Only members participating in the sporting activities of The Club are given voting rights and are able to participate in the management of The Club.

d) The club promotes itself to patrons and the public as one encouraging the game or sport, and its advertisements and publicity emphasise the game or sporting facilities provided.

The Club promotes itself to patrons and the public as a club that encourages sport and its advertisements and publicity emphasise sporting activities and facilities. The Club provides results of all tournaments and competition play in local newspapers. The Club actively promotes its facilities, particularly bowls, squash and golf to its members and the public.

Other purposes including social or commercial activities

Difficulties can arise in determining a club's main purpose where a club is involved in other activities particularly social or commercial activities.

Lockhart J in Cronulla Sutherland Leagues Club Limited v. FC of T 90 ATC 4215 at 4225; (1990) 21 ATR 300 at 312 (Cronulla Sutherland) said:

It [the club] may have other objects or purposes which are merely incidental or ancillary thereto or which are secondary and even unrelated to the main object or purpose without disqualifying the body from the exemption.

Where the main purpose becomes the carrying out of those other activities, a club is not exempt. Nor is it exempt if it continues to be involved in the game or sport to a substantial degree but is equally involved with another purpose or purposes. As Lockhart J said in Cronulla Sutherland at ATC 4225; ATR 312:

But if it has two co-ordinate objects, one of which is outside the exemption, the exemption cannot apply because it would be impossible to say that one object is the main or predominant object.

In Terranora the Terranora Country Club provided and promoted an extensive range of a sporting activities, including golf, lawn bowls, cricket, and football. Terranora Lakes Country Club also had extensive social facilities that were used by the members and a large number of visitors. In the most recent year reported in the Terranora case, 90.3% of the Terranora Lakes Country Club income came from poker machines, bar trading and catering but only 16.9% was spent on sporting activities.

The Court ruled in favour of the taxpayer and concluded that the main purpose of the Terranora Lakes Country Club was the promotion of athletic sport and not one established for the purpose of carrying on a business of gambling, provision of entertainment and food, and the selling of time-share units. Hill J concluded that while the social activities of the Terranora Lakes Country Club were extensive and could be seen as ends in themselves, these activities were pursued as a means of financing the extensive sporting activities conducted by the club.

In Tweed Heads, the taxpayer was a lawn bowls club which had one indoor and four outdoor bowling greens. The club participated in and organised a large number of tournaments each year. The club building was substantial and the catering and entertainment facilities were extensive. The club's main source of revenue was derived from poker machines which were used predominantly by the 400,000 annual visitors to the club.

In a judgement by Dr P Gerber at 92 ATC 2099 he stated:

…I am satisfied that the club, from its very inception, has been and is dedicated to a very substantial degree to the promotion of lawn bowls and, latterly, to indoor bowls. True it is that some elements of the Club's activities - leaving the poker machines aside for the moment - are social and cannot, as such, be characterised as "promoting the athletic game of bowls", but that is true of virtually all sports clubs. Be that as it may, I am left in no doubt that the Club has, as its main or dominant purpose, the promotion and encouragement of the bowling.

That leaves the issue of the poker machines, which earn substantial revenue, only a relatively small proportion of which was, in the years before me, used for bowling. In the Vernacular, the club has money pouring out of its ears and doesn't know what to do with it all. So what? Provided its main object is the promotion of bowls, the fact it also produces repetitive strain injury (RSI) in some 400,000 non bowling poker machine players while at the same time emptying their pockets seems to me to be utterly irrelevant.

In St Mary's, Hill J found that the significant social activities of a sporting club were acceptable if the club was formed principally for sport and if the sport was financed by the social activities. It was acceptable that in that case that only 20% of the funds earned by the social club were spent on football. Hill J stated the importance of the club's constitution which stated that the principal aim of the club was the support of local football and that a large amount of the club's activities were sport related. It was also important that the club's history centred on the support of local football, and that the club rules required a certain proportion of its funds to be applied for the support local football.

Therefore, the fact that a sporting club also encourages social and other activities does not, in itself, preclude a club from being exempt. A club is still exempt provided the encouragement of a game or sport is that club's main purpose. Conversely if a club's main purpose is providing social amenities and licensed club facilities to its members, the exemption does not apply even if sport is encouraged.

In this instance The Club operates:

§ a combined sports bar with TAB wagering facilities,

§ electronic gaming machines, and

§ A bistro facility.

The Club also has a multi-function function room and an undercover BBQ area. Of The Clubs total membership 32% are social members this indicates a high participation by members in sporting activities. A high percentage of The Club's surpluses (81% in 2008, 104% in 2009 and 63% in 2010) are expended on its sporting activities. The Club BBQ facilities are used as a club house by The Club. The Club provides its facilities, often at reduced rates or free of charge, to local sporting clubs.

The constitution of The Club, unlike the Cronulla-Sutherland case, clearly identifies the sporting activities of The Club as its main purpose. These objects are manifested in the activities of The Club. The facts surrounding The Club are in line with the facts of St Mary's, where the constitution, activities, history and control of The Club point to the characterisation of The Club as having its main object or purpose as being the encouragement or promotion of a sport.

As with St Mary's, Tweed Heads and Terranora, it is accepted that the social and commercial activities of The Club exist to provide facilities to members and an income stream for The Club. They do not preclude a conclusion that the main purpose of The Club is the promotion and encouragement of sport.

Section 50-70 (a), (b) or (c) of the ITAA 1997

It is considered that The Club meets the requirements of Section 50-70 (b), (b) or (c) of the ITAA 1997 as it pursues its objects in Australia and incurs its expenditure in Australia.

Conclusion

Based on the information provided, we accept that the main purpose of The Club is the encouragement of a game or sport pursuant to item 9.1(c) of the table in section 50-45 of the ITAA 1997.

The features of The Club leading to this conclusion are summarised as follows:

§ The Club conducts, or will conduct, activities in the relevant year that are directly related to a game or sport.

§ The Sporting activities conducted by The Club are extensive.

§ The Club uses a significant portion of its surplus funds in encouraging sport.

§ The Club's constituent documents emphasise The Club's main purpose is to encourage sport.

§ A high number of The Members of the Club participate in the sports promoted by The Club.

§ The Members of the Committee, who control The Club, are participants in the sports promoted by The Club.

§ Voting rights in The Club vest only in members who are involved in the sports promoted by The Club.

§ The Club promotes itself to members, patrons and the public as a sporting Club.

§ The social activities of The Club provide facilities for members and an income stream to support the sporting activities of The Club.

We consider that The Club is non-profit and pursues its objects in principally Australia and incurs its expenditure in principally Australia.

As such The Club is exempt from income tax under section 50-1 of the ITAA 1997 as a society, association or club established for the encouragement of a game or sport.