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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)