Data matching efforts to get a kick-along.
The ATO has announced that it will acquire data from businesses that it visits as part of its employer obligations compliance program during the 2016-17, 2017-18 and 2018-19 financial years.
The data it says will be collected includes:
ABN of the payer businessABN of the payee business (or contractor)the name, address and contact details of the contractordates of payment to the contractor, andamounts paid to the contractors (including details of whether the payment included GST).
These records will be electronically matched with other data holdings to identify con-compliance regarding registration, lodging records, reporting and payment obligations and so on under taxation laws.
The ATO says it is estimated that records for 25,000 entities will be obtained, including the records of 12,500 individuals. It says a document describing the program has been prepared in consultation with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, which can be viewed here.
The ATO says: “Matching external data with our own helps us to ensure that people and businesses comply with their tax and super tax obligations. It also helps us to detect fraud against the Commonwealth.
“We are required to comply with strict laws to protect your privacy when we collect data from other agencies and organisations for our data matching programs. These laws include the Privacy Act 1988, the secrecy provisions of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936, the Taxation Administration Act 1953and other tax laws.
“We also adhere to the Privacy Commissioner’s Guidelines on Data Matching in Australian Government Administration by preparing and publishing a protocol for each of our data matching programs. In broad terms, each protocol explains the purpose of the program, what data is collected, which agencies or organisations will be providing the data and how the data will be used.”
# [ATO], [practice management], [small business], [tax professionals], [tpb]
Comments