Opinion Regarding ATO Tax Debt | Probate WA

Lawyer

ATO Tax Debts-What are my options?

You may receive an assessment from the Australian Taxation Office for the GST, income tax, or administrative penalties with an amount of general interest charge applied to the amount of the tax debt.  If you have received an assessment and not paid the tax debt, the ATO may commence debt collection processes against you.

ATO debt collection

The ATO is aggressively pursuing companies for unpaid tax debts and may take steps to recover tax debts by:

Issuing a garnishee notice to your company’s bankers,

Issuing a director’s penalty notice to each of the directors,

Serving a statutory demand on the company,

Commencing legal proceedings for the amount of the debt,

Making an application to wind up the company.

The directors need to obtain insolvency and liquidation advice and will need to consider whether a repayment plan can be put in place to avoid legal proceedings and winding up.

What can you do about ATO tax debts?

There are several main options for dealing with tax debts which are explained below.

Lodge an objection to an assessment

If you dispute the amount of the tax debt, you can lodge an objection to an assessment for GST or income tax which has been issued to you.  You may also be able to reduce any administrative penalties and have some or all of the general interest charge remitted. 

Enter into a payment arrangement

Depending upon your specific circumstances, the ATO may agree to a payment arrangement to pay off the tax debt over a period of time.  Care should be exercised before providing information to the ATO for a payment arrangement because you may simply be providing the ATO with evidence which supports the winding up of your company.

Apply for a deferment of the payment of your tax obligations

If you are experiencing serious hardship, you may wish to apply for a deferment of the time for payment of a tax debt to give you additional time to pay and to stop the general interest charge from accruing.

Offer the ATO security for the payment of the tax debt

The ATO may in certain circumstances agree to being granted security for the payment of a tax debt.  Such security may include a mortgage over land or a bank guarantee.

Apply for a release from your tax debt

You may apply to the ATO to be released from some or all of your tax debts if paying the debt would cause you serious hardship.  The ATO may release you in whole or in part from paying a tax debt.

Contact us about your ATO debt issues

Our team of experts can provide you with strategic advice and representation for litigation and dispute resolution. 

Call Robson Hayes Legal on (08) 9322 2256 or

Email us at "info@robsonhayes.com.au” to discuss your company’s tax debt issues.

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