No GST on digital currency
The GST Act is being amended to ensure that digital currency, such as Bitcoin, is disregarded for GST purposes unless the supply is made in exchange for a payment of money or digital currency.
To achieve this, a definition of “digital currency” will be inserted into the GST Act. Under the new definition, a digital currency has broadly the same features as legal tender. In particular, the value of a digital currency must derive from the market’s assessment of its value. A digital currency’s value cannot be based on the value of anything else, so it must not have, for example, a value pegged to Australian or United States dollars.
The currency units must be useable as consideration for any type of supply, and must be generally available to the public.
Units will not be considered digital currency if they give the holder benefits (such as memberships or vouchers), other than entitlements incidental to holding the unit or using it as consideration.
When the new definition passes into law, no GST will apply for supplies of digital currency made on or after 1 July 2017.
Until now, GST could be imposed several times on a digital currency.
AcctWeb
Hot Issues
- GST fraudsters to face ‘full force of the law’: ATO
- Social media scams dominate losses in 2024
- Managing your business’s tax debts
- Warning on ATO data matching “lifestyle” assets and your business
- ATO issues alert on guarantee arrangements and Division 7A
- E-Commerce Laws You Must Know To Run An Online Business
- Resources and Tools to help our Clients build their future
- Most Powerful Economies in Europe | 1960-2024
- ATO reveals small business hit list to combat tax debt
- What are the FBT implications of Employee Christmas Parties and Gifts?
- Assess a business before you buy it
- Christmas Parties and Taxi Fare/Rideshare – FBT implications.
- Practitioners cautioned on ATO’s top target areas for GST
- ATO to target growing businesses in latest compliance blitz
- Our SG compliance results are here
- Top 20 Most Watched Christmas Movies ever - pre covid
- A Unique Advent Calendar
- Businesses ghosting the ATO targeted in debt collection blitz
- Claiming the tax-free threshold: getting it right
- Aussies tired of ‘dodgy tax criminals’, warns ATO
- Protect your small business by following these essential steps.
- Super guarantee a focus area for ATO business debt collection
- Controversial ‘Airbnb tax’ set to become law
- Withholding for foreign residents: an ATO focus area
- 1 in 3 crypto owners confused about tax, study reveals
- 20 Years of Silicon Valley Trends: 2004 - 2024 Insights
- ATO reveals common rental property errors from data-matching program
- New SMSF expense rules: what you need to know