Government stewardship
The TPB is committed to fulfilling its role as a steward and a trusted regulator of the tax profession. By upholding the principles of stewardship and trust, the TPB enhances the public’s confidence in the tax profession and system.
The TPB acts as a steward of the tax profession by:
- registering qualified and competent tax practitioners who meet the education, experience and fit and proper requirements.
- setting and enforcing the Code of Professional Conduct, which outlines the obligations and expectations of tax practitioners in relation to their personal and professional conduct, service quality, confidentiality, independence, and conflict of interest.
- providing guidance and education to tax practitioners and the public on the regulatory framework, law reform changes, and best practices for tax services.
- monitoring and investigating the conduct and performance of tax practitioners and taking appropriate disciplinary or remedial actions when necessary.
- collaborating and engaging with stakeholders, including the ATO, professional associations, consumer groups and other regulators, to promote and support the integrity and professionalism of the tax profession and system.
Reforms
Following the government’s announcement in August 2023, the profession, associations, TPB and ATO are faced with a multi-year program of law reforms. These reforms aim to introduce legislation to strengthen the integrity of the tax system and profession, support the effectiveness of regulators and ensure the legislative framework is fit-for-purpose. Specifically, providing the right tools to identify and appropriately discipline those who break the law, including (but not limited to):
- enabling the ATO and TPB to refer ethical misconduct by advisers (including but not limited to confidentiality breaches) to professional associations for disciplinary action
- protecting whistleblowers when they provide the TPB with evidence of tax agent misconduct
- giving the TPB more time, up to 24 months, to complete complex investigations
- improving the TPBs public register of practitioners, so that people have more transparency over agent and firm misconduct.
Recently the Tax Agent Services Act 2009 was updated by Treasury Laws Amendment (2023 Measures No.1) Act 2023, to introduce a number of new measures. This included:
- providing the Minister with the power to expand the Code of Professional Conduct
- new requirements relating to breach reporting and disqualified entities
- moving the registration period for registered tax practitioners from 3 years to one year.
Additional reforms have been introduced to Parliament by the Tax Laws Amendment (Tax Accountability and Fairness) Bill 2023, which if passed, could introduce measures to enhance tax whistle-blower protections and increase transparency of compliance outcomes.