The Next 5,000 private groups tax performance program is a cornerstone of our approach to some of Australia’s wealthiest privately owned groups. It defines our expectations of those groups as taxpayers, and it shows to the wider community that we’re serious about administering the system fairly.
From my point of view, it also demonstrates our commitment to helping those groups and their advisers by providing resources and data-based insights to assist in achieving best-practice tax management and compliance.
I would like to highlight some aspects of the program that are on my radar for the rest of the 2024–25 financial year.
The Next 5,000 going forward
We’ll continue to undertake streamline assurance reviews for groups with more complex structures. We’ll undertake risk reviews on the remaining population. Make sure you understand what these mean for you and what you must do to prepare.
Effective record keeping and tax management
Our streamline assurance reviews show us that even sophisticated groups can sometimes drop the ball when it comes to record keeping and fit-for-purpose tax management procedures. Remember, getting these things right can also help you avoid serious costs.
Here’s one example. A Next 5,000 group couldn’t demonstrate the source of funds loaned to related entities because of poor record keeping. Our review of bank statements found a significant amount of unreported funds, leading to a tax liability of more than $27 million plus additional adviser costs.
Our findings report defines expectations
Our annual Next 5,000 program findings report contains the critical information about the program that can assist you to understand where things can go wrong and how you can avoid these issues. Based on data gained from our assurance and risk reviews, it’s a blueprint for identifying and addressing the issues we’re seeing. The current report is relevant for right now and we'll release our latest report in November.
We’ll keep working with Next 5,000 groups and their advisers and together, in partnership, we’ll achieve our shared goal of getting your tax and super obligations right.
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