Promoter penalty laws are used to deter and take action against the promotion of unlawful tax schemes. The Parliament has recently passed legislative changes to the promoter penalty laws, which operate from 1 July 2024.
These changes include:
- increasing the maximum penalties for advisers and firms who promote unlawful tax schemes from $7.8 million to $780 million
- increasing the time limit for the ATO to bring Federal Court proceedings on promoter penalties from 4 years to 6 years after the conduct occurred
- expanding the scope of schemes to which the laws apply
- changing the definition of when an entity is a ‘promoter’ of a ‘tax exploitation scheme’.
Visit Promoter penalty laws or Law Administration Practice Statement PS LA 2021/1 Application of the promoter penalty laws for more information.
How to report unlawful tax schemes
If you’re offered an unlawful tax scheme, you should reject it and report it to us confidentially by:
- completing the tip-off form on our website or in the ATO app ‘contact us’ section, or
- phoning the tip-off hotline on 1800 060 062.
If you suspect that you’ve already entered into an unlawful tax scheme, contact us to correct your position and mitigate your exposure to interest and penalties.