Fringe Benefits Tax Assessment Act 1986

PART XII - INTERPRETATION  

SECTION 143   REMOTE AREA HOLIDAY TRANSPORT  

143(1)   [Requirements]  

For the purposes of this Act:

(a) the recipients expenditure in relation to an expense payment fringe benefit;

(aa) the recipients property in relation to a property fringe benefit; or

(b) the recipients benefit in relation to a residual fringe benefit;

in relation to an employer, in relation to an employee, in relation to a year of tax shall be taken to be in respect of remote area holiday transport if:

(c) in the case of an expense payment fringe benefit - the recipients expenditure is in respect of the provision of transport, or meals or accommodation in connection with transport;

(ca) in the case of a property benefit - the recipients property consists of meals in connection with transport;

(d) in the case of a residual fringe benefit - the recipients benefit consists of:

(i) the provision of transport or accommodation in connection with transport; or

(ii) the receipt of an allowance in respect of the cost of obtaining transport, or of obtaining meals or accommodation in connection with transport;

(e) the transport, accommodation or meals is for a family member;

(f) apart from temporary absences, the employee performs the duties of his or her employment at a place in a State or internal Territory but not at a location in, or adjacent to, an eligible urban area;

(g) the transport is provided wholly or principally to enable the family member to have a holiday for a period of not less than 3 days;

(h) if the transport is for the employee:

(i) the transport is provided while the employee is on recreation leave, being recreation leave of not less than 3 working days; and

(ii) at the completion of that recreation leave, the employee resumes the duties of that employment at the place referred to in paragraph (f);

(j) either of the following subparagraphs applies:

(i) the transport is between:

(A) a place at or near the place referred to in paragraph (f); and

(B) another place;

(ii) the transport is for the spouse, or a child, of the employee, being a spouse or a child of the employee who does not live with the employee at or near the place referred to in paragraph (f), and the transport is between:

(A) a place where the spouse or child, as the case may be, meets the employee; and

(B) another place;

(ja) if the transport is for the spouse, or a child, of the employee - the transport is not provided to enable the spouse or child to accompany the employee:

(i) while the employee is undertaking travel in the course of performing the duties of his or her employment; and

(ii) where the circumstances referred to in subsection 26-30(2) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 do not apply; and

(k) either of the following conditions is satisfied:

(i) the benefit is provided pursuant to the provisions of an industrial instrument relating to the employment of the employee;

(ii) it is customary for employers in the industry in which the employee is employed to provide benefits of the same kind as the benefit provided to the recipient and to provide such benefits in similar circumstances to those that applied in relation to the provision of the benefit to the recipient.

143(2)   [Benefits treated as remote area holiday transport fringe benefit]  

For the purposes of this Act, where:

(a) the recipients expenditure in relation to an expense payment fringe benefit;

(b) the recipients property in relation to a property fringe benefit; or

(c) the recipients benefit in relation to a residual fringe benefit;

is in respect of remote area holiday transport, the fringe benefit shall be taken to be a remote area holiday transport fringe benefit.

143(3)   [Determining benchmark travel amount]  

Where:

(a) one or more remote area holiday transport fringe benefits in relation to a particular employee in relation to a year of tax relate to a holiday for a particular family member; and

(b) the transport to which that fringe benefit or those fringe benefits relates does not consist wholly of transport, by the most direct practicable route, between:

(i) a place at or near the place referred to in paragraph (1)(f); and

(ii) a place in a State or internal Territory, being:

(A) a place at or near the place that was the employee's usual place of residence immediately before the employee began employment at the place referred to in paragraph (1)(f); or

(B) the capital city of the State or Territory in which the place referred to in paragraph (1)(f) is located;

the benchmark travel amount in relation to that fringe benefit or those fringe benefits in relation to that holiday for that family member is:

(c) if either of the following subparagraphs apply:

(i) the employee was entitled to be provided with capital city holiday transport assistance pursuant to the provisions of an industrial instrument relating to the employment of the employee;

(ii) there was a custom in the industry in which the employee was employed such that the employee could have been provided with capital city holiday transport assistance by the employer;

the sum of:

(iii) the return economy air fare in respect of the air service, or the total of the return economy air fares in respect of the air services, to which that capital city holiday transport assistance relates; and

(iv) the expenses that could reasonably be expected to have been incurred in respect of the family member (whether by way of airport transfer, meals, accommodation, accident insurance, airport or departure tax, passenger movement charge, or any similar matter or thing) in accordance with the entitlement or custom to which that capital city holiday transport assistance relates and in connection with travelling on that return service or those return services;

(d) if paragraph (c) does not apply but the following conditions are satisfied in respect of one or more return scheduled passenger air services:

(A) the service was operated, at or about the time the holiday commenced, between eligible places;

(B) the nature of the service is such that it would not be unreasonable for the family member to travel on the service;

the lowest of the return economy air fares for those services;

(e) if neither paragraph (c) nor (d) applies but the following conditions are satisfied in respect of one or more combinations of return scheduled passenger air services:

(A) the combination was operated at or about the time the holiday commenced and would have enabled a person to travel between eligible places;

(B) the nature of the combination, and of the services in the combination, is such that it would not be unreasonable for the family member to travel on the services;

the total of the return economy air fares for the combination that has the lowest total of economy return air fares; or

(f) in any other case - an amount equal to the lowest return fare, or combination of return fares, in respect of travel services in respect of which the following conditions are satisfied:

(A) the service, or combination of services, was operated at or about the time the holiday commenced and would have enabled a person to travel between eligible places;

(B) the nature of the service, or the nature of the combination and of the services included in the combination, is such that it would not be unreasonable for the family member to travel on the service or services.

143(4)   [Application]  

For the purposes of the application of this section in relation to a benefit provided in respect of the employment of an employee:

(a) a reference in this section to travel, or to the operation of a service or services, between eligible places is a reference to travel, or the operation of a service or services, between:

(i) a place at or near the place referred to in paragraph (1)(f); and

(ii) the capital city of the State or Territory in which the place referred to in paragraph (1)(f) is located;

(b) a reference in this section to the provision of capital city holiday transport assistance to the employee is a reference to:

(i) the making of payments in discharge or reimbursement of expenditure incurred by a person in respect of a return scheduled passenger air service or combination of return scheduled passenger air services operated by a carrier or carriers between eligible places; or

(ii) the provision of transport on such a service or services;

(c) Adelaide shall be treated as the capital city of the Northern Territory; and

(d) Perth shall be treated as the capital city of the Territory of Christmas Island and the Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands.