Goods and Services Tax Ruling

GSTR 2006/9A8 - Addendum

Goods and services tax: supplies

• Please note that the PDF version is the authorised version of this ruling.
  View the consolidated version for this notice.

Addendum

This Addendum is a public ruling for the purposes of the Taxation Administration Act 1953. It amends Goods and Services Tax Ruling GSTR 2006/9 to reflect amendments made to the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 in relation to the GST treatment of digital currency.

GSTR 2006/9 is amended as follows:

1. Preamble

Omit the Note; substitute:

[ Note: This is a consolidated version of this document. Refer to the ATO Legal database (ato.gov.au/law) to check its currency and to view the details of all changes.]

2. Paragraph 8

After the last dot point; insert:

•

The Addendum to this Ruling that issued on 12 December 2018 explains the Commissioner's view of the law as it applied from 1 July 2017. You can rely on this Addendum from its date of effect for the purposes of section 357-60 of Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act 1953.

3. Paragraph 32

Omit subparagraph 4 of the quoted text; substitute:

(4)

However, supply does not include:

(i)

a supply of money unless the money is provided as consideration for a supply that is a supply of money or digital currency; or

(ii)

a supply of digital currency unless the digital currency is provided as consideration for a supply that is a supply of digital currency or money.

4. Paragraph 45

Omit the paragraph (excluding footnote 18); substitute:

45. Subsection 9-10(4) provides that a supply does not include a supply of money or digital currency unless the money or digital currency is provided as consideration for a supply that is a supply of money or digital currency.¹⁸

5. Paragraph 46

After the paragraph; insert:

46A. Digital currency is defined by section 195-1 to mean digital units of value that:

(a)

are designed to be fungible; and

(b)

can be provided as consideration for a supply; and

(c)

are generally available to members of the public without any substantial restrictions on their use as consideration; and

(d)

are not denominated in any country's currency; and

(e)

do not have a value that depends on, or is derived from, the value of anything else; and

(f)

do not give an entitlement to receive, or to direct the supply of, a particular thing or things, unless the entitlement is incidental to:

(i)

holding the digital units of value; or

(ii)

using the digital units of value as consideration;

but does not include:

(g)

money; or

(h)

a thing that, if supplied, would be a financial supply for a reason other than being a supply of one or more digital units of value to which paragraphs (a) to (f) apply.

6. Paragraph 67

Omit the paragraph (excluding footnote 24); substitute:

67. In a straight forward commercial transaction, a supply is made to a recipient, who provides consideration in the form of money or digital currency to the supplier. As the payment of money or digital currency in these circumstances is not a supply²⁴, the recipient's payment of money or digital currency is not a supply.

This Addendum applies on and from 1 July 2017.

Commissioner of Taxation
12 December 2018

© AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE FOR THE COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA

You are free to copy, adapt, modify, transmit and distribute this material as you wish (but not in any way that suggests the ATO or the Commonwealth endorses you or any of your services or products).

References

ATO references:
NO 1-G6VX77S