{"id":"C2005A00076","name":"Shortfall Interest Charge (Imposition) Act 2005","slug":"shortfall-interest-charge-imposition-act-2005","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"76 of 2005","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":7866,"registerId":"commonwealth-C2005A00076-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-03-30","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Shortfall Interest Charge (Imposition) Act 2005","content":"---\nmeta-content-style-type: text/css\nmeta-content-type: application/xhtml+xml; charset=utf-8\n---\n\n?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"utf-8\" standalone=\"no\"?>\n\n![](image.001.png)\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nShortfall Interest Charge (Imposition) Act 2005\n\n \n\nNo. 76, 2005\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nAn Act to impose shortfall interest charge as a tax in some circumstances\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nContents\n\n1 Short title\n\n2 Commencement\n\n3 Imposition\n\n \n\n![](image.001.png)\n\n \n\n \n\nShortfall Interest Charge (Imposition) Act 2005\n\nNo. 76, 2005\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nAn Act to impose shortfall interest charge as a tax in some circumstances\n\n[Assented to 29 June 2005]\n\nThe Parliament of Australia enacts:\n\n1  Short title\n\n  This Act may be cited as the Shortfall Interest Charge (Imposition) Act 2005.\n\n2  Commencement\n\n  This Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.\n\n3  Imposition\n\n (1) Shortfall interest charge is imposed as a tax by this section, but only to the extent to which that charge cannot validly be imposed otherwise than as a tax.\n\n (2) In this section:\n\nshortfall interest charge means the charge worked out under Division 280 in Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act 1953.\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\n[Minister’s second reading speech made in—\n\nHouse of Representatives on 17 March 2005\n\nSenate on 12 May 2005]\n\n(46/05)\n\n \n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains tightly scoped to its original purpose: providing a constitutional basis for imposing shortfall interest charge as a tax. It has not expanded beyond this narrow technical function since enactment."},"complexity_factors":["Only 3 sections total","No defined terms beyond a single cross-reference to another Act","No conditional logic, exceptions, or procedural requirements","Single operative provision (section 3) with one straightforward contingency clause ('but only to the extent...')","No amendments, schedules, or regulations referenced"],"plain_english_summary":"This short Act makes the “shortfall interest charge” legally a tax so the government can lawfully charge interest when someone’s tax return or statement later shows they underpaid. It applies to taxpayers who owe more after errors, amendments or audits and serves as a constitutional fallback to preserve the charge’s validity and compensate for the lost time value of money."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Based on the Act text alone, the instrument does not expand or reduce the underlying shortfall interest charge; it simply declares that the charge is to be treated as a tax where it cannot otherwise validly be imposed (s 3(1)–(2)). There is no textual amendment to Division 280 or to other substantive liabilities, so no change of scope from the statutory charge itself is evident within this instrument."},"complexity_factors":["Reliance on external definition: the Act refers to the shortfall interest charge as calculated under Division 280, Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act 1953 (s 3(2)), creating dependence on another statute for substantive content.","Conditional legal characterisation: the imposition applies only “to the extent to which that charge cannot validly be imposed otherwise than as a tax” (s 3(1)), a phrase that invites constitutional or judicial interpretation about when a charge must be treated as a tax.","Narrow, declaratory wording: the Act is very short and does not set procedural details, leaving implementation and enforcement mechanics to tax law and administrators rather than this instrument (s 3).","Potential cross‑instrument effects: treating the charge as a tax alters how collection, remedies, and procedures under tax law apply, introducing indirect complexity through interaction with existing tax administration rules.","Immediate commencement: the Act commences on assent (s 2), so timing and transitional interactions with the Taxation Administration Act may require administrative alignment."],"plain_english_summary":"This Act declares the shortfall interest charge — the amount worked out under Division 280 of Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act 1953 — to be a tax to the extent it cannot validly be imposed otherwise (s 3(1)–(2)). That re‑characterisation means amounts calculated under Division 280 may be collected and treated under Australia’s tax framework when legal form requires it; liable persons are those who owe the shortfall interest under Division 280."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/shortfall-interest-charge-imposition-act-2005","history":"/api/acts/shortfall-interest-charge-imposition-act-2005/history","analysis":"/api/acts/shortfall-interest-charge-imposition-act-2005/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/shortfall-interest-charge-imposition-act-2005/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/shortfall-interest-charge-imposition-act-2005/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/shortfall-interest-charge-imposition-act-2005/documents"}}