{"id":"C2007A00144","name":"Taxation (Trustee Beneficiary Non-disclosure Tax) Act (No. 1) 2007","slug":"taxation-trustee-beneficiary-non-disclosure-tax-act-no-1-2007","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"144 of 2007","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":40246,"registerId":"commonwealth-C2007A00144-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-01","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Short title","content":"#### 1 Short title\n\n This Act may be cited as the Taxation (Trustee Beneficiary Non‑disclosure Tax) Act (No. 1) 2007.","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"2","sectionType":"section","heading":"Commencement","content":"#### 2 Commencement\n\n (1) Each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms.\n\n```html\n

Commencement information

Column 1

Column 2

Column 3

Provision(s)

Commencement

Date/Details

1. Sections 1 and 2 and anything in this Act not elsewhere covered by this table

The day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent.

24 September 2007

2. Sections 3 and 4

At the same time as Schedule 4 to the Tax Laws Amendment (2007 Measures No. 4) Act 2007 commences.

24 September 2007

\n```\n\n> Note: This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally passed by both Houses of the Parliament and assented to. It will not be expanded to deal with provisions inserted in this Act after assent.\n\n (2) Column 3 of the table contains additional information that is not part of this Act. Information in this column may be added to or edited in any published version of this Act.","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"3","sectionType":"section","heading":"Imposition of trustee beneficiary non‑disclosure tax","content":"#### 3 Imposition of trustee beneficiary non‑disclosure tax\n\n Tax payable under paragraph 102UK(2)(a) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 is imposed on the amount mentioned in that paragraph.","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"4","sectionType":"section","heading":"Rate of trustee beneficiary non‑disclosure tax","content":"#### 4 Rate of trustee beneficiary non‑disclosure tax\n\n The rate of tax imposed by this Act on the share of the net income is 47%.","sortOrder":3},{"sectionNumber":"5","sectionType":"section","heading":"Temporary budget repair levy","content":"#### 5 Temporary budget repair levy\n\n (1) This section applies to the temporary budget repair levy years.\n (2) Increase the rate of tax mentioned in section 4 by 2 percentage points.\n (3) In this section:\n\n> temporary budget repair levy year means a year of income corresponding to a temporary budget repair levy year (within the meaning of section 4‑11 of the Income Tax (Transitional Provisions) Act 1997).","sortOrder":4}],"analysis":{"summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act remains narrowly focused on its original purpose: imposing a penalty tax at a fixed rate on trustees who fail to meet trustee beneficiary disclosure obligations. The temporary budget repair levy in section 5 represents a minor, time-limited rate adjustment consistent with a broader cross-legislation budget measure, not a change in underlying scope."},"complexity_factors":["Requires knowledge of the broader trustee beneficiary disclosure regime in the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 (specifically section 102UK) to fully understand when this tax is triggered","The Act is largely a shell that depends on definitions and triggering conditions in other legislation","The temporary budget repair levy adds a time-limited rate variation that requires cross-referencing the Income Tax (Transitional Provisions) Act 1997","The concept of 'trustee beneficiary' arrangements and trust chains is inherently complex for non-specialists","Short and simple on its face, but the real complexity is hidden in the linked legislation"],"plain_english_summary":"This Act levies a punitive non‑disclosure tax on trustees who fail to lodge required disclosures about distributions to trustee beneficiaries, targeting trustees in layered trust structures (common in family and business groups). The default penalty rate is 47% of the relevant share of trust net income (49% during the 2014–15 to 2016–17 budget repair levy years). It’s designed to deter using trust chains to hide ultimate recipients and avoid tax."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act, as drafted, imposes a specified tax rate on amounts identified by the external paragraph 102UK(2)(a) and creates a temporary 2 percentage point uplift for specified years. There are no provisions in the text that expand or narrow that taxable base beyond the cross‑references; commencement information confirms it applies as originally passed (s 2)."},"complexity_factors":["Very short, single‑purpose Act with few standalone provisions (ss 1–5).","Direct cross‑reference to paragraph 102UK(2)(a) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 — the taxable trigger and base are defined outside this Act (s 3).","Fixed statutory rate simplifies calculation but requires locating the relevant share of net income in the cross‑referenced provision (s 4).","Temporary increase depends on the definition of a 'temporary budget repair levy year' in the Income Tax (Transitional Provisions) Act 1997 (s 5), adding temporal complexity.","Commencement table stages operation and notes that the table covers only original provisions, so practical effect depends on related commencement events (s 2).","No administrative, enforcement or definitional detail in this Act — compliance and application depend on reading the linked Acts (ss 3, 5)."],"plain_english_summary":"This Act imposes a tax on amounts identified by paragraph 102UK(2)(a) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 where trustee–beneficiary information is not disclosed; the base rate is 47% (ss 3–4). For income years designated as temporary budget repair levy years it increases the rate by 2 percentage points (s 5). It principally affects trustees and beneficiaries captured by the cross‑referenced provision and requires checking those external provisions to know when the tax applies and what must be disclosed."},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This legislation remains tightly focused on its original purpose: imposing a specific penalty tax rate for non-disclosure of trustee beneficiary information. It has not expanded beyond this narrow technical function since enactment."},"complexity_factors":["Only 5 operative sections, with 2 being purely mechanical (short title and commencement)","No definitions section — relies entirely on external references to the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 and Income Tax (Transitional Provisions) Act 1997","Simple conditional logic: only Section 5 adds a temporary rate increase tied to an external trigger","No nested exceptions or complex computational rules","Cross-references are minimal and straightforward (single paragraph reference to ITAA 1936, single section reference to transitional provisions)"],"plain_english_summary":"This law creates a special penalty tax that hits people who try to hide trust income from the tax office.\n\n**What it does:**\n- **Imposes a 47% tax** (roughly the top personal income tax rate) on certain trust distributions when trustees fail to properly disclose who ultimately receives the money.\n- **Acts as a penalty mechanism** — normally, trust income flows through to beneficiaries who pay tax at their own rates. But if trustees don't tell the ATO who the real beneficiaries are, this tax kicks in at the maximum rate instead.\n- **Includes a temporary top-up** — during \"temporary budget repair levy years\" (a period when the government added extra tax on high incomes), the rate jumps to 49%.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- **Trustees of trusts** — particularly those who make distributions to other trusts (known as \"trustee beneficiaries\") without proper disclosure.\n- **Beneficiaries** who might otherwise receive income more tax-efficiently — this law removes that benefit if disclosure rules aren't followed.\n\n**Why it matters:**\nTrusts are commonly used in Australia to split income among family members or hold business assets. This law is an **anti-avoidance weapon** — it forces transparency about who really benefits from trust income. Without it, trustees could obscure the trail of money, letting ultimate beneficiaries pay less tax than they should. The 47% rate ensures there's no tax advantage to hiding the money."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/taxation-trustee-beneficiary-non-disclosure-tax-act-no-1-2007","history":"/api/acts/taxation-trustee-beneficiary-non-disclosure-tax-act-no-1-2007/history","analysis":"/api/acts/taxation-trustee-beneficiary-non-disclosure-tax-act-no-1-2007/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/taxation-trustee-beneficiary-non-disclosure-tax-act-no-1-2007/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/taxation-trustee-beneficiary-non-disclosure-tax-act-no-1-2007/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/taxation-trustee-beneficiary-non-disclosure-tax-act-no-1-2007/documents"}}