A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) (Attribution Rules – Supplies and Acquisitions Relating to Collecting Societies) Determination 2025

The central legal concept is the attribution rule for GST and input tax credits. Under the GST Act, the general rule in Division 29 is that GST on a taxable supply is attributable to the tax period in which an invoice is issued or consideration is received (whichever is earlier), and for creditable acquisitions input tax credits are attributable to the period in which an invoice is issued or consideration is provided. This determination displaces those general rules for the specific transactions it covers.

The determination relies on definitions from the Copyright Act 1968 and the Copyright Regulations 2017. A collecting society has the meaning given by section 10 of the Copyright Act 1968. That provision defines a collecting society as a society or organisation that has as its principal object the administration of copyright and that is declared by the regulations to be a collecting society. Examples include APRA AMCOS, PPCA, and CAL. A copyright owner means the owner of a copyright under the Copyright Act 1968. Equitable remuneration has the meaning given by section 4 of the Copyright Regulations 2017, which defines it as remuneration payable under the Copyright Act in respect of the use of copyright material where the amount is not fixed by agreement (for example, for the playing of sound recordings in public). A remuneration notice has the meaning given by section 10 of the Copyright Act 1968, which is a notice given by a person to a collecting society authorising the society to collect equitable remuneration on the person’s behalf.

A key concept is the trigger “becomes aware”. For every attribution rule in the determination, the operative moment is when the relevant entity (the collecting society or the copyright owner) becomes aware of a particular event: for the collecting society, awareness that the owner is entitled to a distribution; for the copyright owner, awareness of receipt or provision of consideration, or of invoice issuance. This is a subjective test in the sense that it depends on the knowledge of the entity, but it is not mere constructive knowledge - it is actual awareness. The determination does not define “aware”, so the ordinary meaning applies.

Another central concept is the distinction between cash and non-cash basis accounting. Under the GST Act, entities account for GST on either a cash basis (attribution when cash is received or paid) or a non-cash basis (attribution when invoice issued or consideration received, whichever earlier). The determination preserves that distinction for copyright owners but overrides the general timing for each basis. For collecting societies, section 6 does not distinguish between cash and non-cash basis; the attribution rule is uniform.

The determination also deals with consideration in a specific context. For the collecting society’s supply, the consideration is the payment for administrative costs, which is withheld from the equitable remuneration collected. The society does not receive separate cash from the copyright owner; it simply retains a portion. The determination treats that withholding as a taxable supply, and the GST on that supply is attributed when the society becomes aware the owner is entitled to a distribution. That is a departure from the general rule that GST on a supply with non-cash consideration might be attributed differently.

Finally, the determination operates by force of subsection 29-25(1) of the GST Act. That subsection provides that the Commissioner may determine, by legislative instrument, that GST or input tax credits on particular supplies or acquisitions are attributable to a particular tax period. Such a determination has effect despite anything in Division 29. Therefore these attribution rules prevail over the standard rules in sections 29-5, 29-10, and 29-20 of the GST Act for the transactions they cover.

The determination directly affects two categories of entities: collecting societies and copyright owners. A collecting society is an entity defined by reference to section 10 of the Copyright Act 1968. This includes organisations such as the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA), the Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS), the Phonographic Performance Company of Australia (PPCA), and Copyright Agency Limited (CAL). These societies administer copyright licences, collect equitable remuneration on behalf of copyright owners, and typically deduct administrative costs from the amounts collected before distributing the balance.

Copyright owners are individuals or entities that own a copyright under the Copyright Act 1968. This includes songwriters, composers, publishers, performers, record labels, authors, visual artists, and any other rights holders who receive equitable remuneration through a collecting society. The determination applies only to copyright owners who have given a remuneration notice to a collecting society authorising the society to collect amounts on their behalf.

The determination does not affect other taxpayers generally. It does not apply to supplies or acquisitions that do not involve a collecting society and a copyright owner in the context of equitable remuneration. For example, a collecting society’s supplies to end-users (such as licensees) are not covered; those supplies remain subject to the general attribution rules in Division 29. Similarly, a copyright owner’s direct licences to users that do not involve a collecting society are not affected.

The determination also affects the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) in its administration of the GST Act, because it changes the timing of when GST must be remitted or input tax credits claimed for these transactions. Tax practitioners and accountants who advise collecting societies and copyright owners will need to be familiar with these rules to ensure correct reporting.

Indirectly, the determination affects the flow of funds. Because the attribution rule for the collecting society’s GST on administrative costs is tied to the time it becomes aware the owner is entitled to a distribution, the society may need to account for GST on those costs before it actually withholds the full amount if it becomes aware of the entitlement earlier. That could affect the society’s cash flow and reporting.

The determination also repeals the 2015 determination, so all collecting societies and copyright owners who were subject to the old rules are now affected by the new rules from the commencement date. There is no grandfathering or transitional provision in the instrument; the new rules apply to supplies and acquisitions made after commencement. For transactions that straddle the commencement date, the general law of attribution for GST would need to be considered.

The instrument does not explicitly exclude other categories of taxpayers such as charities or government entities that might also be collecting societies or copyright owners; if such an entity meets the definitions, it is caught by the determination.

The determination imposes duties on collecting societies and copyright owners regarding when they must attribute GST and input tax credits. It does not create new obligations to register for GST or to charge GST; those duties arise under the GST Act itself. The determination only modifies timing.

For a collecting society, the duty is to attribute the GST on its taxable supply of administrative services to the copyright owner to the tax period in which the society becomes aware that the owner is entitled to a distribution of an amount of equitable remuneration. This trigger will typically occur when the society calculates entitlements and decides that a copyright owner should receive a payment. The society must then include that GST on its activity statement for that period, even if it has not yet actually withheld or received the administrative fee. The society has a right to rely on the remuneration notice to determine that the owner is entitled to a distribution.

For a copyright owner, the duty depends on accounting method. If the owner accounts on a non-cash basis, they must attribute GST on their taxable supply (the supply of copyright rights for which equitable remuneration is payable) to the earlier of: the tax period in which they become aware that any consideration has been received for the supply, and the tax period in which they become aware that an invoice relating to the supply has been issued. In practice, this means the copyright owner must monitor when they receive distribution statements from the collecting society and when they receive invoices (if any) from the society. The owner must then attribute GST to the earlier of those events. Importantly, the trigger is awareness of “any consideration” - notjust the net amount after deductions. The gross consideration is relevant for the GST calculation.

If the copyright owner accounts on a cash basis, the duty is simpler but more limited: GST is attributable only to the tax period in which the owner becomes aware that any consideration has been received, and only to the extent of the consideration received. If the owner receives a partial distribution, only the partial GST is attributed.

For input tax credits, the copyright owner has a right to claim an input tax credit for the creditable acquisition of administrative services from the collecting society. The attribution rule in section 8 parallels the GST attribution rule in section 7. For non-cash basis owners, the input tax credit is attributable to the earlier of awareness of consideration provided and awareness of invoice issued. For cash basis owners, it is attributable to the period of awareness of consideration provided, to the extent provided.

The copyright owner has a duty to ensure they have a valid tax invoice from the collecting society to support the input tax credit, as required by the GST Act generally. The determination does not waive that requirement.

The collecting society has a corresponding right to issue invoices for its administrative fees, which will trigger the wareness for non-cash basis copyright owners for both GST and input tax credits.

The determination itself does not create penalty provisions. Penalties for non-compliance arise under the Taxation Administration Act 1953 (Cth). If a collecting society or copyright owner attributes GST or input tax credits to the wrong tax period, they may have lodged an incorrect activity statement. This can result in a shortfall amount, and the Commissioner may impose an administrative penalty under section 284-75 of Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act 1953. The penalty can be up to 75% of the shortfall amount where the shortfall is caused by intentional disregard, or 25% to 50% where it results from recklessness or failure to take reasonable care.

In addition, if a taxpayer attributes a GST amount to a later period than required, they will have underpaid GST for that later period and overpaid for an earlier period. The Commissioner may also charge the general interest charge for the period of underpayment. Conversely, if an input tax credit is attributed too early, the taxpayer may have received an excess credit, and the Commissioner can recover that plus interest.

The Commissioner has the power to amend assessments within the ordinary amendment periods (generally 3 or 4 years, or longer in cases of fraud or evasion). Because the attribution rules depend on the subjective “becomes aware” test, disputes may arise about when a taxpayer first became aware of a relevant fact. The onus is on the taxpayer to produce evidence of awareness, such as internal records, emails, board papers, or other documentation.

Taxpayers should be aware that using the default attribution rules in Division 29 of the GST Act instead of the determination’s rules would be a misapplication of the law, potentially attracting penalties. The determination has effect despite anything in Division 29, so the old default rules do not apply.

The repeal of the 2015 determination by Schedule 1 means that any returns that relied on the 2015 determination for periods before the commencement of this determination are unaffected; they were correct under the old law. However, transactions occurring after commencement must use the new rules. If a taxpayer mistakenly continues to apply the old 2015 determination rules after commencement, they will have incorrectly attributed GST or input tax credits.

The determination is made under subsection 29-25(1) of the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999. That subsection gives the Commissioner power to specify attribution rules for particular supplies or acquisitions. The determination interacts with the GST Act primarily by displacing the default attribution rules in Division 29 (sections 29-5, 29-10, 29-20, and 29-25) for the specified transactions. It does not affect other provisions of the GST Act, such as those dealing with registration, taxable supplies, creditable acquisitions, or input tax credits. The general law of those concepts continues unchanged.

The determination also interacts with the Copyright Act 1968, from which it draws its definitions of “collecting society”, “copyright owner”, and “remuneration notice”. Those definitions are imported directly. The determination also references the Copyright Regulations 2017 for the definition of “equitable remuneration”. Any amendment to those definitions in the Copyright legislation will automatically affect the meaning of those terms in the determination, unless the determination is updated.

The determination interacts with the general law of administrative law. As a legislative instrument made by a Deputy Commissioner of Taxation, it is subject to disallowance by Parliament and to judicial review under the Administrative Decisions (Judicial Review) Act 1977. However, it is made under a specific statutory power and would only be invalid if it exceeds that power or is impermissibly inconsistent with the GST Act.

The determination also interacts with the earlier 2015 determination by repealing it. The 2015 determination had provided attribution rules for the same types of transactions. That instrument is now revoked, and taxpayers must apply this determination from its commencement. The interaction is one of replacement, not concurrent application.

Practitioners should also consider the interaction with the general law of agency and copyright licensing. The determination assumes that a collecting society makes a taxable supply of administrative services to a copyright owner. That characterisation is consistent with the general law: the society acts as agent for the owner in collecting equitable remuneration, and deducts fees for its services. The GST implications of that agency relationship are set out in the determination.

Finally, the determination may interact with state and territory taxes, but indirectly. Since GST is a Commonwealth tax, state payroll tax or land tax are not directly impacted. However, the timing of attribution can affect the net income of a copyright owner or collecting society, which may in turn affect other tax liabilities such as income tax. That interaction is not addressed in the determination.

This determination was made on 29 August 2025 by Ben Kelly, Deputy Commissioner of Taxation. It is a single instrument that has not been amended since its making. The instrument provides a table in section 2 showing that the whole of the instrument commences the day after it is registered on the Federal Register of Legislation. The table notes that it will not be amended to deal with later amendments.

The principal amendment history is that this determination repeals and replaces the earlier instrument: Goods and Services Tax: Particular Attribution Rules for supplies and acquisitions relating to the operation of a Collecting Society under the Copyright Act Determination (No. 34) 2015. That 2015 determination is repealed in its entirety by Schedule 1. The 2015 determination had provided similar but not identical attribution rules for collecting societies and copyright owners. The current determination updates the rules, but the instrument does not contain a comparison table or explanatory memorandum that identifies the changes.

There is no indication that this determination has been amended since its making. It is the sole version currently in force.

The determination itself has not been the subject of any litigation, as it is current and likely not yet tested. The source document does not mention any court or tribunal decisions. However, the predecessor instrument (the 2015 determination) may have been considered in GST litigation, but the source does not refer to any such cases. It is important to note that subsection 29-25(1) determinations are legislative instruments and can be challenged on grounds such as procedural error, lack of power, or inconsistency with the enabling act. For example, a taxpayer could argue that the determination is beyond the Commissioner’s power because it does not relate to “particular” supplies or acquisitions as required by the subsection, or that it is unreasonable. The source does not provide any litigation history.

Given the lack of references in the source, it would be speculation to discuss specific cases. The user requires grounding in the source, so the analysis must note that no litigation is mentioned. The deep dive can note that the determination is new and that the ATO may issue further guidance about its interpretation, which could lead to disputes with taxpayers over the meaning of “becomes aware” or the scope of “equitable remuneration”.

Several nuances in the determination may catch out practitioners.

First, the “becomes aware” trigger is subjective and not defined. A collecting society must determine when it first becomes aware that a copyright owner is entitled to a distribution. This may not coincide with when the society issues a distribution statement or processes the payment. If the society’s internal awareness occurs earlier than formal notification, the GST attribution date could be earlier than expected. Failure to document awareness could lead to disputes with the ATO.

Second, the attribution rules for the copyright owner operate asymmetrically. For GST, the copyright owner must attribute the GST on the supply of copyright rights. But that supply is effectively made to users via the collecting society. The consideration for that supply is the equitable remuneration collected. However, the copyright owner may become aware of receipt only when the society provides a statement showing the gross amount collected (before deductions). The determination does not clarify whether “consideration received” means the gross amount collected by the society or net amount after society fees. The word “any consideration” suggests any amount attributable to that supply, which would be the gross amount. That nuance could cause confusion.

Third, the input tax credit attribution for the copyright owner in section 8 uses “consideration provided” - the owner provides consideration for the administrative services by allowing the society to withhold fees. The owner may be unaware of the exact amount of fees until the society reports them. If the owner uses a non-cash basis, awareness of consideration provided may occur when the society issues an invoice for the admin fees, which might be after the withholding. That timing difference could lead to mismatched attribution between the GST on the administrative supply (which the society attributes based on its own awareness) and the input tax credit (which the copyright owner attributes later). Practitioners should advise clients to align awareness triggers.

Fourth, the determination applies only where a remuneration notice is given. If a copyright owner does not give a proper remuneration notice, the default attribution rules apply instead. The instrument does not define what constitutes a valid remuneration notice; that is left to the Copyright Act.

Fifth, the repeal of the 2015 determination may create transitional issues. The new determination commences the day after registration. For supplies made or acquisitions made before that date, the 2015 determination continues to apply. For supplies straddling the commencement, the general law of attribution (s 29-25 and the transitional rules in the GST Act) would apply, but there is no special rule in this instrument. Taxpayers may need to split supplies or use an apportionment approach.

Sixth, the determination does not address the situation where the collecting society itself is the copyright owner (for example, a society that owns some copyrights). In that case, the society would be both a collecting society and a copyright owner for different supplies. Determining which role applies for a particular supply may be complex.

Compliance with this determination requires systematic changes to record-keeping and GST reporting for collecting societies and copyright owners.

For collecting societies, the first step is to identify all instances where the society makes a taxable supply of administrative services to a copyright owner and where a remuneration notice exists. The society must then track when it becomes aware that the copyright owner is entitled to a distribution of equitable remuneration. This awareness should be documented in internal systems. For example, when the society’s accounting system calculates the owner’s share of collected amounts and generates a payment advice, that moment likely qualifies as becoming aware. The society should attribute the GST on the administrative fees (the payment for the supply) to that tax period. The society should ensure its GST return for that period includes that amount. Because the consideration is withheld, the society does not actually receive cash, but GST output must still be accounted for. The society should also issue a tax invoice or recipient created tax invoice to the copyright owner for the administrative fees, as that will help the owner claim input tax credits.

For copyright owners, compliance depends on their accounting method. If a copyright owner accounts on a non-cash basis, they must monitor two events: receipt of consideration (or awareness thereof) and receipt of an invoice (or awareness thereof). The earlier of these two triggers attribution for both GST on the copyright supply and input tax credits on the acquisition of admin services. The copyright owner should maintain a schedule of distribution statements and invoices received from the collecting society. Upon receiving a distribution statement showing gross equitable remuneration, the owner becomes aware of consideration received; at that point the GST on the gross amount should be attributed (unless an invoice was issued and received earlier). Upon receiving an invoice from the society for admin fees, the owner becomes aware of consideration provided for the acquisition; the input tax credit is attributed at that point (or when first aware of providing consideration). The owner should ensure that the GST on the copyright supply and the input tax credit on acquisition are reported in the correct tax periods, which may differ from each other.

For cash-basis copyright owners, the rule is simpler: both GST and input tax credits are attributed only in the period when actual consideration is received or provided. But the trigger is awareness, not physical receipt. For example, if the society pays the net amount into the owner’s bank account, the owner becomes aware when they check their bank statement or receive a notification. The owner should record the date of awareness for each distribution. For input tax credits, the owner becomes aware of providing consideration when the society withholds fees; if the society notifies the owner of the withholding, that notification triggers awareness. The owner should claim the input tax credit only in that period, to the extent of the consideration provided.

In all cases, taxpayers should keep records that demonstrate the date and manner in which they became aware of the relevant events. This includes copies of communications from the collecting society, internal notes, diary entries, or automated system logs. The ATO may request this evidence during an audit.

It is also advisable to review existing GST returns under the 2015 determination to ensure that the transition to the new determination is handled correctly. For supplies straddling the commencement date, professional advice should be sought. The ATO may publish a small business guide or interpretative decision, and practitioners should monitor those.