Commonwealth act

Gold Tax Act 1939

RepealedCTH

This Act has been repealed and is no longer in force. It is retained for historical reference.

Jurisdiction

Commonwealth

Act Number

52 of 1939

Collection

act

Plain English Summary

2/10 complexity

This law introduces a windfall tax on gold sales to the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (the government-owned bank) during World War II.

What it does:

If you sell gold to the Commonwealth Bank (or its agents) on or after 15 September 1939, you must pay tax on the "excess" price.
The tax kicks in when the Bank pays more than £9 per ounce of pure gold.
The tax is half of everything above £9. For example, if the Bank pays £13 per ounce, the excess is £4, so you pay £2 tax per ounce.

Who it affects:

Gold miners, prospectors, or anyone delivering gold to the Commonwealth Bank.

Why it matters:

This was designed to prevent excessive profiteering from rising gold prices during the war, capturing "windfall" profits for the government while still allowing sellers to benefit from price increases above £9.

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Current sections

Direct links to the current provisions in Gold Tax Act 1939.

Gold Tax Act 1939

GOLD TAX.

No. 52 of 1939.

An Act to impose a Tax upon Gold.

[Assented to 15th December, 1939.]

BE it enacted by the King’s Most Excellent Majesty, the Senate, and the House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Australia, as follows:—

Short title.

This Act may be cited as the Gold Tax Act 1939.

Commencement.

This Act shall be deemed to have come into operation on the fifteenth day of September, One thousand nine hundred and thirty-nine.

Extension to Territories.

This Act shall extend to the Territories of the Commonwealth.

Incorporation.

The Gold Tax Collection Act 1939 shall be incorporated and read as one with this Act.

Imposition of tax.

A tax is imposed upon gold delivered to the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, or to an agent of that Bank, on or after the fifteenth day of September, One thousand nine hundred and thirty-nine.

Amount of tax.

The amount of tax so imposed shall be one-half of the amount by which the amount payable by the Commonwealth Bank of Australia in respect of gold so delivered exceeds an amount calculated at the rate of Nine pounds for each ounce of fine gold contained in the gold so delivered.

Source text

Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation (legislation.gov.au), CC BY 4.0.

1 Gold Tax Act 1939