This Act has been repealed and is no longer in force. It is retained for historical reference.
Jurisdiction
Commonwealth
Act Number
280 of 1917
Collection
legislative instrument
Plain English Summary
7/10 complexity
What these Regulations do (mechanics first)
Put in place the administrative procedures the Commissioner of Taxation must follow to implement the Income Tax Assessment Act 1915–1916 (they are regulations made under that Act) (preamble).
Prescribe the forms and schedules taxpayers must use (First, Second and Third Forms and detailed Statements) and the information those forms must include (returns by individuals, companies, partnerships, trustees, and agents) (Regs 4–13; Schedule).
Set where and how returns must be lodged, what documents must accompany them (balance-sheets, trading accounts, lists), and when a return is treated as duly furnished (Regs 17–23; Schedule instructions).
Set payment methods (cash, cheque, bank draft, Commonwealth Bank deposit), rules about postage and remittances, and when payment is treated as made (Regs 30–36).
Provide the procedure for objections to assessments (Reg 37 and Third Form), and evidence, service and proof rules used in enforcement and prosecutions (Regs 38–44, 41–43).
Give detailed technical rules used in assessment work (tables for sinking funds, live-stock valuation, officer secrecy declaration, witness expenses) and repeal earlier regulations (Regs 45–49; Schedule).
Who this affects
Taxpayers required to file income-tax returns: individuals (including those with incomes above the thresholds set in the Schedule’s Instructions), companies, partnerships (where partnership income exceeds the threshold), trustees, agents, employers called on to provide pay/allowance information, and absentee-related parties (Regs 6–14; Schedule instructions).
Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation (legislation.gov.au), CC BY 4.0.
The Commissioner of Taxation and delegated officers (Assistant Commissioner, Deputy Commissioners) who receive returns, make annotations, issue notices, accept or reject alternative forms, and prosecute offences (Regs 16, 29, 33, 38–39, 41–44).
Why it matters (stated purpose and practical effects)
Stated purpose: to implement the Act by prescribing the forms, lodgment, payment and evidentiary procedures necessary for assessment and collection (preamble; Regs 4–6, 17, 30–37).
Practical effects, incentives and trade-offs (source-grounded)
Who pays: taxpayers whose incomes meet the filing criteria set out in the Schedule (Instructions) must prepare and sign returns and provide supporting documents; companies must supply audited accounts and lists of resident shareholders (Regs 4–6; Schedule instructions; Reg 6(b)).
Administrative decision-makers: the Commissioner and authorised officers control acceptance of non-prescribed forms (Reg 16), may annotate returns (Reg 29), issue receipts (Reg 33), and their certificates and signatures carry prima facie evidentiary weight (Regs 39–42). That concentrates operational decision-making in the tax office (Regs 16, 29, 39–42).
Compliance burden: the Regulations require detailed schedules, attachments and lists (balance-sheets, profit and loss accounts, lists of shareholders, detailed statements for farming/live-stock, lists for deductions like donations, calls, insurance, repairs, depreciation, bad debts) (Reg 6; Regs 14, 17; Schedule and Statements 1–7; Special Instructions). This raises record-keeping and preparation costs for individuals, businesses, trustees and agents.
Verification and enforcement mechanics: the Regulations make postal remittance and cheque-collection conditions of payment being effective (Regs 31–32), allow service by post to be treated as effective (Reg 43), and make the Commissioner’s or deputy’s certificates primâ facie evidence that a required return was not received (Reg 41). Those rules reduce the evidentiary burden on the Department but create timing and risk considerations for taxpayers (Regs 31–32, 41, 43).
Behavioural effects on firms and intermediaries: companies must report resident shareholders and payments to absentees (Reg 6(b)–(c)); employers can be required to supply lists of employees and payments (Reg 14). Those obligations increase administrative work for firms and create a disclosure flow to the tax office that assists assessment of individual liabilities.
Tightness of procedure vs flexibility: the Commissioner may accept substantially similar forms (Reg 16), but otherwise returns must be in the prescribed forms and signed by the person making them (Regs 4–5). The Regulations therefore standardise reporting but allow limited administrative flexibility (Regs 4–5, 16).
Penalties and procedural traps: the Schedule warns of a 10% penalty for omission or late lodgement (Schedule instructions and form footers). Failure to notify a change of address removes a defensive pleading in proceedings (Reg 28). These provisions increase the practical cost of errors and late filings (Schedule instructions; Reg 28).
Implementation risk and discretionary points
Timing and receipt risks from postal/cheque handling: payments sent by post are not treated as made until received (Reg 31); cheques are not treated as paid until cleared (Reg 32). Taxpayers relying on stamps, mail or banking timing bear the operational risk.
Administrative discretion and evidentiary presumptions favour the Commissioner in enforcement: authorised officers may annotate returns (Reg 29), signatures and certified copies are judicially noticed until proved otherwise (Reg 39–42), and the Commissioner’s certificate is primâ facie evidence of non-lodgment (Reg 41). Those rules lower the court burden to establish certain facts but place on taxpayers the task of disproving them.
Market-liberal lens: effects on private enterprise, choice and transactions (source-based)
Administrative burden on businesses: companies, partnerships and firms supplying employee lists or shareholder lists incur measurable administrative costs (Reg 6(b)–(c); Reg 14). That can affect small businesses more strongly because of fixed compliance costs (Schedule instructions and Statements 5–7).
Accounting and valuation rules drive internal choices: detailed valuation rules for live stock (Reg 46; Statement No.1) and tables for sinking-fund calculations (Reg 45; Tables I & II) create concrete accounting treatments that influence firms’ record-keeping practices and possibly choices about how to present or structure transactions.
Contract and disclosure effects: requirement for lists and disclosure (shareholders, payments to absentees, mortgage interest source rules) increases transparency toward the tax office and may affect how firms structure payments or lending (Reg 6(c); Reg 21; Statement No.7).
Net operational summary (who pays, who decides, what changes behaviour)
Who pays: taxpayers who meet the return thresholds and derive taxable income; companies that must supply audited accounts and shareholder lists (Schedule instructions; Reg 6).
Who decides: Commissioner and delegated officers decide acceptance of forms, require supporting documents, issue receipts and notices, and hold evidentiary prerogatives in enforcement (Regs 16, 29, 33, 38–42).
Behaviour change required: taxpayers must maintain the records and produce the detailed schedules called for (balance-sheets, profit & loss, lists of deductions), companies and employers must disclose participants and payments, and all filers must follow the precise payment and lodgment rules or face penalties (Regs 6, 14, 17, 30–36; Schedule instructions; Reg 28).
Concrete compliance costs, capture and substitution considerations (source-grounded)
Concentrated costs fall on filers and firms required to prepare detailed schedules and lists (Reg 6; Schedule instructions; Statements 5–7).
The Regulations centralise evidentiary and procedural advantage in the Department through primâ facie evidentiary rules and postal-deem rules (Regs 31–32, 39–42). That reduces administrative cost for the Department at the expense of raising procedural risk for taxpayers.
Key citations for main points: Regs 4–6 (forms and who signs), Regs 6(b)–(c) and 17 (company schedules and balance-sheets), Regs 7–13 (partnerships, trustees, agents), Reg 14 (employer statements), Regs 17–23 (lodging, where, and when treated as furnished), Regs 30–36 (payment rules), Regs 37–44 (objections, notices, evidence, prosecutions), Regs 45–49 and Schedule (technical tables, livestock valuation, officer declaration, repeal of prior regulations).