18Exemption from furnishing returns

18 Exemption from furnishing returns

(1) If the Commissioner is of the opinion that tax will not be payable by an employer, or, if paid, would be refunded, he or she may issue a certificate to that employer exempting him or her from furnishing returns under section 17, and an employer to whom such a certificate is issued may refrain from furnishing returns under that section but shall, unless the contrary is expressed in the certificate, furnish a return relating to each financial year within 21 days after the close of that financial year. (2) A certificate issued under subsection (1) may be either unconditional or subject to such conditions as are prescribed or as the Commissioner thinks fit. (3) The issue of a certificate under subsection (1) does not exempt an employer from the payment of any tax, notwithstanding that it may have the effect of postponing the time for payment of any tax. (4) Where, immediately before the commencing date, there was in force a certificate under subsection 19(1) of the Pay‑roll Tax Assessment Act 1941, the certificate shall, on and after the commencing date, have effect, for the purposes of this Act, as if it had been issued under subsection (1) of this section.