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Lawyers providing tax advice may have to register to do so
Treasury is seeking feedback on a range of matters relating to tax practitioner registration with the Tax Practitioners Board, including whether lawyers should keep their current exemption from registration with the TPB.
Jerome Doraisamy
Last week (Wednesday, 17 July), the Albanese government released a consultation paper reviewing the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) registration requirements for tax practitioners, focusing on the education, qualification and experience requirements for new entrants and existing practitioners.
The proposals, Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services Stephen Jones said in a statement, reflect the government’s commitment to strengthening regulatory arrangements in the wake of the PwC matter.
The consultation paper explores, among other things, improvements for registration pathways for tax agents, including strengthening company and partnership registration eligibility requirements, reviewing the professional association “recognition” and registration pathways, and broadening the TPB’s ability to accept alternative forms of “relevant experience”.
Also being considered is whether the Tax Agent Services Act 2009 (TASA) should be amended to require legal practitioners who provide tax agent services for a fee or reward to be registered with the TPB.
“Legal practitioners who provide legal services, which includes tax advice, are regulated in their respective state and territory and are generally exempt from registration with the TPB. It is only where that legal service includes preparing, or lodging, a return (or a statement in the nature of a return, such as an income tax return or a business activity statement) that the legal practitioner is required to register with the TPB,” the paper said.
“The 2019 TPB Review considered it was appropriate that the general exemption from TPB registration remain, noting the regulatory overlaps that would otherwise exist. Treasury seeks views on the appropriateness of this exemption continuing and whether legal practitioners should be required to register with the TPB to provide tax agent services for a fee, even if it does not include the preparation or lodgement or a return or a statement in the nature of a return.”
The government will be receiving feedback on the proposals until early August.
Jerome Doraisamy
Jerome Doraisamy is the editor of Lawyers Weekly. A former lawyer, he has worked at Momentum Media as a journalist on Lawyers Weekly since February 2018, and has served as editor since March 2022. He is also the host of all five shows under The Lawyers Weekly Podcast Network, and has overseen the brand's audio medium growth from 4,000 downloads per month to over 60,000 downloads per month, making The Lawyers Weekly Show the most popular industry-specific podcast in Australia. Jerome is also the author of The Wellness Doctrines book series, an admitted solicitor in NSW, and a board director of Minds Count.
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