Motor vehicle data matching program extended by ATO
The ATO has extended the motor vehicles data matching program to include the 2022-23 to 2024-25 financial years. This program has been running for 19 years in various iterations and was developed as a way to assess the overall tax compliance of individuals and businesses involved in buying and selling motor vehicles. Information from all eight of the State and Territory motor registries will be obtained by the ATO where a vehicle was transferred or newly registered during applicable financial years where the purchase price or market value is equal to or greater than $10,000.
Data to be obtained
It is estimated that records relating to approximately 1.5 million individuals will be obtained each financial year.
The data obtained will consist of:
- identification details – names, addresses, phone numbers, date of birth, ABN, ACN, whether the seller is a licenced dealer, fleet manager, or leasing company (or representative), and the registering person for an unincorporated body.
- transaction details – date of transaction, type of transaction, sale price of vehicle, market value of vehicle, vehicle garage address, type of intended vehicle use, vehicle make/model/body type/year of manufacture, engine capacity, tare weight, gross weight, VIN, registration number, transaction receipt number, stamp duty exemption and reason, dealer licence number (if applicable).
Use of data
While the program is being used to obtain intelligence about taxpayers that buy and sell motor vehicles to identify risks and trends of non-compliance with various tax and superannuation obligations, the ATO will also be using the data obtained as an indicator of risk.
For example, the data, along with other data holdings will be used to identify taxpayers who have purchased vehicles with values that do not align with the income they have reported. In addition, the data will also be used to identify cases for investigation where interposed proxy ownership through other taxpayers such as sellers, licenced dealers, fleet managers, leasing companies or representatives of these taxpayers is used to conceal the real accumulation of wealth.
Other uses of the data will include the identification of taxpayers who may have not met their obligations in terms of GST, FBT, luxury car tax, fuel schemes and income tax.
According to the ATO, the data is also used in conjunction with other data sources in its risk detection models and profiling tools to generate compliance activities. In cases where taxpayers identified from the data matching program fail to meet their obligations such as tax, superannuation, FBT, GST, etc. even after being prompted and reminded, referrals to relevant areas for appropriate treatment and escalation for prosecution action may be initiated in some circumstances.
Retention of data
The collection of data under the previous motor vehicles program for the 2016-17 to 2018-19 financial years was conducted between May 2018 and January 2020, and an exemption was granted by the Privacy Commissioner to retain that data for 3 years.
The data to be obtained in the current program (i.e. the 2022-23 to 2024-25 financial years) will be retained for 5 years from the receipt of the final instalment and used in multiple risk models, including models that establish retrospective profiles over multiple years.
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Disclaimer: The information on this page is for general information purposes only and is not specific to any particular person or situation. There are many factors that may affect your particular circumstances. We advise that you contact Mathews Tax Lawyers before making any decisions.