Goods and Services Tax (GST):

Generally, the Goods and Services Tax (commonly referred to as the GST) is a sales or consumption tax levied at a flat rate of 10% on many of the transactions involving goods and services in Australia. The GST is not a sales tax; rather the GST is a ‘value added tax’, meaning the tax is refunded to the parties who are involved in the production chain of an item, with the end customer actually paying the tax.

The goods and services tax was introduced by the Howard Government and commenced on the 1^st of July 2000. The GST replaced the Federal wholesale sales tax system and was originally designed with the purpose in mind to reduce the number of State and Territory government taxes such as stamp duty and bank taxes.

Many business owners and operators still do not have a working knowledge of how the GST affects them even though the GST has been in operation for over ten years. Many small business operators commit GST related mistakes and in some cases offences due to their lack of understanding of the GST law. Since the commencement of the GST, GST related offences have contributed to a significant amount of the total taxation offences committed by businesses in Australia. Although some of the GST related offences are quite serious, the majority of GST related offences committed by business surround basis GST requirements such as proper record and account keeping, issues arising from the lodgement of Business Activity Statements (BAS) and registration for GST purposes.

Many of the GST related offences that are committed in Australia could be easily prevented by obtaining tax legal advice from an experienced tax lawyer. Navado Lawyers and Solicitors have a number of experienced tax lawyers that form part of our tax legal advice and litigation team. Our GST lawyers can assist you with understanding your GST obligations and help you to understand the law and how it affects you as a business owner or operator.

If you need help in understanding your GST obligations, or simply wish to ask a question of one of our GST lawyers or tax lawyers, you can contact our firm and arrange a consultation by calling us on (02) 9233 4048 or sending an email to info@navado.com.au. 

This webpage (and any material or wording appearing on this webpage) is provided for general information purposes only and does not constitute any Legal Advice. It does not take into account your objectives, your instructions or all of the relevant facts and/or circumstances. Navado accepts no responsibility to any person who relies on the information provided on this website. We further refer you to our Disclaimer.