Private ruling: Donations
Date of advice: 4 March 2026
Published: 20 April 2026
Ruling period: XXX to XXX
Date scheme commenced: XXX

Ruling: Q1: Did you make taxable supplies pursuant to section 9-5 of the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (GST Act) when providing goods and services (the relevant supplies) to non-resident recipients during the relevant periods? | A1: No, as there is not sufficient nexus between the provision of the relevant supplies made by you to non-residents and the donation payments received from non-residents. | Q2: If the answer to question above is 'no', will Division 142 of the GST Act apply to prevent the refund of excess GST in relation to donations from non-residents, for the relevant tax periods? | A2: No, Division 142 does not apply to prevent refund of excess GST reported on your business activity statements (BASs) in the relevant tax periods. You are able amend your BASs to be refunded the excess GST included in your assessments relating to donations from non-residents, if the BASs are within the period of review as specified in section 155-35 of Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act 1953.

Relevant facts and circumstances: You are located in Australia and registered for GST. You are not a non-profit entity, registered Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) as a charity, nor registered as a religious institution. The relevant periods refer to the quarterly tax periods from XXX till XXX. You provide various services and support to recipients worldwide (the relevant supplies). The relevant supplies are provided free of charge to non-resident recipients. You included an amount of GST in your BASs during the relevant periods pertaining to donations they received from non-resident donors. You have not provided tax invoices to non-resident donors for donations received, and non-resident donors are unaware GST has been remitted on their donation amount. You identify the donations from non-resident donors using various methods. You are not obligated to use the donations received from non-resident donors in a specific way. The organisation is clear to all donors that donated funds will be used to meet company priorities as decided by the director(s). This condition is stated clearly in the Terms & Conditions page on your website.

Relevant legislative provisions: A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 section 9-5 | A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 section 9-10 | A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 subsection 9-15(1) | A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 subsection 142-5(1) | A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 subsection 142-10 | A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 section 195-1

Reasons for decision: Summary: Section 9-5 provides that you make a taxable supply if: (a) you make the supply for consideration; and (b) the supply is made in the course or furtherance of an enterprise that you carry on; and (c) the supply is connected with the indirect tax zone (Australia), and (d) you are registered, or required to be registered However, the supply is not a taxable supply to the extent that it is GST-free or input taxed. Relevantly, to satisfy the first requirement in section 9-5, an entity must first make a 'supply' for which payment is 'consideration'. | Detailed Reasoning - Supply: Subsection 9-10(1) provides that a supply is any form of supply whatsoever. Subsection 9-10(2) provides that, without limiting subsection 9-10(1), 'supply' includes, amongst other things: a supply of goods or services. You provide various services and support to recipients worldwide (the relevant supplies), therefore you are making a supply. | Detailed Reasoning - Supply for consideration: According to subsection 9-15(1), consideration includes: (a) Any payment in connection with a supply of anything; and (b) Any payment in response to a supply of anything. GSTR 2006/9 Goods and services tax: supplies (GSTR 2006/9) discusses the meaning of supply and consideration in the context of GST law. Relevantly, paragraphs 107 to 108 state: 107. The definition of consideration in section 195-1 states: consideration , for a supply or acquisition, means any consideration within the meaning given by sections 9-15 and 9-17, in connection with the supply or acquisition. Hence, consideration for a supply is defined as being any consideration in connection with a supply. Consideration in section 9-15 relevantly means: (1) Consideration includes: (a) any payment, or any act or forbearance, in connection with a supply of anything; and (b) any payment, or any act or forbearance, in response to or for the inducement of a supply of anything. (2) It does not matter whether the payment, act or forbearance was voluntary... The Commissioner takes the view that the words 'in connection with the supply or acquisition' in section 195-1, and the phrases 'in connection with a supply of anything' and 'it does not matter whether the payment, act or forbearance was voluntary' in section 9-15 mean that there does not have to be an enforceable relationship for there to be a sufficient nexus between the supply and a payment. Nor does the consideration have to be agreed in advance. 108. For GST purposes you may still make a supply in the absence of enforceable obligations, provided there is something else, such as goods, services or some other thing, passing from the supplier to the recipient. For the supply to be a taxable supply there must also be consideration and a sufficient nexus between the supply and the consideration. The Ruling considers 'sufficient nexus' further in paragraph 180. GSTR 2006/9 at paragraph 180 explains that for a payment to be consideration for a supply there must be a sufficient nexus between the payment made by the payer/recipient and a supply made by the supplier. A payment is consideration for a supply if the payment is 'in connection with', 'in response to' or 'for the inducement of' a supply. The test is an objective one. The relevant supplies are provided free of charge to non-resident recipients by you. You are not obligated to use the donations received from non-resident donors in a specific way. The organisation is clear to all donors that donated funds will be used to meet company priorities as decided by the director(s). This condition is stated clearly in the Terms & Conditions page on your website You provide the relevant supplies free to everyone, when a non-resident takes up the option to donate, they do not receive anything that they weren't getting already. Further, there is no obligation for the you to do anything upon receipt of a donation from a non-resident donor. Therefore, in this case we accept that there is not sufficient nexus between the relevant supplies made by the you to non-resident recipients and the donations received from non-resident donors and thus, the donation payments are not consideration for a supply and not subject to GST. | Detailed Reasoning - Question 2: Division 142 generally restricts refunds when you make an overpayment of GST to the Australian Taxation Office where a refund may result in a windfall gain. Excess GST is defined in subsection 142-5(1) as an amount that has been taken into account in an assessed net amount but in fact is not payable. Under section 142-10, if the excess GST has been passed on to another entity, that excess GST is taken to have always been payable until the passed-on GST is reimbursed to the other entity. However, if the excess GST has not been passed on, section 142-10 does not apply, and the supplier may request an amendment to their assessment for the relevant tax period to reduce the amount of GST attributable to that tax period. Any resulting refunds are then to be paid or applied in accordance with Division 3 and 3A of Part IIB of the Taxation Administration Act 1953 (TAA). Goods and Services Tax Ruling 2015/1 Goods and services tax: meaning of the terms 'passed on' and 'reimburse' for the purposes of Division 142 of the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (GSTR 2015/1) notes that whether the excess GST has been passed on is a question of fact and must be determined on a case-by-case basis taking into account the particular circumstances of each case. The Commissioner provides, in paragraph 28 of GSTR 2015/1 a list of factors that should be considered in determining whether the excess GST has been passed on to recipients. This includes: • the manner in which the excess GST arose • the supplier's pricing policy and practice • the documentary evidence surrounding the overpayment, and • any other relevant circumstances | Detailed Reasoning - The manner in which the excess GST arose: The manner in which an amount of excess GST arises is relevant in considering whether or not the excess GST was passed on. GSTR 2015/1 at paragraph 31 considers four common circumstances: • incorrectly treating something which is not a supply as a taxable supply • miscalculating a GST liability under the GST law • incorrectly reporting an amount of GST on a GST return, and • incorrectly treating a GST-free or input taxed supply as a taxable supply (including incorrectly apportioning the taxable and non-taxable components of a mixed supply). You have incorrectly reported an amount of GST on a GST return. As explained above, the payments received from non-resident donors are not consideration for a supply and not subject to GST. | Detailed Reasoning - The suppliers pricing policy: The relevant supplies are provided by you with no expectation of payment or donation from non-resident recipients. You do not set prices for anything that you provide. There is no suggested donation amount or expectation of a donation from non-resident recipients requested by you to provide the relevant supplies. | Detailed Reasoning - The documentary evidence: You included an amount of GST in your BAS during the relevant period pertaining to donations you received from non-resident donors. You have not provided tax invoices (and do not provide tax invoices) to non-resident donors for donations received. | Detailed Reasoning - Any other relevant circumstances: You do not operate in a commercial environment where you make supplies of xx goods or services in exchange for payment. You are a not-for-profit entity that provides various xx services free or charge. Any payments to you are on voluntary basis. | Detailed Reasoning - Conclusion: There is a general expectation that excess GST will have been passed on and a supplier will need to clearly substantiate the grounds on which it claims a refund of excess GST and that their circumstances are outside the ordinary. Overall, based on the circumstances provided, the Commissioner is satisfied that you have not passed on the excess GST in respect of the relevant supplies during the relevant periods. Therefore, section 142-10 does not apply, and you may request an amendment to your BASs for the relevant tax periods. Any resulting refunds are then to be paid or applied in accordance with Division 3 and 3A of Part IIB of the Taxation Administration Act 1953 (TAA).