Private ruling: Car Parking Fringe Benefit
Published: August 2011

Ruling: You are an employer who currently provides car parking for your employees. | The car parking provided not been classed as a car parking fringe benefit to your employees because there has not been a commercial car parking station which has charged more than the daily parking threshold amount whilst at the same time operating within a one kilometre radius of your business premises. | After the commencement of the current FBT year on 1 April 2010 a commercial car parking facility began operations. The commercial car park charges in excess of the daily parking threshold amount and is situated within a one kilometre radius of your business premises. | You are of the view that as the commercial parking station was not operating at the commencement of the current FBT year on 1 April 2010 then the car parking benefit for the current year is FBT exempt. | Section 136 (1) of the Fringe Benefits Tax Assessment Act 1986 (FBTAA) defines the following: | " car parking benefit " means a benefit referred to in section 39A | " car parking fringe benefit " means a fringe benefit that is a car parking benefit. | Section 39A(1) outlines all of the conditions that need to be satisfied to constitute the provision of a car parking benefit. | 39A(1) [Provision of car parking facilities] | If the following conditions are satisfied in relation to a daylight period, or a combination of daylight periods, on a particular day: | (a) during the period or periods, a car is parked on one or more premises of a person (the " provider "), where: | (i) the premises, or each of the premises, on which the car is parked are business premises, or associated premises, of the provider; and | (ii) a commercial parking station is located within a 1 km radius of the premises, or each of the premises, on which the car is parked; and | (iii) the lowest fee charged by the operator of any such commercial parking station in the ordinary course of business to members of the public for all-day parking on the first business day of the FBT year is more than the car parking threshold; | (b) the total duration of the period or periods exceeds 4 hours; | (c) any of the following applies: | (i) a car benefit relating to the car is provided on that day to an employee or an associate of an employee in respect of the employment of the employee; | (ii) the car is owned by, or leased to, an employee or an associate of an employee at any time during the period or periods; | (iii) the car is made available to an employee or an associate of an employee at any time during the period or periods by another person, where: | (A) the other person is neither the employer of the employee nor an associate of the employer of the employee; and | (B) the other person did not make the car available under an arrangement to which the employer of the employee, or an associate of the employer of the employee, is a party; | (d) the provision of parking facilities for the car during the period or periods is in respect of the employment of the employee; | (e) on that day, the employee has a primary place of employment; | (f) during the period or periods, the car is parked at, or in the vicinity of, that primary place of employment; | (g) on that day, the car is used in connection with travel by the employee between: | i. the place of residence of the employee; and | ii. (ii) that primary place of employment; | (h) the provision of parking facilities for the car during the period or periods is not taken, under the regulations, to be excluded from this section; | (i) the day is on or after 1 July 1993; | the provision of parking facilities for the car during the period or periods is taken to constitute a benefit provided by the provider to the employee or the associate of the employee in respect of the employment of the employee. | For a car parking fringe benefit to apply all conditions under Section 39A(1) must be satisfied. | Section 39A(1)(a)(iii) of the FBTAA states: | the lowest fee charged by the operator of any such commercial parking station in the ordinary course of business to members of the public for all-day parking on the first business day of the FBT year is more than the car parking threshold. | This condition has not been satisfied as the commercial parking station commenced operations after the commencement of the current FBT year on 1 April 2010. | Accordingly the car parking benefit being supplied for the current FBT year is an exempt benefit.




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