Private ruling: Assessable income - source
Date of advice: 7 May 2024
Published: 17 June 2024
Ruling period: Year ended 30 June 2020 | Year ended 30 June 2021 | Year ended 30 June 2022 | Year ended 30 June 2023 | Year ending 30 June 2024
Date scheme commenced: 1 July 2019

Ruling: Q1: Is income you earned through broadcasting entertainment content through an online streaming platform while residing in a foreign country assessable in Australia? | A1: No. The relevant parts of section 6-5 of the ITAA 1997 state: (1) Your assessable income includes income according to ordinary concepts, which is called ordinary income. ... (3) If you are a foreign resident, your assessable income includes: (a) the ordinary income you derived directly or indirectly from all Australian sources during the income year; and (b) other ordinary income that a provision includes in your assessable income for the income year on some basis other than having an Australian source. In your case, income you earned from broadcasting content is paid by a foreign company, to you, via an Australian account. This income does not have an Australian source. As this foreign sourced income was eared while you were a foreign resident it will not be assessable in Australia.

Relevant facts and circumstances: You are an Australian citizen who has lived in Country A from the start of 20XX. You came back to Australia in mid 20XX where you resided in Australia for roughly 1 year before relocating to Country A. You are a non-resident of Australia for taxation purposes . While residing in Country A (after relocating to that country in mid 20XX), you have used an overseas company to broadcast your entertainment content on the streaming platform. Your primary source of income is earned through the overseas company which is based on viewer subscriptions with the overseas company claiming a certain percentage as their fees and you receiving the remainder as your income. In addition to this, you also received revenue in the form of sponsorship from various entities looking to advertise their products on your channel along with donations made by your viewers. Due to you maintaining a currency holding account in Australia, the income, along with the other sources of income mentioned above was paid to this account. This income was then transferred to you in Country A and later your Country A company setup by your Country A accountants. This income appears in your prefill reports as business income from the Australian entity providing the currency holding account.

Relevant legislative provisions: Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 section 6-5 | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 subsection 6-5(3)