Private ruling: Foreign employment income
Published: December 2013
Ruling period: Year ended 30 June 2013
Date scheme commenced: 1 July 2012

Ruling: Question and answer | Is the salary you earned while employed overseas exempt from income tax in Australia? | Yes.

Relevant facts and circumstances: You are an Australian resident for income tax purposes. Your foreign service was directly attributable to the delivery of Australian official development assistance by your employer. You were employed by an aid organisation. You were engaged in foreign employment for more than 91 continuous days and derived foreign earnings. There is an agreement between Australia and the overseas country that exempts the income from taxation in the overseas country.

Relevant legislative provisions: Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 Section 23AG | Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 Section 23AG(1) | Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 Section 23AG(1AA) | Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 Section 23AG(2)

Reasons for decision: Summary: Subsection 23AG(1) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 (ITAA 1936) provides that foreign earnings are exempt from income tax where all of the following requirements are satisfied: · you are a resident of Australia and a natural person, · you are engaged in foreign service, · the foreign service is for a continuous period of at least 91 days, · you derive foreign earnings from that foreign service, · the foreign service is directly attributable to an activity that is listed in subsection 23AG(1AA) of the ITAA 1936, and · the foreign earnings are not exempt from income tax in the foreign country only because of one of the reasons listed in subsection 23AG(2) of the ITAA 1936. Given a consideration of the whole arrangement, it is accepted that you meet the above criteria and the income referable to your foreign service is exempt from income tax in Australia.