Private ruling: GST and entitlement to GST refund or credit
Published: October 2011

Ruling: Q1: Are you entitled to claim input tax credits for the quarterly tax period? | A1: No, you are not entitled to claim input tax credits for the quarterly tax period. | Q2: Are you entitled to revise your Business activity statements (BASs) to claim additional input tax credits for the quarterly tax periods? | A2: No, you are not entitled to revise your BASs to claim additional input tax credits for the quarterly tax periods.

Relevant facts and circumstances: This ruling is based on the facts stated in the description of the scheme that is set out below. If your circumstances are materially different from these facts, this ruling has no effect and you cannot rely on it. The fact sheet has more information about relying on your private ruling. You paid building construction expenses during the relevant tax periods and you did not claim GST input tax credits in respect to those expenses. You have provided copies of tax invoices issued for building construction expenses in respect to units erected. Your Accountant who lodged your Business activity statements for the relevant quarterly tax periods did not claim input tax credits in respect to the building construction expenses.

Relevant legislative provisions: Taxation Administration Act 1953 Section 105-55 of Schedule 1

Reasons for decision: Detailed Reasoning - Detailed reasoning: You are entitled to claim input tax credits on creditable acquisitions, such as, in your case, building construction expenses, in respect to any accounting period for which you are registered for goods and services tax (GST). ATO records indicate that you were registered for GST. As you were not registered for GST, for the quarterly tax period, you are not entitled to claim input tax credits for that quarterly tax period. | Detailed Reasoning - Question 2: Are you entitled to revise your Business activity statements (BASs) to claim additional input tax credits for the quarterly tax periods? No, you are not entitled to revise your BASs to claim additional input tax credits for the quarterly tax periods. | Detailed Reasoning - Detailed reasoning: GST is an indirect tax in accordance with the provisions of the Taxation Administration Act 1953 (TAA). Section 105-55 of Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act 1953 of the TAA provides, in part, that you are not entitled to a refund or credit in respect of a tax period unless within 4 years after the end of the tax period, you notify the Commissioner (in a GST return or otherwise) that you are entitled to the refund or credit. You have included with your application for a Private ruling, a 'Notification of entitlement to GST refund', for the quarterly tax periods. This notification was received outside the four year period. As your notification was received outside the four year period, you are not entitled to a GST refund or credit for those tax periods, in terms of the provisions of the TAA, as detailed above. Given your circumstances, it is unfortunate the TAA does not give the Commissioner discretion to allow GST refunds or credits outside the four year period. Consequently, the Commissioner is unable to allow you to revise your BASs to enable you to claim additional input tax credits for the relevant quarterly tax periods.

Please check this edited version to be sure that there are no details remaining that you think may allow you to be identified. If you have any concerns about this ruling you wish to discuss, you will find our contact details in the fact sheet. | Reasons for decision: These reasons for decision accompany the Notice of private ruling. | While these reasons are not part of the private ruling, we provide them to help you to understand how we reached our decision.