Private ruling: goods and services tax (GST) and education courses
Published: December 2013

Ruling: Q1: Is GST payable on your supplies of the training units? | A1: No.

Relevant facts and circumstances: You are registered for GST. You are a Registered Training Organisation. You supply a number of units of competency: These units are within the scope of your RTO registration.

Relevant legislative provisions: A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 - subsection 7-1(1) | A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 - section 9-5 | A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 - section 9-40 | A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 - paragraph 38-85(a) | A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 - section 195-1

Reasons for decision: Summary: GST is not payable on your supplies of the units because they are GST-free supplies of education courses as defined in the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (GST Act). | Detailed Reasoning - Detailed reasoning: GST is payable by you on your taxable supplies. You make a taxable supply where you satisfy the requirements of section 9-5 of the GST Act, which states: You make a taxable supply if: you make the supply for *consideration; and the supply is made in the course or furtherance of an *enterprise that you *carry on; and the supply is *connected with Australia; and 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. (*Denotes a term defined in section 195-1 of the GST Act) Paragraph 38-85(a) of the GST Act provides that a supply of an education course is GST-free. Education course is defined in section 195-1 of the GST Act and includes, among other things, a tertiary course. Section 195-1 of the GST Act provides that a tertiary course means, among other things a course of study or instruction that is a tertiary course determined by the Education Minister under subsection 5D(1) of the Student Assistance Act 1973 for the purposes of that Act. The Education Minister has issued Student Assistance (Education Institutions and Courses) Determination 2009 (No. 2) (the determination). The determination provides that a vocational education and training course provided by a Registered Training Organisation (RTO) is a tertiary course. Such courses include courses that are supplied by an RTO and within the scope of the RTO registration. In your case, the units are vocational education and training courses, you are an RTO and the units are within the scope of your RTO registration. Therefore, the units satisfy the definition of a tertiary course as determined by the Education Minister. Consequently, the units are education courses for the purposes of the GST Act. As such, you make GST-free supplies of education courses under paragraph 38-85(a) of the GST Act when you deliver the units. Therefore, GST is not payable on your supplies of these units.