Private ruling: Residency
Published: October 2012
Ruling period: Year ended 30 June 2010 | Year ended 30 June 2011 | Year ended 30 June 2012 | Year ending 30 June 2013 | Year ending 30 June 2014 | Year ending 30 June 2015
Date scheme commenced: 1 July 2009

Ruling: Question and answer | Are you a resident of Australia for taxation purposes? | Yes.

Relevant facts and circumstances: You were born overseas. You are a permanent resident of Australia. You moved to Australia a number of years ago with your family. You moved back to your country of birth a few years after arriving in Australia. The move did not work out for you and your family and you return to Australia. A few years later you decided to return to your country of birth to work leaving your family to live in Australia. You financially support your family. You visit your family numerous times a year for a total of about X days per year. You have a home and bank accounts in Australia. You have a business and bank accounts overseas. The super test does not apply to you or your spouse.

Relevant legislative provisions: Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 Section 6-1 | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 Section 6-5 | Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 Section 995

Reasons for decision: Summary: Subsection 995-1(1) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (ITAA 1997) defines an Australian resident as a person who is a resident of Australia for the purpose of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 (ITAA 1936). The terms resident and resident of Australia, in regard to an individual, are defined in subsection 6(1) of the ITAA 1936. The definition provides four tests to ascertain whether a taxpayer is a resident of Australia for income tax purposes. These tests are: 1. the resides test 2. the domicile test 3. the 183 day test 4. the superannuation test The first two tests are examined in detail in Taxation Ruling IT 2650. The primary test for deciding the residency status of an individual is whether the individual resides in Australia according to the ordinary meaning of the word. However, where an individual does not reside in Australia according to ordinary concepts, they may still be considered to be an Australian resident for tax purposes if they satisfy the conditions of one of the three other tests. | Detailed Reasoning - The resides test: The ordinary meaning of the word 'reside', according to the Macquarie Dictionary, 2001, rev. 3rd edition, The Macquarie Library Pty Ltd, NSW, is 'to dwell permanently or for a considerable time; having one's abode for a time', and according to the Compact Edition of the Oxford English Dictionary (1987), is 'to dwell permanently, or for a considerable time, to have one's settled or usual abode, to live in or at a particular place'. Taxation Ruling TR 98/17 focuses on the quality and character of an individual's behaviour while in Australia (which includes, in addition to family and business ties, factors such as intention or purpose of presence, social and living arrangements, and maintenance and location of assets), in conjunction with the period of physical presence in Australia. Taxation Ruling IT 2650 emphasises the intended and actual length of the individual's stay in an overseas country, any intention to return to Australia or travel elsewhere, the establishment or abandonment of any residence, and the durability of association that the individual maintains with a particular place in Australia as the main factors to be considered when determining the residency status of individuals leaving Australia. In the recent case of Iyengar v FCT 2011 ATC 10-222, the Administrative Appeals Tribunal held that the taxpayer was a resident of Australia, even though he was working overseas. The taxpayer's family ties, his intention (to complete his contract) and motive (to pay off his mortgage), and his maintaining an Australian place of abode while working overseas, were all indicative that he was an Australian resident during the relevant period. In your case, you have ties to both Australia and an overseas country. Although you have strong financial and economic ties to the overseas country, your ties to Australia are stronger because your family reside in Australia, and you return to your family home in Australia numerous times a year. The purpose of your presence in Australia is to be with your family, whereas the main purpose of your presence in the overseas country is to work. This indicates that you are residing in Australia according to the ordinary meaning of resides. As you are residing in Australia, you are a resident of Australia under the resides test. It is therefore not necessary to consider whether you are a resident of Australia under any of the three statutory tests. | Detailed Reasoning - Your residency status: You are a resident of Australia for taxation purposes. You are required to declare your income both in and out of Australia in your Australian tax return.

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.