Black Economy Taskforce findings

In its effort to facilitate a fair business environment, the ATO has offered continued support for honest businesses.

Girl counting money

With an estimated $40 billion lost to the hidden economy, the need for strong diligence and continued governance over Australian businesses is essential. The Black Economy Taskforce, established in May 2017, has uncovered a number of alarming trends. These trends relate to strategies dishonest businesses and individuals are engaging in to evade their tax responsibilities.

Trends show that problematic areas include:
The sharing economy:
The money exchanged through services such as Airbnb, Airtasker and Uber are all taxable. Ensure you understand how to be compliant before engaging with these services.

Cash transactions:
Employers paying employees in cash to avoid tax and super responsibilities costs the economy an astronomical amount, as well as contractors accepting cash payments and not accurately documenting these.

Incorrect reporting:
Individuals and businesses failing to report their business dealings correctly are creating huge liabilities in the economy. Small reporting dishonesties by a great portion of taxpayers creates a large balance of unaccountable money; the majority of unaccountable money in relation to tax evasion.

If you have any queries please contact our office on (03) 9728 1448


Have a great day,

The team at TAS Tailored Accounting Solutions 

This publication is for guidance only, and professional advice should be obtained before acting on any information contained herein. Neither the publishers nor the distributors can accept any responsibility for loss occasioned to any person as a result of action taken or refrained from in consequence of the contents of this publication.