Tax amnesty ‘promising’: ATO

More than three people a day have disclosed offshore income or assets in the fortnight since the Australian Taxation Office announced an amnesty, The Australian Financial Review reports.

According to the newspaper, tax commissioner Chris Jordan said early results were promising, with 16 disclosures and 33 expressions of interest about possible disclosures so far.

Under the amnesty, tax imposed will be limited to offshore income and assets in the past four years, penalties will be capped at 10 per cent and minimal penalties will be imposed for low-level disclosures, the AFR reports.

The ATO has earlier warned that the concept of the “tax haven” is dying, amid global worries over profit shifting by multinational giants including Apple and Google.