ASFA calls for tax transparency

The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) has used a submission to the Federal Treasury’s Review of Taxation Secrecy and Disclosure Provisions to point out that employees are being inappropriately prevented from gaining information about the progress of complaints regarding unpaid superannuation guarantee entitlements.

The submission, lodged with the Treasury on Friday, said it supported the consolidation of the various tax secrecy provisions within a single piece of legislation in circumstances where information held by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) was covered by multiple pieces of legislation.

“ASFA is particularly interested in the proposed recognition of the rights of third parties where a duty is owed to them by the taxpayer,” the submission said.

“ASFA has long been concerned about the inability of an employee to gain meaningful information about the progress of a complaint about unpaid superannuation guarantee entitlements,” it said. “The problem is compounded because the failure to make superannuation contributions results in a taxation debt that only the ATO has the right to pursue.”

The submission said ASFA considered that, as a minimum, the ATO should be able to advise the employee about at least some information without it being considered a breach of the secrecy provisions or the employer’s right to privacy.

It said that among the information that should be capable of being made available to employees was whether a superannuation guarantee liability actually existed, whether there was shortfall in the superannuation guarantee, whether an assessment had been raised with respect to the superannuation guarantee liability and the date of issue of the assessment.