YouTube Videos discussing Queensland Land Tax & Absentee Surcharge + Capital Gains Tax on non-resident Australian citizens

A YouTube video was created and submitted by a group member (and also Absentee tax victim) Peter James who also runs Facebook Group and YouTube channel 'Property Club'. I also contributed to this video to briefly discuss the impacts of the Land Tax & Absentee Surcharge as well as the capital gains tax on non-residents with removal of the Primary Residence (Principal Place of Residence PPR) CGT exemption when becoming a non-resident.

Media via YouTube is a great way to spread the word to the general public. We need all Queenslanders to become well aware of what's going on. We need the rest of Australia to also see what is going on.

Queensland Land Tax & Absentee Surcharge Victims' Support Group - Facebook page link

Other videos created and submitted by Peter relating to Queensland and property tax:  

I was interviewed by Peter over the phone in this video we we discuss the QLD Land Tax & Absentee Surcharge.  

Expat Property owners in Australia left in limbo over proposed changes to Capital Gains Tax exemption bill - Queensland face additional challenges

NO NEWS YET ON BILL REGARDING SCRAPPING OF CGT TAX EXEMPTION FOR NON-RESIDENT OWNING A PRIMARY RESIDENCE

No news it seems yet on the Morrison government's implementation of legislation regarding the CGT exemption removal for Primary Residence holders who become non-residents. All set to go by end of June 2019. I for one have sold off a property in anticipation of the bill being passed so as to avoid a future 'non-resident' Capital Gains tax at the Foreign Resident Rate (nil CGT discount allowed). They only grandfathered this until next year but many expats are still in extreme anxiety and uncertainty as to what to do - they cannot sell their properties because of the severe market downturn, but do not want to have to sell their properties when deemed non-residents either. But because of the market downturn expats are being forced to sell their properties at a huge loss, instead of holding. The ATO website still outlines the new laws but states:

"In the 2017-18 Budget, the government announced that foreign residents will no longer be entitled to claim the main residence exemption when they sell property in Australia. This change is not yet law and is subject to parliamentary process.

If the law is passed and you are a foreign resident when a CGT event happens to your residential property in Australia, you may no longer be entitled to claim the main residence exemption. This will apply to you:"

Capital-gains-tax International-issues - Foreign-residents-and-main-residence-exemption

Great that they can just keep everyone in a perpetual limbo. It may be the case the bill is never passed through the senate and I and several others have sold their properties for nothing and at a considerable loss of capital/loss. Extremely unfair. Was only implemented as part of Morrison (Treasurer at the time) and Turnbull's strategy to take the heat off the housing market - yet again Australian citizens are caught up in the net. Well. we all know how that's panned out with a massive housing crash enveloping Australia. There was no need and there is no need for this CGT exemption removal to continue. Forcing expats to ditch Australia and move cash into riskier assets classes to draw income streams.

As I have outlined before - owning a property in Queensland and being an Absentee under QLD Law, being a Non-Resident under Federal Law and owning a Primary Residence - you are set to the be worst off property owners in all of Australia. Triple taxes stacked against each and every one of us wishing to stay overseas with a damned 6 month travel limit.

Not to mention Foreign Resident income tax with zero tax-free threshold. Then there are local taxes you pay in the countries you are staying in plus usual taxes and other holding costs of your property/ies in QLD.

2015 Palaszczuk boasts no Absentee Surcharge to lure foreign investors to Queensland - back-flips in 2017

How many Queensland Property owners here bought their properties after the Palaszczuk election win in 2015 and prior to the 2017 Budget?

I refer back to a post I submitted below dated 9 October 2018 where I discussed the Victorian 'Inquiry into the State Taxation Acts Amendment Bill 2015', that was released on June 2015 (report No 1, 58th Parliament). The report can be accessed from that post. It relates to examining the impact of the Absentee Surcharge and the reasoning behind it.

Evidence was provided by witness Craig Whatman that the newly elected QLD Premier Palaszczuk declared within a day of the Victorian government's announcement of their new Absentee taxes directed at Foreign Investors, words to the effect of
"Come to Queensland; we are not going to impose this tax" (see page 37 of report).

This comment made by Palaszczuk was directed towards Foreign Investors as an invitation to invest in QLD property, It was clear that she meant Queensland State government were not going to apply an Absentee Surcharge to investors.

I would like to see further evidence of Palaszczuk making this or similar comments, to corroborate witness Whatman's statement, because this is very damning against Palaszczuk.

As we know, in 2017 her Labor government back-flipped on that promise. It is undeniable that many foreign investors between Palaszczuk's 2015 announcement and before the 2017 Budget announcement, on Palaszczuk's word, would have invested into Queensland property instead of Victoria due to their Foreign Investor Absentee Surcharge.

I believe that those investors would have a valid legal case against the Palaszczuk government.

I believe that Australian citizens who bought into Queensland property as well after Palaszczuk's guarantee of "we are not going to impose this tax", would also have a case against the government.

Palaszczuk deceptively lured investors to buy into Queensland property, whilst all along there was a plan hatching to follow Victoria's lead in the 2017 Budget - but also add Australian Citizens to the Absentee Surcharge with the hiked Land Tax at the Absentee rate (reduced threshold).

Palaszczuk's alleged comment is effectively a guarantee of 'safe passage', an open invitation, an assurance of being able to invest into Queensland property without fear of financial loss, without fear of punitive taxes. It was a guarantee that there would be NO ABSENTEE SURCHARGE.

Anyone who bought on her words have been slapped in the face by this black widow and her webs of deceit and lies. She needs to be held to account. This particular piece of evidence needs to be reported.

UPDATED 21 MARCH 2019 - Link added below to article I published on Medium website:
2015-palaszczuk-boasts-no-absentee-surcharge-to-lure-investors-to-queensland-back-flips-in-2017

The 'Ordinarily Reside' test a risky bet to rely on for Absentee exemption

The 'ordinarily reside' test - do not rely on this as a way to seek an exemption from being an Absentee for more than 6 months.

I have been in 'discussions' with a few members on a Property Chat forum (not good for the blood pressure mind you!). One of the members appears to be a tax accountant states,

"Someone who can demonstrate being ordinarily resident in Australia is not subject to the absentee rules and the 6 month test isn't applicable ON APPLICATION - Form LT16. Merely being absent from Australia on a holiday is not a taxing concern even if its 6 or 7 months."
"All persons away 6mths + must apply and provide evidence for the Commissioner."

He has referred to the appropriate section of the QLD Land Tax Act which I am also familiar with - Section 31:

"If you have lived outside of Australia during the financial year, we will consider several factors to determine if you usually live in Australia, such as the reason for your absence and the time spent in and out of the country. If we are not satisfied that you mainly resided in Australia, you will be an absentee if you:
were away from Australia at 30 June or
have been away from Australia for more than 6 months in total during the financial year before 30 June.
31 Meaning of absentee
(1) An absentee is a person who does not ordinarily reside in Australia.
(2) An absentee includes a person who—
(a) can not satisfy the commissioner that he or she ordinarily resides in Australia; and
(b) when ownership of the person’s land is decided for this Act—
(i) is absent from Australia; or
(ii) has been absent from Australia for more than half of the 12 month period"

I have argued the problems experienced with trying to apply the 'ordinarily resides' argument to the LT16 and subsequent Objection lodged - both of which were rejected.
The OSR Commissioner is extremely strict in its application of this test and more likely than not the application will be rejected.

It would be at great peril to take a risk of hoping the OSR will agree to your 'ordinary residence' argument and waive your Absentee Surcharge & hiked Land tax. Not only that, you will need to report to the OSR upon your return and submit all documents to support your claim against the Absentee charges.

In my case my application was rejected - despite me arguing that Australia was my main residence. My downfall was that I spent my time in one country and had some mail redirected there for convenience. I was on a tourist visa - definitely not permanent and staying in temporary rented accommodation. The added complication of falling ill requiring hospital treatment and being certified as 'Not Fit to Fly' for 3 months was also a factor for me.
The non-resident test set by the Federal Government legislation is far more relaxed and caters for many different scenarios. I was not deemed a non-resident by the ATO but not for QLD.

So, yes there is a clause in the section to allow for people to be out of Australia longer than the 6 months, but the chances of being able to convince the OSR that you ordinarily reside in Australia is not guaranteed. And from current feedback it appears that rejections are the norm, not the exception.

Of course for those who are expats or workers residing overseas permanently then Absentee taxes apply anyway, even if you satisfy the resident test with the ATO.

Communism is here - in Queensland. Thanks to Palaszczuk Labor Government & their Absentee rules for Queensland property owners.

No other State or Territory keeps tabs on your travel time abroad to charge you an annual double property tax - unless you are a foreign citizen (Vic & NSW only). QLD - Aussies are included.

Keep your trips short if you own a QLD property. The meter is running - get back before 6 months is up or else

PAY THE FINE OR DO THE TIME.

Journalist Des Houghton of the Courier Mail had an opinion article published 24 Nov 2018 titled 'Failures across health, education and transport suggest Labor Government is doomed'.

I have attached a copy of the article in PDF format in case you cannot view the article (could only screen grab the pages on phone). The link is here - I can read the article on my phone, but on a laptop it goes to the subscription page:

failures-across-health-education-and-transport-suggest-the-labor-government-is-doomed/news-story

From what I took from the article: Houghton delivers a scathing attack against the Palaszczuk Labor Government with its bad decisions, mismanagement and abuse of revenue.

The article mentions Queensland as having the worst unemployment rate and appalling record in building infrastructure as well. I would not be surprised if among other punitive measures, that Labor's 2017 Land tax & Absentee Surcharge amendments in May 2017 as well as its second round of changes to Land tax laws again in late 2017 has caused this.

Houghton's opinion is that Palaszczuk's government has peaked and may well be in decline.

He states Palaszczuk and Jackie Trad have "succeeded only in promoting the Bill Shorten/ACTU socialist gospel of victimhood, envy and division".
I believe this is the type of mindset that answers why Palaszczuk's has attacked 'Absentees' who are deemed 'rich' and therefore should be penalised with the massive taxes - i.e. the Land Tax & Absentee Surcharge.

Another interesting observation by Houghton was a literacy and numeracy report that was released by Labor on an NRL Grand Final weekend in an effort to hide those poor figures.
This demonstrates how the government avoids negative attention using smoke screens. It brings to mind the sneaky way Curtis Pitt glossed over the Absentee Surcharge in the 2017 Budget in an effort to also suppress/hide details so that most people would miss the details and the fact that Aussies were included in the Absentee definition.

Hopefully the Palaszczuk government is rapidly 'on the nose' by most Queenslanders by the next election. If Liberal wins the next QLD State election then there may be hope of legislation reform and the removal of these terrible taxes.

ARTICLE TEXT: 

Failures across health, education and transport suggest the Labor Government is doomed

November 24, 2018 12:53am
Des Houghton The Courier-Mail

YESTERDAY’S revelations we are paying $468 a year too much on our power bills will come as a hammer blow to working families. It’s also a hammer blow to the reputation of the Palaszczuk Government.

We reported customers were being “scammed” by state-owned power companies. The Government uses the power companies as a milch cow to pour $2.3 billion into Treasury coffers to featherbed the bloated public service.

ScoMo is right. The State Government’s failure to sell assets is to blame for high power prices and our woeful economic performance.

The PM told reporters state-owned Ergon had a monopoly in regional Queensland where exorbitant power bills were crippling primary producers and small businesses – and the families the ALP Government pledged to protect.

 Scott Morrison is not the first to point out Queensland is lagging behind NSW and Victoria. Queensland is an economic basket case and we have to sell lazy government assets to repair the deficit.
If Campbell Newman’s ill-fated 2015 election campaign had turned out differently, I’m sure the Cross River rail tunnel would have been completed by now and work would have started on the duplication of the M1 highway to the coast.

The profits from the sale of power utilities, ports and other public assets would have funded the work. Queensland Rail, too, should be broken up and sold.

I suspect no one other than union fat cats really cares about who owns power companies, ports, railways or highways.

Morrison’s warning to Queensland to repair its debt followed similar calls by the Infrastructure Association of Queensland. It said the state was unattractive to investors as it urged the political classes must not shut out future debate on electricity asset sales.

Right now Queensland is a political and social disaster as well. There comes a time in the life of every government when we ask ourselves whether it has been a success or a failure.

Has it met the expectations of the voters? Has it provided safe and speedy hospital care and do the trains run on time?

  
Has the Government been able to reassure parents their children will progress to high school and university with the necessary literacy and numeracy skills?

Has the Government been able to cushion working families from soaring power and fuel prices? Has it been able to stem the rise of violent assaults, house break-ins and car thefts? And has the Government been open and accountable?

Does the Government operate independently without the interference of forces outside Parliament? Does it operate cronyism rules to enrich the groups who fund it?

Has the Government succeeded in creating the right commercial environment for business to prosper and create jobs? Does it hide dubious expenditure behind “commercial in confidence” masks?

If we look at the evidence dispassionately in all these areas we can only conclude that the Government of Annastacia Palaszczuk, now a year into its second term, has been an unmitigated failure.
It has flunked every test one could devise to mark a successful government.

We may not even see it yet, but I suspect the Government led by Palaszczuk has peaked, and may already be in decline. It can only wave rainbow flags of distraction for so long.
  
Our unemployment rate is the worst in the nation. The state’s record in building infrastructure has been appalling, and it is in hock to unions who openly defy the law.

And please don’t read this as an attack on Palaszczuk the woman. She doesn’t offend me at all; it’s her government that stinks like cheap cologne.

Under Labor, the State Government has veered sharply to the Left. Palaszczuk and her deputy Jackie Trad have succeeded only in promoting the Bill Shorten/ACTU socialist gospel of victimhood, envy and division. It’s a doctrine that appeals to the leaners and their media cheer squad.

Our state schools missed every performance target across literacy and numeracy.
The Government tried to hide the official report, and others, by releasing them on NRL Grand Final weekend.

State-sponsored union gouging persists. State electricity workers who can earn up to $206,000 a year get double pay if it rains and their clothes get wet. Seriously.

While the timetables are still in a mess with services cut, Queensland Rail drivers can take home more than $210,000 thanks to generous overtime payments.

Deliberate understaffing is to blame and the State Government refuses to pull the rail unions into line.
Investigator Phillip Strachan’s excellent report to Parliament in January last year said one of the “underlying issues” that caused the timetable meltdown was “Queensland Rail preferring to operate with a 5 to 10 per cent undersupply of train crew, driven largely by a practice of providing overtime opportunities”.

In reality the job of train driver should barely exist at all. Automated trains work perfectly safely in the US, Europe and Asia.

Meanwhile, the Palaszczuk Government is riddled with contradictions when it comes to sleaze. It moved quickly to expel elected members in councils accused of corruption, yet turns a blind eye to union thugs convicted of unlawful strikes and trespass. And several ministers are under an integrity cloud.

There was worrying news in the latest health performance data with nearly every hospital in Queensland failing to meet benchmarks for emergency care and surgeries.

 “Bed block” means ill children are being turned away at Lady Cilento, the name by which our public children’s hospital will forevermore be known.

Shamefully, not one hospital and health service met the 25-day median wait time for elective surgery last financial year, with some blowing out by hundreds of days. The median wait time for surgery in the central west region was a shocking 259 days – its target is 25 days. It’s a far cry from the Newman government days when Lawrence Springborg was health minister.

In 2015 we had the best elective surgery waiting times in the country with an average of 27 days.
Shadow health spokeswoman Ros Bates listed other problems in Health she said show a system in crisis.

Ambulance “ramping” was back and there are fears of more cutbacks to regional maternity services. And the state has yet to fully explain how four children were given cancerous tissue from the tissue bank.

To escape from the sweaty city, Brisbane families traditionally head to the beach for a bracing surf and a beach picnic. I tried it the other day. Because of a small prang somewhere, the highway had become a parking lot.

We did get there more than two hours later to notice the outlaw motorcycle gangs were back.
By now, many Queenslanders will be deeply regretting they did not give Newman a second term.

Negative repercussions Labor's policies - refundable franking credits removal

An article in the Sydney Morning Herald today (20 Nov 2018) written by journalist Colin Kruger, outlines the negative repercussions behind Federal Labor government's plan to remove refundable franking credits on share dividends.

The article highlights the fact that this Labor proposal will affect self funded retirees by wiping out a substantial amount of their retirement income.

This is yet again another example of Labor policies that fail to care about the consequences of their introduced legislation.

Poor returns elsewhere are forcing retirees to invest into riskier investments.

This is where a parallel can be drawn with the QLD Land Tax & Absentee Surcharge to reveal yet another deplorable Labor legislation that is devastating self funded retirees.  The taxes are extremely punitive and create bills totally disproportionate to what a resident staying in Australia would be paying.

In the same vein, Labor try to justify the removal of franking credits as it "mainly benefits millionaires who don't pay income tax".  This mindset is exactly what Labor claim about Absentees - we are all apparently rich as well.  A 'Robin Hood' tax.

QLD Labor are ruining lives for a mere $20- $30 Million in taxes, which State wide is not huge - unnecessary unjustified greed.  And those taxes (thefts) to be likely wasted on things absolutely useless.

Don't get me wrong though, it is not only Labor doing wrong to its Australians  - Federal Liberal under Turnbull/Morrison regime have also created huge grief to those who are offshore and become non-residents - their proposed removal of CGT exemption for Primary Residence properties - causing massive anxiety and uncertainty in a falling market what to do - with the talk that the Bill may not pass.  The ATO doesn't even know exactly how the legislation works and several accountants cannot concur on the interpretations. There is a lot of confusion around this drafted Bill.  it is causing many to already be losing money on sales/withdrawals from sale, selling in a downturn, etc, with June 2019 deadline approaching.


Federal Liberal's justification was that it is part of overall strategy to avoid the housing bubble.  That is well and truly happening now and it is falling dangerously fast - towards economic collapse.  And it has nothing to do with non-residents.  Time for Morrison to withdraw this Bill and stop causing suffering.

Time for these governments to stop meddling in investment assets with legislation passed by their predecessors. 

Link to article:

it-s-not-their-money-retirees-vent-anger-at-labor-dividend-tax-plan

Things are looking very bleak now - property market values falling nationwide other than a few pockets here and there. Queensland is not immune it seems as well with signs of problems there as well. Very low auction clearance rates.
The contagion is spreading with the media (online, paper, TV and radio) just being totally saturated with negative news that is self-fulfilling. It is almost hourly being reported.

In my circumstances - I feel like I am a complete slave to Queensland now. I cannot sell my property (which would unshackle me from the chains of their taxes) as I would be set for a massive loss (bought & renovated less than 2 years ago) if I sold now based on recent property appraisals - seeing me potentially broke/living very frugally in my later years of retirement, needing to eventually go onto the pension and social housing to live in misery. Then I can be a burden to the tax payer! Thanks Palaszczuk. Labor can take money off me now, but by sending me to the financial wall they will have to support me till I die.

Now I cannot stay overseas long term as per my retirement plans - I have had to come back to avoid the next annual round of the severe Land Tax & Absentee Surcharge. Living out of a suitcase and unsure where to go and what to do. But the cost of living in Australia for me as a medically retired self funded retiree is also too excessive to live. I am caught in a Catch 22. Unable to live life on my terms. A Slave to the QLD State.

I am sure my issues can resonate with others with similar problems. Even those with very different issues - we are all affected in so many negative ways.

I recently sent a letter via email for the attention of Premier Palaszczuk. In my letter I outlined the special treatment granted to a Queensland property owner deemed an Absentee, whereby, although he did not meet the employment criteria of being an Absentee, he was able to be granted an exemption.

As a result I outlined my dire circumstances and although not meeting the exemption criteria either, I requested to be granted an exemption as well.

The Premier's office claimed that it was the area of the Deputy Premier Jackie Trad's office to deal with this matter.

But, the Deputy Premier then referred it to the Office of the State Revenue to respond instead. The Commissioner of State Revenue 'Elizabeth Goli' was tasked to respond to my letter.

Yesterday I received a reply letter. My request for exemption was denied.

In the OSR Commissioner's response she stated, "You have referred to the circumstances of another taxpayer who advised you that he was granted an exemption based on his personal circumstances, notwithstanding that he did not meet the requirements for an exemption. Whilst I cannot comment on the affairs of particular taxpayers, as the Commissioner of State Revenue, I am both obliged and committed to administering land tax in accordance with the Act. Where the Act provides for an exemption, this exemption will only be extended to those taxpayers who satisfy the specified legislative criteria. This ensures the legislation treats taxpayers equally, despite the variety of circumstances experienced by the individual taxpayer."

As you can see, by referring the letter to the OSR Commissioner, Premier Palaszczuk was able to abdicate her responsibility to respond to this request, to someone who does not have the power to grant exemptions and therefore can only state that they can only abide by the Act.

The Premier would of course find it uncomfortable to have to respond directly to such a request as she will be forced to outline why there was special treatment granted to someone. This may of course reveal that she has acted illegally if there is no provision to allow such exemption.

If there has been one known exemption, who else has been granted an exemption as well that is not entitled to according to the Land Tax Act?

I intend to respond, insisting on the Premier's response as well as referring this to the Ombudsman as a complaint.

I also believe that there should be an immediate inquiry into determining who has been granted an exemption, despite not being entitled to it.

My issues are: If there is special treatment being given to individuals, then why are they getting special treatment? Who are they? Are there conflicts of interest and/or linked associations to colleagues, friends or family members of the Labor Government?

We are all suffering from this horrendous double tax, which should be removed anyway. But I will not allow the government to conveniently 'pass the buck' when it comes to questions that could cause embarrassment and repercussions. We need to be all treated fairly.

If there is a provision beyond the Land Tax Act for exemption then we all need to know about it.

In my case, they think they can conveniently shirk responsibility to a bureaucrat of the OSR and a referral to Lifeline so as to cover their bases. Very disappointing. Like I have experienced in the past fighting another bureaucratic organisation, their strategy is to 'Stall, Starve, Suspend and Settle' - trying to wear you down until you give up and go away with any resolution in the complainant's favour as the very last resort.

Constitutional Law handled by QLD State Crown Law Office - representing the State

The Crown Law office in QLD deals with Constitutional Law and the legality of laws passed in QLD Parliament. They represent the State of QLD.

They have posted examples of legal challenges made against Acts passed in QLD.

Please see link below.

Crown Law QLD State link