What everyone selling a property valued at $750,000 or more needs to know

Every vendor selling a property needs to prove that they are a resident of Australia for tax purposes unless they are happy for the purchaser to withhold a 12.5% withholding tax. From 1 July 2017, every individual selling a property with a sale value of $750,000 or more is affected.

To prove you are a resident, you can apply online to the Tax Commissioner for a clearance certificate, which will remain valid for 12 months.

While these rules have been in place since 1 July 2016, on 1 July 2017 the threshold for properties reduced from $2 million to $750,000 and the withholding tax level increased from 10% to 12.5%.

The intent of the foreign resident CGT withholding rules is to ensure that tax is collected on the sale of taxable Australian property by foreign residents. But, the mechanism for collecting the tax affects everyone regardless of their residency status.

Properties under $750,000 are excluded from the rules. This exclusion can apply to residential dwellings, commercial premises, vacant land, strata title units, easements and leasehold interests as long as they have a market value of less than $750,000. If the parties are dealing at arm’s length, the actual purchase price is assumed to be the market value unless the purchase price is artificially contrived.

If required, the Tax Commissioner has the power to vary the amount that is payable under these rules, including varying the amounts to nil. Either a vendor or purchaser may apply to the Commissioner to vary the amount to be paid to the ATO. This might be appropriate in cases where:

• The foreign resident will not make a capital gain as a result of the transaction (e.g., they will make a capital loss on the sale of the asset);
• The foreign resident will not have a tax liability for that income year (e.g., where they have carried forward capital losses or tax losses etc.,); or
• Where they are multiple vendors, but they are not all foreign residents.

If the Commissioner agrees to vary the amount, it is only effective if it is provided to the purchaser.

The withholding rules are only intended to apply when one or more of the vendors is a non-resident. However, the rules are more complicated than this and the way they apply depends on whether the asset being purchased is taxable Australian real property or a company title interest relating to real property in Australia.

Please contact us if you need assistance navigating the foreign resident CGT withholding rules or are uncertain about how the rules are likely to apply to a transaction.