LEGISLATION HAS BEEN PASSED
Legislation passed both houses of parliament on 24 February 2020, which allows employers a one-off amnesty for outstanding superannuation entitlements. Employers who have not paid their workers their superannuation entitlements will be given an amnesty of 6 months from the date of royal assent to rectify this issue.
To qualify for the amnesty, employers will have to voluntarily come forward and pay all employee entitlements without any prompting from the ATO, during the specified amnesty period. Failure to come forward during the amnesty period may result in fines of up to double the unpaid entitlements in conjunction with other penalties.
Penalties and administration fees are likely to be waived if employers voluntarily come forward and make superannuation payments. Any eligible outstanding superannuation payments made during the amnesty period will be deductible to the employer like they would for current superannuation payments.
If you fall into the above category and owe payments to your workers, it is recommended that you utilise this amnesty, come forward, and pay any amounts due before 30 June 2020 to claim the full tax benefit in this current year. With the ATO’s increased visibility with STP reporting and data matching, it is only a matter of time before you are asked for an explanation on any superannuation shortfall by the ATO, if you have not been keeping up to date with your employer obligations.
If you are unsure about what to do, then please contact our office on (07) 5439 0188 to discuss with one of our qualified accountants.