ATO changes - company directors held personally responsible

Legal Update - Urgent Warning for Company Directors - Directors Penalty Notice

Wednesday, July 04, 2012

The Commonwealth Government has made amendments to the Directors Penalty Notice provisions. These amendments have far reaching consequences upon any directors of companies that owe the Australian Taxation Office (“ATO”) outstanding:-

• pay as you go (“PAYG”) withholding deductions; and
• extends to superannuation guarantee amounts.

If a company has a tax debt payable to the ATO (often in relation to PAYG withholding amounts), the director may be served with a Director Penalty Notice (“DPN”), which will clearly state the dollar amount of the company’s tax debt.

A DPN is intended to make directors liable for their company’s unpaid tax debt

to read more see:

http://www.tml.com.au/_blog/Blog/post/Legal_Update_-_PAYG/