annual report 2020–21

1 Commissioner of Taxation annual report20 20 21 ContactMailDirector, annual ReportEnterprise Strategy and DesignAustralian Taxation OfficePO Box 9977 Civic Square ACT 2608 Phone (02) 6216 1111 Email report AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE FOR THE COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA, 2021 You are free to copy, adapt, modify, transmit and distribute this material as you wish (but not in any way that suggests the ATO or the Commonwealth endorses you or any of your services or products).PublishedAustralian Taxation OfficeCanberra, October 2021 NAT DE-36162 AcknowledgmentsThank you to all ATO and editedDigital Experience and Events, ATO Corporate, Australian Taxation OfficePrintedPrinted on Monza Recycled paper that contains 99% recycled fibre, and elemental chlorine free pulp. All virgin pulp is derived from well-managed forests and controlled sources.

2 Monza Recycled is manufactured by an ISO 14001 certified of Taxationannual report 2020 21 Commissioner of Taxation annual report 2020 21 IICommissioner s reviewI am pleased to report on the performance of the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) for 2020 21. The last year has been one of the biggest in the ATO s history, and we were called on to do more than we ve ever done before. Continuing our strong record of meeting government and community expectations, we supported Australians when they needed it most and I am immensely proud of what we have continued our focus on delivering government stimulus measures and supporting those affected by COVID-19. Across the whole program, the roll out of JobKeeper saw $ billion in economic support in 2020 21, and our administration of the temporary Early Release of Super and Cash Flow Boost stimulus measures saw $ billion and $ billion released into the economy.

3 We also supported those through lodgment and payment deferrals, as well as flexible payment options, including interest-free payment 2020 21 we also: collected gross tax of $ billion and provided refunds of $ billion, with net tax collections of $ billion, up $ billion ( ) from 2019 20 delivered Tax Time 2020, receiving over million individual current-year income tax returns, resulting in over million refunds delivered key government commitments, including through our Tax Avoidance Taskforce and Serious Financial Crime Taskforce completed, as part of the Modernising Business Registers program, the transfer of the registry functions from the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) to the ATO. While the delivery of stimulus measures was a priority, demand for our core services continued, and in fact increased to record highs with Tax Time 2020.

4 On the first day of tax time alone, we processed more than 740,000 lodgments received via our online service channels, including income tax returns, early release of super applications, JobKeeper and cash flow boost payments a massive increase from the 100,000 we processed on the first day of tax time in tailored our advice and guidance and worked closely with the tax profession to help the community through the impacts of the year. We know this year was hard on tax practitioners, as they navigated a raft of new measures for clients experiencing significant stress and uncertainty. We also helped them understand entitlements and obligations and, where we could, provided quick access to support options for their clients, including quicker refunds and standards and staff engagement could have waned during this period due to increased demand and the challenges posed by the environment, but instead they went up.

5 Our client and community confidence score rose to a record high of 68 for 2020 21 two points higher than the previous year. Employee engagement scores also reached record highs and have remained there into 2021. These results demonstrate not only how successfully the ATO rose to the challenges brought on by the pandemic in Australia, but how it in fact strengthened our resolve and commitment to IIII am honoured that in 2020 21 I was appointed the first Registrar of the newly established Australian Business Registry Services (ABRS). The ATO is leading the delivery of the Modernising Business Registers (MBR) program, delivering on the government s deregulation agenda, and we are bringing together registers across the ATO and ASIC into one place. In 2021, the ATO welcomed 221 new staff from ASIC to join us.

6 Together, we will be consolidating over 30 business registers to streamline how businesses interact with government and manage their registry we did all this, we also continued our business transformation, achieving some key milestones over the last 12 months. For example, we: delivered Online services for business, making it easier for businesses of all sizes to manage their obligations with the ATO made further enhancements to Single Touch Payroll (STP), enabling streamlined reporting for employers by leveraging their current processes real-time reporting through STP is also helping employees get timely and accurate am pleased to say our people have been the foundation of our achievements. I m very proud of the flexibility, resilience and commitment ATO staff have shown, and of the strong leadership displayed across all levels of the organisation.

7 ATO staff proved again that our culture, commitment and care for each other is what enables us to serve the Australian community with empathy and forwardThe ATO is committed to continuously improving our services and systems to deliver better experiences for our clients. Our commitment to transformation is evidence of this and has positioned us to rise to the challenges of 2020 21. In the year ahead, we are driving our transformation even further as we move towards delivery of some key initiatives. Through this, we will strive to exceed the expectations of government, clients and staff and make our tax, superannuation and business registration systems stronger and more accessible for the benefit of the Jordan AO Commissioner of Taxation and Registrar of the Australian Business Register and the Australian Business Registry ServicesIII Commissioner of Taxation annual report 2020 21 IVContents II Commissioner s review VI Letter of transmittal02 annual performance statement 11 Statement by the Accountable Authority 12 Program Australian Taxation Office 46 Program Tax Practitioners Board 47 Program Australian Business Registry Services 51 Program Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission 52 Administered programs to Revenue performance 57 Revenue collection 60 Tax performance 64 Total revenue effects 1 About us 2 Outcome and program structure 4 ATO client landscape 5 Our ministers 6

8 The ATO Executive 10 Organisational structure01 Overview V04 Management and accountability 69 Corporate governance 82 Workforce management 105 Financial performance05 Financial statements 117 About the financial statements 118 Financial statements06 Appendixes 182 Appendix 1: Laws conferring powers on the Commissioner 183 Appendix 2: Taxpayers Charter our performance 185 Appendix 3: Public advice and dispute management 189 Appendix 4: Legal services expenditure 191 Appendix 5: Strategic litigation 196 Appendix 6: Debt management 198 Appendix 7: Compensation statistics 199 Appendix 8: Service commitments and activities 205 Appendix 9: Advertising, direct mail, media placement and market research 208 Appendix 10: Use of access powers 209 Appendix 11: Information provided to law enforcement agencies 215 Appendix 12: Fraud or evasion exception 216 Appendix 13: Corrections 218 Appendix 14: Reference material01 Commissioner of Taxation annual report 2020 21 VIThe Hon.

9 Michael Sukkar MPAssistant TreasurerMinister for HousingMinister for Homelessness, Social and Community Housing Parliament HouseCANBERRA ACT 2600 Dear ministerAs the Accountable Authority for the Australian Taxation Office (the ATO), the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) and the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB), I present you with the annual reports for the year ended 30 June 2021 for presentation to Parliament, in compliance with section 46 of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act reports follow the guidelines approved by the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit, as well as other legislative reporting requirements as listed in: sections 17AA to 17AJ of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Rule 2014 subsection 60-130(1) of the Tax Agent Services Act 2009 (for the TPB) Division 130 of the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission Act 2012 (for the ACNC).

10 Due to their operational independence and statutory obligations, the TPB and the ACNC have produced their own annual required by section 10 of the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Rule 2014, I certify that we have: prepared fraud risk assessments and fraud control plans appropriate fraud prevention, detection, investigation and reporting mechanisms that meet the specific needs of the ATO taken all reasonable measures to appropriately deal with sincerelyChris Jordan AOCommissioner of Taxation andRegistrar of the Australian Business Registerand the Australian Business Registry Services 30 September 2021 The Hon. Dr Gary Johns Commissioner Australian Charities and Not-for-profits CommissionIan Klug AM Chair Tax Practitioners BoardCOMMISSIONER OF TAXATION01 OverviewAbout usOur vision is to be a leading tax and superannuation administration known for our contemporary service, expertise and integrityAs a Commonwealth entity within the Treasury portfolio, the ATO is accountable under the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (PGPA Act) and the Public Service Act 1999 (PS Act).