The ATO has announced that it will be extending its data matching program to include information relating to share sales. ASIC will now be providing details on all share transactions (including price, quantity and date) dating back to 2014. The ATO previously received information from brokers, share registries and stock exchanges meaning this announcement now furthers their scope in attaining this information.
With more than 5 million Australian’s now owning shares, there is an increase in the need for the ATO to monitor this area and ensure taxpayers are reporting information correctly.
The ATO’s areas of concern include:
- Some share sales not being reported in tax returns
- Incorrect and insufficient information regarding share transactions
- Incorrect treatment of capital losses that are being treated as a deduction
Some helpful tips in keeping your records up to date:
- Ensure hard copies of original buy and sell transactions are kept, as well as soft copies
- Store the copies safely in a folder
- Complete a summary of each transaction
The measures aim to increase voluntary compliance and support taxpayer engagement by providing education around the issue. The ATO will provide all information available to them through the tax portal pre-fill to assist taxpayers in including the correct amounts on their tax returns in a timely manner.
Contributed by Jordan Williams.
