Australian Taxation Office

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Australian Taxation Office
ATO logo transparent.png
Agency overview
Formed11 November 1910;115 years ago (1910-11-11)
Preceding agencies
  • Commonwealth Taxation Office
  • Federal Taxation Office
Jurisdiction Australian Government
Headquarters Canberra, Australian Capital Territory
Employees21,493 (June 2025) [1]
Annual budgetA$4.5 billion (2024–25) [2]
Minister responsible
Deputy Minister responsible
Agency executive
  • Rob Heferen, Commissioner of Taxation
Parent department The Treasury
Child agencies
Key document
Website ato.gov.au

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is an Australian statutory agency and the principal revenue collection body for the Australian Government. The ATO has responsibility for administering the Australian federal taxation system, superannuation legislation, and other associated matters. Responsibility for the operations of the ATO is within the portfolio of the Treasurer of Australia and the Treasury.

Contents

As the Australian government's principal revenue collection body, the ATO collects income tax, goods and services tax (GST) and other federal taxes. The ATO also has responsibility for managing the Australian Business Register, delivering the Higher Education Loan Program, delivering many Australian government payments and administering key components of Australia's superannuation system. [3]

History

During the colonial period of the 1800s, a number of landholders had secured large tracts of arable land in Australia. After the states federated in 1901 to form the Commonwealth of Australia, the Commonwealth's main source of revenue was derived from indirect customs and the excise on duties on locally manufactured and imported goods. The Labor Andrew Fisher government was elected at the 1910 federal election and was concerned about large swathes of the country being under-utilised. The government introduced the first federal tax laws – the Bank Notes Tax Act 1910 , the Land Tax Act 1910 and the Land Tax Assessment Act 1910 – to break up the large estates. [4]

George McKay was appointed the first Commissioner of Land Taxation on 11 November 1910. [4] The first tax return forms were issued on 10 January 1911 so that landholders could be assessed for their land tax liabilities. [4] The tax was not popular, but a High Court of Australia challenge to the land tax found the law to be constitutional. [4] The associated land valuations were contentious with more than 1,800 appeals and objections received by the middle of 1913. [4]

In his first year, commissioner McKay had underneath him 105 tax officers, assessed approximately 15,000 land tax returns and collected £1.3 million to £1.4 million. Over the next decade, the government introduced several new taxes, mainly to cope with the massive cost of Australia's collecting revenue to fund participation in World War I. By the end of the decade, the department employed 1,565 people and collected approximately £10.45 million in taxes. [4]

The ATO was the first Australian Government agency to introduce a virtual assistant using artificial intelligence on its website (see Artificial intelligence in government). [5]

Commissioner

Rob Heferen was appointed Commissioner of Taxation and Registrar of the Australian Business Register on 1 March 2024. [6]

The Australian Taxation Office has been headed by thirteen Commissioners of Taxation:[ citation needed ]

Organisational structure

The Commissioner of Taxation is responsible for the general administration of the tax system and the ATO. The Commissioner of Taxation and three Second Commissioners of Taxation are each appointed for a term of seven years. The Commissioner and Second Commissioners are eligible for re-appointment after each term. [7]

The overall strategic direction of the organisation is set by the ATO Executive Committee, which is composed of the Commissioner, three Second Commissioners, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Security Officer, and Chief Finance Officer. These roles are currently held by: [8]

The ATO's operations are managed through five groups which are led by members of the executive. These groups are: [8]

Groups are further divided into business and service lines (BSLs) which are responsible for the delivery of group priorities.[ citation needed ]

Performance

The Commissioner of Taxation is required to prepare and release an annual report each financial year. The annual report outlines the ATO's performance and achievements for each financial year.

ATO Net Tax Collections ($m) (2008–09 to 2024–25)
Financial Year2008–092009–102010–112011–122012–132013–142014–152015–162016–172017–182018–192019–202020–212021–222022–232023–242024–25
Net tax collections ($m)264,493253,138272,889300,953311,803321,650336,830343,355359,381396,749425,980404,745452,797515,692576,139610,559636,256
Ref. [9] [9] [9] [9] [9] [10] [10] [10] [11] [11] [11] [11] [12] [13] [13] [13] [14]

Legislation

The scope of the ATO falls under various acts of legislations, including:

Controversies

Whistleblower

In 2017, Richard Boyle, an employee of the ATO based in Adelaide, South Australia, raised internal concerns about debt-collection practices in its Adelaide office. Boyle alleged that there was a culture within the ATO to increase the use of garnishee notices, a measure that allows the ATO to access funds in the bank accounts of taxpayers. [15] After his concerns were dismissed, he aired the allegations on the ABC's Four Corners program in April 2018. The program revealed an email from a team leader that wrote "the last hour of power is upon us … that means you still have time to issue another five garnishees … right?". [16] [17]

Shortly before the Four Corners episode had aired, Boyle's house was raided by the Australian Federal Police who seized personal belongings, including his phone. He was charged with 66 offences, including using a listening device to monitor a private conversation, recording another person's tax file number and disclosing protected information. [18] His case was the first test of the Public Interest Disclosure Act 2013 . [18] In July 2020, the Commonwealth reduced his charges down to 24 offences. [19]

Boyle received support from journalists and politicians, including Rex Patrick, Jacqui Lambie, and David Pocock. Pocock and Lambie tabled the Whistleblower Protection Authority bill in parliament, aimed at protecting whistleblowers with legitimate concerns. [20] On 28 August 2025, he was sentenced by Judge Liesl Kudelka in the District Court of South Australia, after he pleaded guilty to four criminal charges. No conviction was recorded, and he was sentenced to only a A$500 fine and a 12-month good behaviour bond. [20] [21] [22]

Following the Four Corners episode, a review was conducted by the Inspector-General of Taxation, Ali Noroozi. [16] In 2019, following the review, the ATO concluded that Boyle's claim was not widespread practice in its Adelaide office; however, there were incidents that highlighted the need for better staff training. Furthermore, it noted that the email sent from the team leader was only sent to 12 staff members and that "the message was intended ironically, and not literally". [17] The ATO accepted all of the inspector-general's recommendations regarding internal communication, training procedures and contingency planning. [17]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Australian Taxation Office Annual Report 2024–25: Workforce management". www.transparency.gov.au. Archived from the original on 18 January 2026. Retrieved 18 January 2026.
  2. ↑ "Australian Taxation Office Annual Report 2024–25: Financial performance". www.transparency.gov.au. Archived from the original on 18 January 2026. Retrieved 18 January 2026.
  3. ↑ "Who are we?". Commonwealth of Australia. 26 May 2008. Archived from the original on 29 June 2009. Retrieved 30 May 2011.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Edmonds, Leigh (2010). "The 1910s: Laying the Foundations". A brief history of the Australian Taxation Office (PDF). Australian Taxation Office. pp. 5–22. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 June 2011. Retrieved 20 April 2013.
  5. ↑ "In Brief | Artificial Intelligence in the Public Sector | IPAA (ACT Division)". www.act.ipaa.org.au. Archived from the original on 1 January 2019. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  6. 1 2 "Introducing the new Commissioner". ato.gov.au. Australian Taxation Office. Archived from the original on 2 June 2013. Retrieved 1 March 2024.
  7. ↑ "Taxation Administration Act 1953". Federal Register of Legislation. Commonwealth of Australia. Archived from the original on 28 May 2024. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
  8. 1 2 "Organisational chart". Australian Tax Office . 25 November 2025. Archived from the original on 18 January 2026. Retrieved 18 January 2026.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 "Commissioner of Taxation Annual report 20112-13". Australian Taxation Office. 2013. Archived from the original on 1 February 2014. Retrieved 30 January 2014.
  10. 1 2 3 "Commissioner of Taxation Annual report 2015–16: Performance Reporting" (PDF). annualreport.ato.gov.au. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 March 2019. Retrieved 18 January 2026.
  11. 1 2 3 4 "AN INVESTIGATION AND EXPLORATION OF UNDISPUTED TAX DEBTS IN AUSTRALIA" (PDF). www.igt.gov.au. June 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on 16 April 2025. Retrieved 18 January 2026.
  12. ↑ "Australian Taxation Office Annual Report 2020-21: Revenue collection". www.transparency.gov.au. Archived from the original on 12 August 2025. Retrieved 18 January 2026.
  13. 1 2 3 "Australian Taxation Office annual report 2023–24: Revenue collection". www.transparency.gov.au. Archived from the original on 12 December 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2026.
  14. ↑ "Australian Taxation Office annual report 2024–25: Revenue collection". www.transparency.gov.au. Archived from the original on 18 January 2026. Retrieved 18 January 2026.
  15. ↑ "'Mongrel bunch of bastards'". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 9 April 2018. Archived from the original on 20 May 2018. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  16. 1 2 Ryan, Peter (16 May 2018). "Tax inspector-general to investigate ATO garnishee orders". ABC News. Archived from the original on 16 May 2018. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  17. 1 2 3 Khadem, Nassim (12 March 2019). "ATO debt collection review finds there was 'no cash grab', but staff need better training". ABC News. Archived from the original on 19 December 2025. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
  18. 1 2 Khadem, Nassim (5 March 2019). "Blowing the whistle on the Australian Taxation Office could land this man in jail". ABC News. Archived from the original on 20 December 2025. Retrieved 18 January 2026.
  19. ↑ "CDPP drops 42 charges against ATO whistleblower Richard Boyle, but he could still face life in prison". ABC News. 3 July 2020. Archived from the original on 19 December 2025. Retrieved 18 January 2026.
  20. 1 2 Maddison, Abe (28 August 2025). "Tears as ATO whistleblower walks free". InDaily . Archived from the original on 28 August 2025. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
  21. ↑ Schriever, Jordanna (28 August 2025). "Whistleblower Richard Boyle has 'suffered' for years after revealing heavy-handed ATO tactics". ABC News. Archived from the original on 28 August 2025. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
  22. ↑ "Whistleblower Richard Boyle avoids conviction and jail after revealing tax office's unethical behaviour". The Guardian. 28 August 2025. Archived from the original on 30 December 2025. Retrieved 28 August 2025.

Further reading

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