The office was a buzz of excitement. The word had passed around. The Deputy Commissioner of Taxation, Cheryl Lea Fields was in town and was dropping in to pay a visit to our humble office!

Our Toowoomba Compliance manager Megan Lipp with Deputy Commissioner of Taxation, Cheryl Lea Fields.

Despite any initial reservations, it was confirmed that the Deputy’s visit was NOT an audit and had nothing to do with the integrity of our lodgements. Rather, Cheryl-Lea was in town on Friday 17th August, talking earlier that day to the Toowoomba Chamber of Commerce and as part of her tightly scheduled agenda, she had expressed interest in catching up with a local practitioner at the grass-roots level. The discussions revolved around the ATO’s lodgement program and the need for tax agents to maintain a good lodgement history. To date, we at Power Tynan have enjoyed a healthy relationship with the ATO in relation to our lodgements, which we have achieved through both our prudent follow up of clients via phone calls and letters during the year, but also with the efforts and assistance from you our clients, in making sure we have all the information we need in a timely and orderly fashion. To further assist us in this endeavour, we will continue this year to send checklists prior to commencing your work, to help you when compiling your tax information. Please do not hesitate to contact our office prior to sending your information in to have these sent to you. In addition, wherever possible, we will also seek opportunities to make recommendations in relation to improvements in record keeping and in particular, to encourage clients to realise the benefits and efficiencies gained from online computer programs.

The Deputy Commissioner also listened to our concerns and frustrations over the recent changes to the ATO’s approach to debt collection and increasing aggressive approach to reigning in outstanding lodgements including both Business Activity Statement and Tax Return lodgements.

Other messages Cheryl delivered on behalf of the ATO included the continuing focus of ensuring that all businesses operate on a ‘level playing field’ in regards to the cash economy and fraudulent activities. She also highlighted the need for practitioners and clients to be alert to scams and other criminal activities. As clients we urge you to keep your confidential information such as tax file numbers secure at all times. In addition, we promote the use of our Secure Returns facility that allows us to transmit copies of your tax returns, financial statements etc to you directly at no cost. At the same time, you as a client can upload your important financial documents for us to access.