Australian Tax Office to release new rules on Bitcoin transactions.
15 replies, posted
[QUOTE]The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has been grappling for years with the difficult question on how to classify the digital currency bitcoin.
Freedom of Information (FOI) documents obtained by AM show the tax office has been keeping a detailed watching brief on bitcoin-related issues and news.
The file shows a few years ago the agency was sceptical, but soon realised that people could use internet currencies to avoid paying tax, and became worried about the currency's significant growth.
Now it appears the tax office has got its head around digital currencies and is preparing to release rules on how it will treat bitcoin transactions under taxation law.
Source:
[url]http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-06-10/australian-tax-office-release-new-rules-on-bitcoin-transactions/5511624[/url][/QUOTE]
How will they track them though?
dogecoin confirmed for the new currency of silk road
so no tax for dogecoin?
Interesting, I actually had to do an assignment for Company Accounting at uni about a hypothetical virtual currency very similar to Bitcoin and the proper accounting treatment required for it. The problem with virtual currencies and our Accounting standards (which are those created by the IASB but with some slight modification, which most of the western world excluding the US also use) is that they are best classified as intangible assets (meets the definition of an asset in the conceptual framework, and arguably meets the definition of intangible in AASB 138), but an intangible asset cannot be considered revenue according to AASB 138. That skews the balance sheet and presents tax avoidance potential.
Tl;dr it's a good thing the ATO is making a judgement on this. We need it.
[editline]10th June 2014[/editline]
[QUOTE=Reshy;45055602]How will they track them though?[/QUOTE]
The same way entities track all their assets.
[editline]10th June 2014[/editline]
[QUOTE=Boilrig;45056001]so no tax for dogecoin?[/QUOTE]
Any judgement they make will probably affect all virtual currencies.
Boy has bitcoin dropped of the radar a lot, this is the first news article about it I've seen in months
[QUOTE=Lonestriper;45056149]Boy has bitcoin dropped of the radar a lot, this is the first news article about it I've seen in months[/QUOTE]
It's been drooping for months in the aftermath of the $1200 bubble, down to about $450, now the slope has trended positive again and it's back to about $650. Here comes the next bubble. Assuming it'll keep acting the way it has been historically, I wouldn't be surprised with a ~$5000 peak around the end of the summer, falling back to around $3000 by the end of the year.
[img]https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-93FsfXJbXCQ/U5aaDDVhNjI/AAAAAAAAR-U/gyAf6D1ouYU/s0/2014-06-10_01-39-25.png[/img]
Vertical axis is $/millibitcoin, so multiply by 1000
edit: logarithmic version:
[img]https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-0TEgl-aRpZI/U5aclaXkyCI/AAAAAAAAR-c/F0geSiksuPU/s0/2014-06-10_01-50-14.png[/img]
But isn't the whole point of bitcoin is to avoid govt. intervention and taxes and shit?
[QUOTE=adam1172;45057084]But isn't the whole point of bitcoin is to avoid govt. intervention and taxes and shit?[/QUOTE]
That might be the point of Bitcoin, but no one should ever be allowed to get away with tax evasion. It doesn't matter whether you're a labourer, an accountant, a small business owner or the chairperson of the largest corporation in the world.
[QUOTE=adam1172;45057084]But isn't the whole point of bitcoin is to avoid govt. intervention and taxes and shit?[/QUOTE]
The moment you admit that's the point is the moment where you declare the currency illegal.
[QUOTE=Matthew0505;45057339]How is it supposed to be enforced though, Bitcoin works by hard encryption and shit not just loopholes.[/QUOTE]
The same way tax is enforced? If they think you're cheating, you'll get audited and have to hand over your wallet details.
[QUOTE=Matthew0505;45057339]How is it supposed to be enforced though, Bitcoin works by hard encryption and shit not just loopholes.[/QUOTE]
You can track transactions, it would actually probably be easier to tax and audit than normal cash currency.
Any ability to doge taxes with bitcoin is probably equivalent to doing it with conventional methods.
[QUOTE=Matthew0505;45057339]How is it supposed to be enforced though, Bitcoin works by hard encryption and shit not just loopholes.[/QUOTE]
Uhh the same way tax is enforced on all relevant business transactions. It's enforced through journals, ledgers (well, accounts) and subsequent financial reports and for public companies there is also mandatory auditing by a third party. Plus, if ASIC smells anything fishy, they can launch their own investigation as well. It's harder to [i]not[/i] enforce it than it is to enforce it.
Now we just need the ATO to cover up the tax evasion loophole.
[QUOTE=Winner;45055606]Even though it's a tax it's neat that the government is actually acknowledging and legitimizing bitcoin[/QUOTE]
Why wouldn't they? They're recognising it as a tradeable good, which it was from the start.
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