According to a Treasury statement, the new tax system will aim to “modernise” the tax rules for eligible MITs and “increase certainty” for both MITs and their investors.
“The new rules will enhance the international competitiveness of Australian managed funds and promote the greater export of Australia’s funds management expertise,” the statement read.
The proposed system will include an attribution model for determining member tax liabilities, which allows amounts to retain their tax character as they flow through a MIT to its members.
It will also include the ability to carry forward understatements and overstatements of taxable income, instead of re-issuing investor statements.
The legislation will also address deemed fixed trust treatment under the income tax law; upwards cost base adjustments to address double taxation; and legislative certainty about the treatment of tax-deferred distributions.
According to Treasury’s exposure draft, “the new tax system will apply to a managed investment trust whose members have clearly defined interests in relation to the income of capital of the trust”.
Interested parties are invited to comment on the draft legislation and draft explanatory memorandum.
Submissions will close on 23 April 2015.
