Tax office blitz chases billions
Billions of dollars in assets could be returned to Australia by people trying to avoid an Australian Tax Office blitz and harsh new penalties.
Already $1 billion in assets and $180 million in previously secret offshore income has come to light under the ATO's Project DO IT.
The project aims to give people with big amounts of income or cash in overseas tax havens a chance to come clean.
Penalties for not paying enough tax will be reduced for those who own up before the project's cut-off on December 19.
The reduced penalties include not being referred to police for criminal investigation.
So far, 900 people have gone to the ATO and 600 have made an expression of interest.
Deputy tax commissioner Michael Cranston said there was clear interest from people in getting their affairs in order.
"What we're seeing is people waking up to the fact that it doesn't make sense anymore to hide assets and income offshore," he said. "Recent developments in exchange of information between countries and improved data matching mean there's nowhere left to hide."
Most cash stashed overseas has been in Switzerland. Other tax havens include Israel, Britain, Singapore and Hong Kong.
Of money and assets found so far, about 11 per cent is held by people whose net wealth exceeds $30 million. Another 24 per cent is held by people worth between $5 million and $30 million.
It is believed the ATO expects a big increase in assets and income to come its way as the 600 people on its expression of interest list get their affairs in order.
In many cases, the overseas money has been in low-interest accounts or in assets effectively controlled by family trusts.
By bringing the assets back to Australia, people are able to take advantage of more lucrative investment opportunities.
The program has also given the ATO more intelligence on overseas asset holdings through financial institutions.
