Tax board penalizes unregistered accountant serving as councillor

An independent councillor on a Sydney-area council was penalized this week by the Tax Practitioners Board for providing tax agent services without current registration. The board found he had lodged tax returns and business activity statements for clients through another business and used insolvency arrangements to help clients avoid paying employer tax, GST and superannuation.

It also found he arranged backdated appointments of straw directors and changes in share registry records to redirect creditor notices to third parties, including some with criminal records or who were bankrupt.

The board said the conduct included deliberate steps to obscure the arrangements and creditor-defeating schemes. ”

petition A week earlier the councillor lost a Supreme Court case against his own council and must pay the council’s costs, estimated by council staff at about $200,000. He had sought an injunction to stop sharing a code-of-conduct investigation report into him.

”

He said his staff were licensed tax agents and his role was limited to business development.