In a rather generous decision, the Administrative Appeals
Tribunal (AAT) has recently held that a taxpayer
was a non-resident of Australia for income tax purposes and not
subject to income tax on foreign income derived from 1999 to 2002
income years.
Background
The taxpayer is an electronic engineer who left Australia in
1997 in pursuit of overseas contracting opportunities. He
obtained work in Czech Republic, Turkey, South Africa, USA,
Germany, Thailand and China (all on a short-term basis) before
returning to Australia on a permanent basis on 30 January
2002.
During this time the taxpayer established a domestic relationship
with a Philippine national and established a base in Manila.
He considered himself a non-resident for Australian income tax
purposes and as such did not include any foreign income derived
overseas in his Australian income tax returns for the income years
in question
