Key Points:
The draft regulations would mean eligible Tier 2
instruments issued by ADIs on or after 1 January 2013 are not
precluded from being treated as debt for tax purposes.
The Australian Government announced proposals in July to amend
tax legislation to ensure that from the commencement of the Basel
III capital reforms in Australia on 1 January 2013, eligible Tier 2
instruments issued by authorised deposit-taking institutions
(ADIs) on or after that date are not precluded
from being treated as debt for tax purposes. On 31 October 2012,
the Commonwealth Government released
draft tax regulations to implement these amendments for
comment.
The draft regulations are directed at all Tier 2 instruments
which, under Basel III, will be required to contain "bail-in
provisions" from 1 January 2013. A bail-in provision is a
mechanism under which regulatory capital instruments (such as Tier
2 instruments) are required to be written off or converted into
ordinary