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ARTICLE · 17 SEPTEMBER 2024

Uber win pauses payroll tax $81m assessment under 'relevant contract' rules

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Payments made under the contracts between Uber & its drivers are not 'taxable wages'.

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In a win for the taxpayer, the NSW Supreme Court recently handed down its decision in Uber Australia Pty Ltd v Chief Commissioner of State Revenue [2024] NSWSC 1124. On 6 September 2024, Chief Justice Hammerschlag determined that Uber Australia Pty Ltd (Uber) was not liable for payroll tax on contracts with its drivers on the basis that the payments made under those contracts were not 'taxable wages'.

Background

The Chief Commissioner of State Revenue (Chief Commissioner) issued Uber with payroll tax assessments totalling $81,515,923 for the 2015 to 2020 financial years. The Chief Commissioner also imposed interest at the premium rate on top of these assessments.

The assessments were based on amounts collected by Uber from customers who ordered rides through the Uber riders app (Riders) and later remitted to the drivers (Drivers). The Chief Commissioner argued that these amounts were 'taxable wages' paid or payable 'for or in relation to the performance of

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