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Tech companies aren't 'misleading' us, Oz Tax Office tells Senate

No fibs, but we disagree with what they say

The ongoing stoush between multinationals and the Australian Tax Office continues, with Tax Commissioner Chris Jordan telling a senate inquiry that big companies weren't misleading senators about their tax affairs.

Truly, they're not: Jordan said so, noting that “mislead” is “a subjective term” (when under oath before a Senate committee, Vulture South would note, “mislead” is also something that can get a witness into legal trouble).

So as to prevent hostility from escalating into outright warfare, Jordan reverted to diplomatic legalises, saying the ATO takes issue with and “dispute some of the comments that have been made”.

Hence Apple's contention that it books all Australian revenue properly isn't “misleading”, but the ATO contends that some profits are shifted to low tax jurisdictions.

Nor was anything said by Microsoft to the same inquiry “misleading”, it's merely that the ATO believes that booking AU$2 billion of revenue in Singapore and $100 million in Australia might not be a reasonable split.

Jordan added that the ATO thinks some of that income might be visiting Singapore merely to change flights and head for Bermuda (an arrangement the ATO believes might be used by Google).

Lest readers think that it's only the tech sector indulging in what Jordan calls “aggressive tax planning”, it's worth noting that mining companies BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto are also under investigation. ®

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