/ File Ref: / [FILE NO.]
Title: / Single Touch Payroll Working Group meeting
Venue:
date of meeting: / Teleconference
Date:Friday14 August2015
Time:10.00am to 11.00am (AEST)
Chair: / Michael Gleeson(ATO) / Facilitator: / Michael Gleeson
Contact: / Kate French / Contact Phone: / 02 4923 1134
0439 422 952
next Meeting: / Teleconference 21 August 2015

KEY MESSAGES

  • Michael apologised for the omission of an ABSIA representative as the co-chair of these meetings,this will be reinstated for future meetings – Matt Voce will be the ABSIA representative.
  • There was a discussion on the completed action items, as a result some of these are now open again.
  • Other issues raised through feedback that aren’t on the action items list will be added – this will be shared with the group next week, it will then be an ongoing issues register.
  • Status of STP - still awaiting a government announcement in relation to STP, what does it look like now, what should reporting look like, there is the potential for a face to face workshop this and to see how the pilot approach could work.
  • David Field gave a quick update on where ABSIA is at in relation to open source. This will be added to the issues register.

ACTION ITEMS:

ID / Action item / Status Update
Open items
1 / Provide a roadmap of known items of change for the ATO to include future potential STP scope, SuperStream milestones, changes to myGov/ATO Online etc. / In progress. Seeking latest pack developed for Board of Taxation
2 / Advise who is liable where there is a fraudulent log on to myGov and e.g. Super Choice nomination is made to an SMSF. / In progress.
Pending advice
6 / Raise software developer community view with Treasury that greater value can be provided to businesses with a change in secrecy provisions. E.g. it would provide greater value if, in wholesale onboarding, employee relationship with a particular superfund could be validated. / On Hold. View to change secrecy provisions have been raised with Treasury. Awaiting feedback.
7 / Raise software developer community view of benefit of broadening use of myGov credential with DTO. / On Hold. Discussions have commenced within the ATO to consider the user experience and security.
14 / Amendments Workshop. Consider the legalities around the condition of professional employee monthly payments. Where an employee receives a monthly payment classified either in arrears or in advance and the payroll report is then provided at a later, will this condition be supported by STP? / In progress. Pending advice.
17 / Establish SWD action item register for progress tracking towards consultation items. / In progress. At the preparative project meeting of 13-08-15, a decision was reached to fulfil the need to create a new SWD action item register. The purpose of the register is maintain a record and track view of raised consultation items, to keep developers informed on the progress of the project.
ID / Action item / Status Update
Completed items
3 / Advise the electronic record keeping requirements for TFN Dec. / Completed.Depends on law change and what status the ATO Online on-boarding form takes. If it replaces ‘a TFN declaration given to a payer’, then a payer should not need to keep a record of it as they won’t ever have been given a TFN declaration to retain.
Otherwise, the existing law applies and a payer must retain the declaration until the second 1 July after the day on which the declaration ceases to have effect.
4 / Advise whether there is any possible situation where data changed by employer will update ATO-held data – formal response based on law required. / Completed. The current design does not support any situation where the updating of employee-related data by an employer in their BMS updates ATO-held information about that employee e.g. changing their address/name etc.
5 / Advise the legal position on what action is required where data goes to the wrong employer. / Completed. 13-08-15There is no legal requirement to retrieve data thatis sent to and accepted by the incorrect employer. However, where the ATO is notified of these events, the ATO will engage in to determine the risk of compromised TFN’s through existing processes and determine whether there has been a breach.
8 / Check whether specifics of offset details are currently on variation forms / Completed. NAT 3092 Tax file number declaration and NAT 3093 Withholding declaration reviewed for specific offset variation labels. 11 new elements were extrapolated and included into the STP on-boarding taxonomy to include upward, downward and seniors pensioners variation offsets.
9 / Work through issues associated with RFBA and bring options back to working group. / Completed. 7-08-15 Project decision to remove the RFBA and other non-payroll items out of the payroll event raised with developers. A cursory explanation of a new payroll updating service was highlighted, to indicate that the non – payroll items can be reported at EOFY through this new service. The new service still requires design and definition moving forward. See also action item 10.
10 / Define what constitutes the need to report to the ATO and advise working group. Is it a withholding event? Would Super contribution only be reported? What if there is salary sacrifice amount that impacts taxable income? / Completed. 13-08-15The ATO aims to realise an enhancement to Australian payroll accounting systems. New technologies exist to support frequent direct reporting and tax transparency between the ATO and the employer community. The STP program intends to establish a B2G reporting requirement, backed by law, surrounding the following liabilities:
1 – Employee PAYGW liability derived from the salary payments made by an entity to their staff, in accordance with the definition provided under STP-521.
2 – ATO Super have defined a requirement to also have both Super entitlement information reported to the ATO on event basis.
3 – ATO Super further intends to collect confirmation of Super payments from employers, driven by the actual payment event to a super fund. The correlation between items 2 and 3 will support ATO Super to define a policy around the implementation of SGC.
4 – Further payroll items that cannot be deemed frequently by event basis like RFBA and associated Salary Sacrifice calculations have been drawn out from the proposed STP payroll event.
5 - A purpose built independent service “STP Payment Summary Update” Event will need to be developed to ensure the capture of payroll related information that falls out of the norm.
11 / Arrange meeting with software providers who allow amendments to payroll events e.g. where it is possible to reverse/delete. Participants to be identified by ABSIA. / Completed. Scheduled for 9 July 2015. Outcomes currently being documented.
12 / Find out how many amended payment summaries the ATO receives each year. / Completed. In 2014 there were 268,245 payment summaries amended by payers – representing ~2%
13 / Explore options for services that can be provided to enable employers to reconcile ATO. / Completed. Functionality to enable employers to reconcile information held by the ATO with that in their software is currently being designed.
15 / Amendments Workshop. Explain ATO decision not to display collected super data into ATO Online for employees. What are the reasons and impacts for this motion? / Completed. The decision not to introduce STP collected super data into ATO Online for employees was supported through the consideration that, the ATO could not be deemed as the custodian for SG data. This becomes particularly important where the reported values are in error, as the source of the data is not the fund but the employer. A complete view of what super payments made by the employer, actually reaching a correct fund destination cannot be intervened by STP.
Additionally, any confirmation of a lack of SG payments made by an employer to an employee over ATO Online would be considered a disclosure of an employer’s legal SG liability. The following project decision was also recorded in support of this motion.
16 / Amendments Workshop. Clarification on the definition of how a Salary Sacrificed amount is treated, with respect to gross employee payments and payroll reporting. / Completed. 7-08-15 As per ATO advice on completing payment summary reporting and avoiding common errors:
Do not include amounts paid under a salary sacrifice arrangement at Gross payments. / Amounts that are paid to a super fund under a salary sacrifice arrangement must be reported at Reportable employer superannuation contributions.
Any other amounts paid under a salary sacrifice arrangement may need to be reported at Reportable fringe benefits amount; otherwise, they should not be reported on the payment summary.
Further legislation and ATO Public Rulings can be sourced from the ATO website.

CLASSIFICATION: UNCLASSIFIED