Anyone getting hard hit by absentee land taxes?

They tax land in Australia because they want discourage foreign investment? Or discourage Ozzies who live abroad from owning land? (Yes some populist politicians hold this view).

How to move money and investment out of Oz? That easy - as you have said, sell and move it elsewhere

 

If it makes you feel better, your collateral damage. The aim is to tax foreign owners. Aussies living abroad is too small a group to be targeted.

Sell then. Locals will buy it. Great politically.

If you think the returns are there, though, why sell out of spite?

 

Yes but absentee was classified as a foreigner (ie a non-citizen). Now it has been amended to include citizens who are overseas more than 180 days. So for some of us in this category, working hard offshore but investing in land with the hope of returning to live the "Ozzie dream" we are being whacked big time from this year onwards.

For many I know in that category they simply will move out of Oz assets and in countries or assets that are not taxed in this way.

Actually the entire concept of a cgt I find abhorrent. I can live with a gst, and I can tolerate an income tax (if it's sufficiently low) but to tax a capital gain basically amounts to stealing in my view. Basically it allows a Govt to inflate assets by money printing (not real value increases but huge nominal value increases) and then take part of a citizens assets (on the basis that the person has made a "gain"). It's sneaky stuff that many less educated people fail to fully comprehend. And it's why more and more wealth is being moved to counties like HK, Singapore, Monaco etc and why more people are basing themselves there, and more being moved from taxable assets into things like bitcoins (away from government reach).

 

Yes I realise citizens in this group are collateral damage. Does it make me feel better? No - why would it? Yes it's a political and populist decision. Will it pay off for poliricians? Next election in Queensland we will see. But yes the "steal for the rich to give to the poor" often appeals politically but not necessarily economically. And not great politically if overall it hurts foreign investment, torisism, education, tradesmen, builders etc.

 

Youve really chosen the wrong country to focus your assets if your point is tax minimisation. Thats just not how the country is structured.

 

The absentee provision always included citizens that were absent from Australia

 

True although to some extent property offered some ability to minimise taxes if structured optimally.

 

Absentee land tax surcharge takes effect

 

This is the surcharge. The was always extra land tax for absentees though. They have always been taxed under a separate section of the land tax act.

 

Ok. Well I'm talking about the surcharge then I guess. It's resulted in citizens considered to be "absentees" paying double what they used to.

Prior to that they were charged be same as corporations (so yes different to local resident citizens) but nothing so as extreme as what just took effect.

 

Rates for companies, trustees and absentees | Environment, land and water | Queensland Government

 

Citizens were already potentially falling under the absentees definition.

 

And I had a tax tip on this ages ago:
Tax Tip 96: QLD Land Tax for Non Residents Tax Tip 96: QLD Land Tax for Non Residents

 

Yes correct. And now, the following applies to such absentees:

If you are considered an absentee at 30 June 2017 and for following years, a surcharge will apply.

This is how the surcharge is calculated:

(Taxable value − $349,999) × 1.5%

 

Thanks. Yes noted.

 

Hey Big Max, have you had a look on Facebook mate - set up a 'Land tax & Absentee Surcharge Victims' group designed to help and inform those of us in this terrible dilemna. Will get you away from the critics who just want to throw in their unhelpful 'suck it up' comments etc. Doesn't affect them you see so they do not care. Financially I have massive problems now because of it. Affecting my health severely. But if we can collectively form a group - We can chat and exchange our responses with the Premier, Treasury and other members of parliament and see what action can be taken as there seems to be a few options regarding the unconstitutional and unfair way it was implemented. hope you join up. It is new and content is increasing. Cheers.

 

What a pack of mongrels Queensland government is for doing this to its own citizens. Glad my property that I intend to return to is in NSW (Byron Bay, my home town), but a lot of empathy for Queenslanders doing the same thing but hit by this unfair and illogical tax.

 

Yeah it's very much against the grain of looking after their own people - especially Queenslanders who are effectively now trapped 6 months of a year in QLD or face the wrath of the gate keeper treasury. Very unique to QLD and very un-Australian. It is ratcheting up to being more and more of a Communist State. Problem is so many Aussies are apathetic until they are personally affected in some way.
Hoping that Queenslanders who I thought to be known as a tight knit group of people who don't like their own getting screwed over will see the unfairness and make it known in the next elections.

 

Unfortunately many people think retired people living in thailand or the philippines or indonesia are just taking advantage of the tax system and sleeping with bar girls and young girls.

Its not always the case but a large percentage do and thats why i dont think the average taxpayer will care. They will just say if you love australia come back. I know its not that easy and australia is very expensive for retirment but i have less faith in human nature than yourself.

 

On a serious note you mentioned coming back to australia for 6 months. Cant you do what some others are doing and buy an old kombi or van and travel around in it and sleep in it for those 6 month you are back.

My parents are travelling around in a mobile van and loving it. Sleeping whereever they can park.

You could even travel to fruit picking sites and try to get some casual fruit picking jobs.