The Tribunal set aside the Commissioner's assessment of landholder duty ($415,000), penalty tax ($103,750) and interest ($3,330) against the applicant, finding that no relevant acquisition of shares occurred on the date specified in the assessment (15 November 2021). The Tribunal held that the preponderance of evidence — including backdated ASIC forms lodged two months after the purported transfer date, the applicant being overseas, the absence of share transfer forms or register entries, and contemporaneous emails showing the arrangement had not been finalised — constituted 'evidence to the contrary' displacing the prima facie effect of ASIC records under s 1274B(2) of the Corporations Act. The decision leaves open whether a relevant acquisition occurred on some other date, expressly noting this is a matter for the Commissioner to consider in determining whether to issue a further assessment.
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