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The investigations resulted in one having their registration terminated and banned from reapplying for 12 months and the other for five years.
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TPB bans 2 agents over conduct breaches
24 July 2023
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The TPB has banned two agents for five years and 12 months respectively, due to breaches of its code of professional conduct.
The first tax agent who received a five-year ban had provided the ATO 12 falsified audit reports in which nine contained a forged signature of the SMSF auditor.
The TPB’s investigation found the agent made false and misleading statements to the commissioner of taxation when the agent had lodged several self-managed superannuation fund annual returns to the ATO and claimed they had been audited by a registered SMSF auditor, which was not the case.
The board deemed the agent’s actions breached code item one of its code of conduct in relation to acting honestly and with integrity, and code item 11 relating to not knowingly obstructing the proper administration of the taxation laws.
The investigation resulted in the TPB’s Board Conduct Committee (BCC) determining the tax agent had failed to meet the registration requirement to be a fit and proper person, and viewed the nature of the conduct as serious and appalling behaviour that extended over a prolonged period.
The repeated nature of the conduct saw the TPB terminate the tax agent’s registration and impose a five-year non-application period.
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The TPB banned the other tax agent after it was discovered they had contravened several sections of the code of conduct and breached the ongoing registration requirement to maintain professional indemnity insurance.
The BCC found the tax agent breached:
- Code item 2: You must comply with the taxation laws in the conduct of your personal affairs
- Code item 13: You must maintain PI insurance that meets the board’s requirements
- Code item 14: You must respond to requests and directions from the board in a timely, responsible and reasonable manner.
The TPB’s investigation also found the tax agent failed to comply with taxation laws by neglecting to pay or enter into a payment arrangement to pay personal tax debts accumulating to over $250,000.
The agent also went astray after not maintaining personal indemnity insurance or responding to requests from the board during its investigation.
As a result of the tax agent’s actions, the BCC terminated their registration and prohibited them from applying for registration for 12 months.
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