With that same research leading me to design this work in progress, http://bullionbooty.com/ PS. (Mod please remove if you don't feel is appropriate)
as a business if you were paying and recording your employees pay as $1( in silver coin) per hour you might have issues with underpaying them i.e. not meeting the minimum wage. The employee if they become disgruntled could then apply for back pay, which you would have to prove that that $1 is really woth $35 and open your self up to a whole bunch od tax / fraud allegiations.
What about getting paid in 66 rounds? Could be more legit given they were actually made for circulation/payment?
Note: There is a distinct difference between avoiding tax and evading tax. Avoiding tax is entirely legal. What if you were also willing to pay any tax using like currency. i.e. you receive silver coin at face value, and pay silver coin taxes at face value. In that way you're not trying to evade taxes. And if they refuse, you at least tried.
It largely comes down to paying the taxes in (fiat) A$ as that is what the tax office want and that is the currency that all of the PAYG thresholds are set in. You can legally be paid in ANY currency you want (or even in snails I believe). For the purposes of calculating the company tax/payroll tax etc a company has to pay, the cost to the business of your wages needs to be put into fiat A$. If they put less than the true cost they get taxed on the difference. For the purposes of calculating YOUR PAYG tax, then, like if you were paid in USD, the standard formula is to convert it to fiat A$ and the income tax is calculated based on the exchange rates applicable at the time the income was received or derived. As we have discussed, the same applies if you were paid in silver bars or US eagles. The simplest cross-check that the ATO can make is to see how much the company bought the silver bars for in its claimed expenses before they paid you in silver bars. The "complication" is that Perth Mint coins are have a fiat A$ face value that is substantially different to its fiat A$ value. But as dags pointed out, there exists prior law that says the fiat A$ value of any such remuneration is to be used not the "face value". If you (and your company) conspire in some way to deliberately use the "face value" as a way to evade tax, then it wouldn't go well methinks.
I used to have a deal witha couple of banks where they saved the round 50's for me and i bought them at spot value the next time i went in. Since moved and tried to get the same deal going here at other banks - an adjacent teller said that she kept them (swapped them for current 50c pieces). When i told the teller i was dealing with that they were worth circa $10 (in an effort to source them over the adjacent teller) she gave the other teller evil looks... outcome though.... still no coins for me
I had thought about this previously and came to the conclusion: If the company paying the market value for the coins to be distributed to employers was only claiming the face value of the coin as an "expense" as in wages. Ie they were paying the difference between the two values in company tax. And The total remuneration to the employee was equal or above the award wage (face value). And The employee was not simply turning and flipping the coins for profit at market value. Ie was keeping them in his collection. How could there be a case to answer? If the whole process was audited and the employee was found to be flipping he would be in breach for either not paying income tax or capital gains on the sale of the coins.
How about family benefit tax, or any other means tested tax. It's not about the tax, it's about controlling every aspect of a person's life.
I consider the government stealing my tax $ and redistributing it to the masses as fraudulent!!! I have read much of the Australian constitution but see very little on what tax income can be used for. It was my understanding (and probably many others who pay tax) that tax income should be used to maintain government, build infrastructure, maintain the borders and defense, maintain law and order. I am not aware that tax income should be used to redistribute wealth. What right has the government got to decide that my money should be taken and given to others who earn less. Is that mob rule, socialism or communism. It is certainly not fee enterprise or capitalism. I think we should adopt the red ensign this Australia Day weekend as our flag as its colour reflects the true philosophy of our country at this time. http://www.google.com.au/imgres?q=a...&ndsp=36&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0,i:82&tx=134&ty=94
It is a bit ridiculous that you can adhere to Australian tax law to the letter, and still be found to be avoiding tax - which is against the law.
My concern is not the legality of income tax but the use of that tax. Is there not a tax law expert out there who can site what tax can and cant be used for. I presume tax dollars cant be used for funding politicians private residences - oh sorry they can ? My concern is taking my hard earned $ and giving them to the "battlers" who never battled 1 day in their lives!! Is that not theft to take my cash by force and give it to other people.
:O A 90% income tax on all amounts over 4,000 (with a 61.8% income tax on the first 4,000)!! [Company tax was 30% but with a "super-tax" of a further 5% for taxable incomes over 5,000.] Damn war-time is expensive.
