Following on from earlier submissions, the Institute recently lodged another submission with the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) in relation to a form of statutory privilege to protect the confidentiality of the communications between appropriately qualified and regulated non-legal tax advisors and their clients. 
 
The submission lodged by the Institute focuses on specific aspects of the ALRC’s discussion paper 73, including that: 
 

• The recommendations which would apply to registered tax agents be extended to their nominees and employees  
  
• The requirement that only a lawyer, and not a tax agent or its nominees or employees, should certify whether a tax advice document ought to be protected is not justifiable.

• What the 'tax advice document' should include  
  
• Generally, neither the tax agent nor the client should be compelled to disclose oral advice  
  
• Civil penalty exception is only relevant to the civil penalties in the promoter penalty provisions  
  
• Proposal 6-3 should apply prospectively to any federal investigation.

• The Institute: Previous submissions and additional information