How to Pay NO TAX: Become a Big Company in Australia

The latest corporate tax transparency data released by the Australian Taxation Office this week shows that around one-third of large companies operating in Australia did not pay a single cent of tax in the 2017-18 financial year. A total of $52.3 billion was collected in corporate tax, an increase of $6.6 billion from the previous year. This increase was primarily driven by the increase in commodity prices, which were up 15% in Australian dollar terms over 2017–18. Of the 710 companies that didn’t pay any tax, here are some of the biggest non-contributors: Car companies (Mitsubishi Motors, Ford Motor Company, and General Motors Holden). The biggest seller of cars in Australia who didn’t pay a single cent of tax: Toyota Motor Corporation – $10.5 billion in income. I don’t know how they do it. How can they be the most successful car company in Australia, but yet pay zero tax? I suppose they have a team of accountants and lawyers who know exactly how to work the system to avoid paying tax altogether. I honestly can’t find the details, so apologies to Toyota if there’s something obvious that I’m missing here. Lots of other big companies also managed to avoid paying tax, for example, Santos, Shell Energy Holdings, Woodside Petroleum, and ExxonMobil with a total income of $9.2 billion and not a single cent paid in tax. The list goes on. But one thing that I find even funnier than large companies that pay no tax, are large companies that pay a little bit of tax. For example, RTPDS Australia, a company that provides management consulting services and is owned by mining giant Rio Tinto, had a taxable income of $11.4 billion, but yet only paid $4,641 in tax! What’s the point? This is less tax than many Australian workers. Clearly, the best way to pay no tax in Australia. Become a big company who can pay for lots of lawyers and accountants and scare off the ATO.

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