TPRS to commence in IT, road freight, security and investigative services on 1 July

The TPRS will be extended to some 53,000 businesses in the IT, road freight, security and investigative services industry from 1 July.

The TPRS is a transparency measure that was first applied to the building and construction industry, preventing $2.7 billion from being lost to the black economy in the 2015-16 financial year.

As part of the ATO's increased focus on tackling the black economy, TPRS has been expanded to several other identified high risk industries.

It was expanded to the courier and cleaning industries from 1 July 2018, with the first annual report due by 28 August this year. There are approximately 23,000 businesses in these industries reporting on 82,000 contractors. 

“A business may need to lodge a taxable payments annual report even if cleaning or courier services are only part of the services they provide,” deputy commissioner Deborah Jenkins said.

“These changes aren’t just focused on the cleaning and courier industries, they apply to any businesses in any industry providing these services,”

She explained that in consultation with all affected industries, tailored guidance products have been developed such as law companion rulings to help businesses understand if they have an obligation to report under the TPRS.

“Feedback from industry and professional bodies suggested that we would provide a better experience if we have the exemptions within the respective law brought together into one legislative instrument; covering the exemptions for all the new industries,” Ms Jenkins said.

She advised tax agents to make sure they can assist their clients in those industries and help them understand if they need to report.