Western Australian Current Acts

DUTIES ACT 2008 - SECT 31

31 .         Changes to consideration before transfer, consequences of

        (1)         If after an agreement for the transfer of dutiable property is entered into and before the property is transferred —

            (a)         the consideration under the agreement is reduced and the reduced consideration is not less than the unencumbered value of the dutiable property when the consideration was reduced; or

            (b)         the consideration under the agreement is reduced because the parties have agreed not to transfer some of the dutiable property previously agreed to be transferred and the reduced consideration is not less than the unencumbered value of the dutiable property that remained to be transferred when the consideration was reduced,

                the Commissioner is to assess or, on the application of the taxpayer, reassess the liability to duty of the agreement in accordance with the reduced consideration.

        (2)         Subsection (1) does not apply in respect of an agreement to which section 32 applies.

        (3)         If after an agreement for the transfer of dutiable property is entered into and before the property is transferred —

            (a)         the consideration under the agreement is reduced and the reduced consideration is less than the unencumbered value of the dutiable property when the consideration was reduced; or

            (b)         the consideration under the agreement is reduced because the parties have agreed not to transfer some of the dutiable property previously agreed to be transferred and the reduced consideration is less than the unencumbered value of the dutiable property that remained to be transferred when the consideration was reduced,

                the Commissioner is to assess or, on the application of the taxpayer, reassess the liability to duty of the agreement in accordance with the dutiable value of the agreement being the unencumbered value when the consideration was reduced.

        (4)         If after an agreement for the transfer of dutiable property is entered into and before the property is transferred —

            (a)         the consideration under the agreement is increased; and

            (b)         the increased consideration is not less than the unencumbered value of the dutiable property when the agreement was entered into,

                the Commissioner is to assess or reassess the liability to duty of the agreement in accordance with the increased consideration.

        (5)         If after a dutiable transaction is duty endorsed the consideration under the transaction is increased as referred to in subsection (4), the person liable to pay duty must lodge —

            (a)         if the increase in consideration is effected by an instrument in hard copy form — that instrument and if there is more than one such instrument, each of them; or

            (b)         if the increase in consideration is not effected by an instrument in hard copy form — an instrument in hard copy form that evidences the increase in consideration and if there is more than one such instrument each of them, or a transfer duty statement for the transaction that shows the increase in consideration,

                within 2 months after the day on which consideration under the transaction is increased.

        Penalty: a fine of $20 000.

        (6)         Duty is chargeable on a reassessment under this section in relation to a transaction at the same rate and using the same thresholds that applied when liability for duty on the transaction initially arose.