Crown Casino wins Federal Court tax challenge
The operator had argued that the cost of commissions and win/loss rebates paid to junkets should be taken into account when calculating tax.
Australia.- Crown Casino has won a federal court challenge over the calculation of goods and services tax (GST) it pays for bringing VIP gamblers to Australia on junkets.
In the challenge launched two years ago, the operator argued that the cost of commissions and win/loss rebates should be taken into account when calculating GST.
It referred in particular to the tax assessment of its Melbourne casino operation between 2010 and 2015, and to two separate periods between October 2007 and July 2012 for its casino in Perth.
Federal Court Justice Jennifer Davies has now ruled that the tax calculated by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) in the cited assessments was “excessive”.
She found that commissions and rebates the casino paid to junket operators and vice versa were “inseverable components”.
She said: “It can be said that the commissions and rebates are not separate and distinct amounts to be disintegrated from the collective win/loss results.”
It is not the first dispute between the ATO and Crown Resorts. A previous matter over the company’s attempt to enter the US market, finished with a settlement.
