EFTA01131043.pdf

UNSW ,/ff t Aax FACULTY OF LAW matters Taxing the virtual world Reforming the Commonwealth Grants Commission New Master of Taxation and Financial Planning IS,S111' EFTA01131043 Contents Issue 7 Features 4 12 Research at Atax Taxing the virtual world 14 International vistors & linkages Keeping up with online communities: 16 Atax students and Alumni Exploring legal challenges in 18 Atax news and events virtual worlds. 6 Reforming the Commonwealth Grants Commission The all important question ... is whether root-and-branch reform is needed to better reflect the needs and demands of our changing federation. 8 Safe harbours...new horizons... and yet more tax reform A safe harbour affords taxpayers some certainty and assurance, but can also provide an opportunity for exploitation. 10 Industry supports launch of exciting new degree The finance community gathered for the launch of our new Master of Taxation and Financial Planning. Atax matters is published amually by: The Austrakan School of Taxation (Atax) Faculty of Law The University of New South Wales UNSW Sydney NSW 2052 Australia Issue 7. December 2008 Editor Susie Phe. Faculty of Law Design Atelier Kaikai Printing Pegasus Prnt Group CAICOS Provider Code 000986 EFTA01131044 From the Head of School's Desk 008 HAS MARKED A NUMBER OF which was attended by leading international tax The new 2 important milestones for Atax. Earlier in the year, our first intake of students into the LLM Taxation specialisation commenced in March; secondly, we developed, in consultation and cooperation with the superannuation and financial administrators from some 13 countries. In April 2008, Atax held the 20th Annual GST and Indirect Tax Workshop in Noosa, celebrating the occasion with an acknowledgement of the many attendees who have participated in this workshop for as Master of Taxation and Financial planning industry, a new Master of Taxation and many as 17 of the 20 years it has been continuously Planning Financial Planning which was launched by the held. launched in UNSW Vice Chancellor, Professor Fred Hilmar at As in previous years, Max again played host to a function hosted by IFSA in October. This new many international visitors including this year's October Master of Taxation and Financial Planning is the Max Visiting Research Fellows who came from NZ product of collaboration between Atax, the School and Hungary. A large number of academic visitors of Law within the Faculty of Law, and Banking and delegations again visited from Korea, China, and Finance in the Australian School of Business. Japan, US and the UK. Given the industry encouragement during the In reading through this 7th Atax Matters, I am development of this program and the high level sure you will appreciate the breadth and depth of interest by prospective students, we are very of what Atax is and does best — excellence in tax confident it will be a great success. education, research and international outreach. If During 2008, Atax sought to further build on its you would like more information on current Atax extensive international linkages and to this end, programs and activities, the Atax website is the forged links with the UK Chartered Institute of place to visit. If you have suggestions or questions, Taxation (CIOT) and especially to its Advanced do not hesitate to contact either myself or the Diploma in International Taxation (ADIT). A Faculty of Law Student Services Team. reciprocal arrangement has been made to promote Remember too that if you are an Atax Alumnus, our Master of International Taxation amongst we want you to keep in touch. In 2008, the Law ADIT students and CIOT members and CIOT's Faculty Alumni significantly increased its Alumni ADIT to Atax students. This is an important activities and we again have big plans for 2009. collaboration which both Atax and CIOT feel will So do not forget to keep in touch with our new and greatly benefit both organisations. expanded range of activities for Law Alumni by Continuing a long tradition of hosting and registering on www.atax.unsw.edu.au/alumnil organising major conferences, Atax organised in Sydney in March 2008, the 7th Biennial Neil Warren International Tax Administration conference Head of School 3 atax matters issue 7 EFTA01131045 feature: taxing the virtual world Taxing the virtual world Keeping up with online communities: Exploring legal challenges in virtual worlds EFTA01131046  HILE THE PAST DECADE HAS For example, is the sabotage of an avatar Virtual W seen a focus on addressing the challenge to legal taxconceptsarising from the growth in e-commerce, the challenge has now shifted to addressing the emergence of the virtual world. In many ways, economies are particularly through identity theft in the virtual world a crime in the real world? Is for example, the income and wealth generated in the virtual world taxable in the real world? At the time of writing, Linden Lab (the owner of Second Life) claimed to have a total e-commerce was relatively straightforward to sophisticated money supply of almost 5.8 billion Linden dollars accommodate because it was still based around a and now which on their Lindex foreign exchange market was market economy — whether it be for tangibles or worth about US$20 million. The Second Life game intangible goods and services. cross- provides many opportunities for players to trade In contrast, the virtual world poses a very over with and engage in business transactions, including different challenge because it is characterised by a computer-based simulated environment real world virtual land development and sales. Second Life has also attracted real world corporations, many where users inhabit and interact with economic of whom have established a presence within the virtual representations of themselves (`avatars) activity. virtual world including BMW Dell, Nike and and others. Deutsche Bank to name a few. At first glance one might presume any interest Other virtual worlds like World of Warcraft in virtual-world activity by government agencies also encourage the trade of in-game items and is fanciful. However, these virtual economies are currency between players. World of Warcraft is particularly sophisticated and now cross-over with also associated with a lively trade outside the real world economic activity. For example, worlds game which feeds an industry of people generating such as Second Life have currency exchanges in-game wealth for sale to other players. This where users can trade real-world currencies for activity, including `gold farming' and account virtual-world currencies and vice versa. This transfer breaches Blizzard Entertainment's End direct link between actual currency and virtual- User Licence Agreement with players, but this world goods and services means that virtual-world practice continues. goods arising from virtual-world activities can Many of the world's tax authorities have adopted create real-world wealth. a robust and optimistic approach to the application Atax's Associate Professor Michael Walpole is of tax laws to virtual world activities. However, part of a Faculty of Law team (including Professor bold statements by authorities regarding the David Brown, Lyria Bennett Moses, Janice Gray, taxation of virtual worlds belie considerable legal Alana Maurushat, Irene Nemes, and David Valle) and practical difficulties. It is these difficulties engaged in a Faculty Research Grant funded that Michael Walpole and other members of the project investigating 'Keeping up with online research team are investigating. Michael's work communities: Exploring legal challenges in identifies that although some taxes may work virtual worlds. within the virtual world context, others may not The challenge for the research team is that work in theory or practice. Virtual world 'supplies' the virtual world has many dimensions. Not only to Australian residents may fall within the GST are there virtual lives lived through avatars in rules on account of the broad definitions in that law. Second Life, but there is a whole virtual world Taxes like capital gains tax and other income tax of games (such as Everquest, World of Warcraft, rules may be more difficult to apply because there Second Life, Diablo, There, World of Kaneva, is doubt concerning which aspects of virtual worlds The Sims, Habbo Hotel to name only a few), fall within the proprietary paradigm (as property that individuals can become part of. However, lawyers Janice Gray and Lyria Bennett Moses what happens if that virtual life flows over to have identified). These issues undermine concepts the real world? Already lives are being traded — such as `consideration' in GST, and the definition and threatened...and ended. of a `CGT asset'. There is also disagreement in the The research team is investigating the many legal academic literature as to whether it is sound and varied legal aspects of participation in virtual policy to treat virtual property as 'rear property worlds: understanding and responding to crime in at all. The issues involved are further clouded by the virtual world; unravelling the concept of virtual complex end user agreements between the owners property; and considering an appropriate approach of the virtual world games and the participants. to applying the taxation system to activities in and It is expected that the research will have a variety around virtual worlds. of outcomes with the first to be published early in 2009. MI 5 atax matters issue 7 EFTA01131047 feature reforming the CGC 4 The all important question ... is whether root-and- branch reform is needed to better reflect the needs and demands of our changing federation by r'rofessor Neil Warren" Head of School, Atax PAg the Commonwealth Grants Commission 6 atax matters issue 7 EFTA01131048  N 2006-07, THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT COLLECTED these as just another source of State tax revenue and as a result, I 81.9% of all taxation revenue (primarily from income and consumption taxes) while being responsible for only 54.5% of total general government outlays. This contrasts with States which collected only 15.3% of taxation revenue (mainly from payrolls, property, insurance and gambling) and were acts to undermine the distribution of these SPPs. It is likewise anomalous to claim precision with a HFE methodology which cannot be supported by the data or economic theory. The question then is whether the current approach to allocating the GST revenue should be overhauled and whether responsible for 40.5% of all general government outlays. A high SPPs and other Commonwealth payments to States should level of vertical fiscal imbalance tvFn therefore characterises be excluded given the move to performance testing of States the Australian federation. in receipt of these payments. The answer must be 'yes — but Australia's solution to this VFI is transfers from the should we trade-up to the overhaul evident in the new Canadian Commonwealth to the States. However, States and Territories model, more radically trade-up to a new model as did the Swiss have had a long held concern about whether the Commonwealth (who have also associated their reforms with expenditure could be relied upon to provide funding which acknowledged reassignment) or follow Germany in its push for major reform? their differing needs, especially amongst the smaller States. What Australia seems incapable of doing is bringing about For this reason, the Commonwealth Grants Commission (CGC) reform. While there is broad agreement that allocating 100% of was established by the Commonwealth in July 1933. Its role the GST according to HFE principles has adverse consequences is to provide advice to the Commonwealth on the principle of as well as being too redistributive, reform has proven elusive. horizontal fiscal equalisation (HFE) which states that "each The reality is that such a review cannot be left to the States State should be given the capacity to provide the average (collectively or individually). Rather, it would be best served standard of State-type public services, assuming it does so at through an independent review, as in Canada, which could an average level of operational efficiency and makes an average consider issues such as: effort to raise revenue from its own sources." • excluding some or all of selected taxes and expenditure from This process of HFE is focused on equalising each State's HFE considerations; capacity to provide services — not how actual services are • excluding some States from HFE (as does Canada when it provided. This focus on the inputs rather than the outputs excludes some Provinces); of States' service delivery is designed to provide States with • simplifying the tax/expenditure classifications in the HFE the capacity to provide services while leaving each State free methodology (as with Canada's reduction from 33 to five tax to determine its own specific priorities when expending their categories); untied general revenue grants. • distributing the grant 'pool' part by per capita and part on The challenge for the CGC has been deciding how to advise HFE principles; the Commonwealth on distributing General Revenue Payments • changing the treatment of SPPs (including allocating the (GRP(s)) to States when those payments are based directly majority of SPPs by per capita and treating these as out-of- on the revenue from the GST. The problem for States is that scope and performance related); between 1998-99 and 2005-06, State tax revenue rose by 25%, • making assessed relativities more timely such as by using a while grants increased 100% (and total revenue by 57%). As three year weighted average (as in Canada) in place of the a consequence, a far greater proportion of States' revenue is current five year unweighted average; subject to the CGC HFE process so it is not surprising that there • reviewing expenditure and tax assignment (as in Switzerland has been increasing dissent in recent years over the CGC HFE and Germany) including revisiting the principle of methodology. This has been led by States such as NSW which subsidiarity: in 2005-06 contributed some $2.5 billion per annum of NSW- • examining different tax assignments and tax sharing sourced GST revenue ($366 per head) to other States (excluding arrangements (as in Germany); and Victoria and the ACT). Even on a per capita distribution basis, • reviewing (regularly) the consultative framework to reflect HFE results in $2 billion per annum ($293 per head) being better the balance of national and regional interests. distributed away from NSW. The all important question now being asked is whether In calling for change, this article is not recommending the all that is needed is a `tune-up' of the CGC methodology abandonment of the HFE principle. What is at issue is how best or whether more fundamental root-and-branch reform to ensure the HFE principle applied in the Australian federation is needed so as to better reflect the needs and demands of works to address the challenges now confronting the nation in our changing federation. an increasingly competitive and integrated global economy. At issue here is the basic fact that it is not acceptable to have rib this end, only a fundamental and independent review of a grants allocation framework which distorts the growth of a intergovernmental fiscal arrangements will achieve this task. State's tax base, its investment infrastructure or its budget Canada, Switzerland and Germany have been able to undertake planning practices. It is also questionable to have in place such major reviews — why cannot Australia. • Commonwealth policies designed to make specific purpose payments (SPPs) to States which are performance tested and • This article is based on Warren. V.A. 2008, 'Reform of the Commonwealth to simultaneously have a CGC HFE methodology which treats Grants Commission: It's all in the Detail'. UNSW Law Journal, 31(2):530-552. 7 &WC matters issue 7 EFTA01131049 arbours... orizons... EFTA01131050  was that in areas of great complexity A safe harbour (of which there are many in tax) a safe affords taxpayers harbour affords taxpayers some certainty and the assurance that they can function some certainty within acceptable parameters without the risk of their actions leading to penalties. and assurance, but The creation of safe harbours on this view could provide the ATO with the means to can also provide contain potentially unacceptable activity an opportunity for within acceptable bounds and if abuse occurs, the terms of the safe harbour exploitation might be changed. With committed views on both sides, full agreement was not reached. There was also a very strong theme Tax Administration: TAX HOSTED SOME OF THE within the conference focussing on A world's top tax administrators and academics at the 8th Tax Administration Conference held at the Marriott Hotel, Circular Quay, Sydney on 26-28 March 2008. Professor taxation compliance costs, building on the Atax reputation in the field. These papers ranged from an assessment of Australia's performance in containing compliance costs, to an examination of Ethiopia's VAT Safe Harbours and New Horizons Edited by Michael Walpole and Chris Evans, Chris Evans and Associate Professor from the perspective of compliance costs. Fiscal Publications 2008 Michael Walpole — the conference Associate Professor Peter Edmundson http://www.fiscapublications.conV convenors — identified `Safe Harbours and from UTS and Atax PhD candidate Philip New Horizone as the central theme for the Lignier were joint winners of the Cedric The slides in this collection cover the wide conference, a theme readily embraced by Sandford Award for the best conference range of developments currently exercising key speakers including the Commissioner paper. Peter wrote about tax evasion those involved in planning, implementing and of Taxation Michael D'Ascenzo; New and the tort of conspiracy after the monitoring tax administration systems around Zealand Commissioner Bob Russell; UK's lbtal Network case involving VAT the world. It includes valuable contributions David Butler and Richard Highfield of the carousel fraud. Philip's paper was on the and insights from the OECD and from the OECD; the Inspector General of Taxation managerial benefits of tax compliance in very highest levels in national tax authorities David Vos AM; Nina Olson of the US the small business sector. Philip has since in countries such as Australia, the USA, New Internal Revenue Service; and Professor completed his research and was awarded Zealand and the UK. John Hasseldine from the UK his PhD at the September 2008 UNSW Discussions in this collection cover Over 20 speakers from academia, graduation. such topics as efficiency issues and tax Treasury, revenue authorities and The conference also saw the returns, tax simplification, compliance costs professional bodies from Australia and launch of AustLiFs powerful new management, innovative approaches to overseas, discussed topics ranging across tax library, comprising a searchable anti-avoidance, legal professional privilege all aspects of tax administration, from database including state and federal in tax matters, perceptions of tax evasion, technical legal aspects through to the taxation law and top tax journals, managerial benefits of tax compliance, and research into such issues as behavioural developed in conjunction with Atax (see the integration of customs and income tax aspects of tax compliance. http://www.austlii.edu.auiauispecialitaxo. administration. Several keynote speakers debated the Papers from the conference are This collection is an important tool for conference's topic of `safe harbours as a available in Tax Administration: Safe tax professionals, academics, researchers, feature of tax administration and tax Harbours and New Horizons, edited tax administrators, students, and anyone collection. On the one hand, it was said, by Michael Walpole and Chris Evans, concerned with the way tax systems operate, safe harbours can be damaging and provide published by Fiscal Publications. what issues they are currently facing, an artificial opportunity for unacceptable Planning is already under way for the and how they are developing around the exploitation of tax shelters by taxpayers 9th conference in the series which will be world at present. and their advisers. The contrary view held in Sydney from 6-8 April 2010. 9 atax manes' issue 7 EFTA01131051 New postgraduate program: Industry supports launch of exciting new degree EFTA01131052  Master of Taxation and Financial Planning Finance community So, what was the incentive for the Program structure creation of this new degree? Master of Taxation and Financial Planning gathers for the It is well known that personal wealth 8 courses (48 units of credit), accumulation in Australia has three 4 compulsory couses launch of Atax's main drivers: Graduate Diploma in Taxation and new Master of • First, the tax breaks which the Financial Planning Government gives to help people fund 6 courses (36 units of credit): Taxation and their own retirement. Australia is a 4 compulsory couses world leader in this area; Financial Planning • Second, the regulation of the personal Graduate Certificate In Taxation and Financial Planning wealth accumulation system is one of 4 courses (24 units of credit), the most robust and complex in the AA 4 courses are compulsory HE RECENT LAUNCH OF T world. Again, we lead the world in the the new Atax Master of way that we regulate this sector; and Compulsory Courses Taxation and Financial Planning • Finally, choosing assets and where to was attended by an impressive > Taxation Strategies in Financial Planning invest personal savings. line up of the key groups in the finance and > SMSF Law financial planning industry in Australia. It was the winning combination of > Introduction to Financial Planning The event was hosted by the Investment these three elements that attracted the & Financial Services Association (IFSA) industry and the professions to the launch. > Taxation of Superannuation at their newly designed offices overlooking The industry has been telling us that Darling Harbour in Sydney. there are insufficient academic resources Elective Courses The Self-Managed Super Fund supporting this area, yet there is a huge > Tax Policy Professionals' Association (SPAN was demand for high-level tax, legal and > Taxation of Property Transactions represented as was the Financial Planning economic technical advice on financial > Taxation of Employee Remuneration Association (FPA) and the accounting planning and taxation issues. profession had a strong turn out from CPA Now, UNSW, through Atax, has > Taxation of Industry and Technology Australia, ICAA, Taxation Institute of sought to address these three drivers in > Taxation of Trusts Australia and the major chartered firms. its new Master of Taxation and Financial > Taxation of Corporate Finance The financial institutions such as AMP, Planning program, by combining the > Taxation of Corporations Commonwealth Bank, Macquarie, ING expertise in taxation from Atax, > Taxation of Capital Gahs and Deutsche Bank were drawn to the compliance and legal issues from the > Advanced Debt Capital Markets launch. Senior people from the ATO also Law School and asset selection from the and Socuritisation attended and have a clear interest in this Australian School of Business. > Finds Management. Superannuation and area because of their revenue collection Insurance and regulator responsibilities. Who will enrol in this new degree? > Secisities and Financial The Master of Taxation and Financial Markets Regulation Planning is designed for mid-career financial planners and associated > Real Estate Finance 8 Investment professionals, accountants and lawyers > Financial Planning Advice servicing the financial planning industry, > Personal Fhancial Planning and those wishing to move into this and Management growing area from the private and government sectors. How is the program offered? The response to the new program Courses in these programs are offered in a range has been positive and the first cohort of of delivery modes itclucfng flexeole distance students will commence early in 2009. mode, face to face classes or intensive 4 day courses. Further information is available at: www.atax.unsw.odu.au/mtfp 11 atax matters issue 7 EFTA01131053  Research at Atax An Exemplary Year in Research Wollela Abehodie Yesegat's doctorate Research at Atax Congratulations to Dr Philip Lignier who thesis on administrative compliance costs continues to go from was awarded his doctorate this year. His and compliance behaviour in respect of VAT strength to strength thesis entitled "Identifying and estirnativ in Ethiopia was submitted for examination managerial benefits induced by compliance at the end of October. Wollela is the first with 2008 being an with taxation requirements of Australian of Atax's full-time research students to exemplary year in terms SMEs" was supervised by Professor Chris submit her doctoral thesis, so this marks of new enrolments Evans and Associate Professor Margaret an important milestone for Atax. Wollela will McKerchar. Campbell Rankine's thesis be missed by her supervisors Associate in higher degrees by entitled "An examination of the Australian Professors Binh Tran-Nam and Margaret research and in theses system of the taxation of trusts with McKerchar and all at Atax as she and her completed. proposals for the adoption of an 'entity' based approach" and supervised by family return home to Ethiopia. Associate Professor Michael Walpole. is currently at review stage. 12 atax matters issue 7 EFTA01131054  tesaarcti al rani. In the second semester of 2008. we Academic Research Europe Michael made presentations on welcomed both Muzainah Mansor and Surges During Sabbatical aspects of his work to the UK Treasury. lzlawanie Muhammad into the PhD program "Having a semester on sabbatical is a the Chartered Institute of Taxation (London); as full-time candidates. Muzainah is dream-come-true for any keen researcher, Birmingham and Bournemouth Universities: undertaking an analysis of the performance the only problem being how quickly the as well as to the Vienna University of of the Malaysian indirect tax system time goes by!" said Associate Professor Economics and the National University and Izlawanie is studying the impact of Margaret McKerchar when she returned of Ireland. education and attitudes of corporate tax from sabbatical leave in July 2008. This auditors in Malaysia and their impact on is a sentiment shared by many academics. taxpayer compliance. Other new enrolments Margaret's main project was a book on in the PhD program in 2008 include Peter the theory and practice of research design Hill and Ian Ross-Gowan, both of whom in the disciplines of tax, law and accounting. are studying part-time. The number of PhD The project came about mainly from candidates further increased in 2008 as working with research students unable to both Dianne Miller and Hanna Zakowska find a suitable text to help them grapple with successfully articulated from the Master of the theory and design of research in the Taxation by Research program into the PhD. context of multi-disciplinary tax research. The book is now at the review stage by a MTax by Research Attracts Students leading publisher. Other research and writing Starting Out in Research projects undertaken by Margaret during her In 2008 David Bowler. Maureen Noonan. leave included a paper on the history of land Victoria Roberts and Jason Kerr all tax in Australia (with Associate Professor undertook their Dissertation Proposals and Cynthia Coleman) for the Tax History we look forward to seeing their research Conference held at Cambridge University progress in 2009. John Thomson is in June; a paper on the impact of increasing currently writing his Masters thesis on self- regulation on the quality of services provided managed superannuation funds under the by tax agents (with Kim Bloomquist of the supervision of Gordon Mackenzie. IRS and Sagit Levier) for the Tax Research As at the end of October 2008. Atax Conference held in Galway in September. had 28 research students. While compliance Two papers were also completed with costs and compliance behaviour continue Drs Em Chen Loo and Ann Hansford on to be areas of strength for Atax, the diversity taxpayer compliance n Malaysia and a of topics currently being undertaken by our paper on the research and development research students is inspiring. They range tax concessions and green innovations from black-letter law topics such as accepted at the 9th Global Conference on Wollate Pa.:that's Yesegat (centre) John Bevacqua's study on the legal Environmental Taxation held in Singapore wth Birk) TranNam and Margaret McKerchar remedies for administrative errors, to tax in September. policy topics such as Evgeny Guglyuvatyy's Associate Professor Michael Walpole study on environmental taxes and emission spent 'the Michaelmas term of 2008 as a trading schemes; Fiona Martin's study on visitor to the Law Faculty and the Centre for the taxation of Indigenous charities and Business Tax (in the Said Business School), Helen Hodgson's study on the family tax Oxford University. He was engaged primarily transfer system. in comparative VAT/GST work (with Senior Lastly. we would like to congratulate Research Fellow Dr Rita de la Feria) on Atax's Research Assistant. Cindy Chan. the taxation of financial services, and who has recently taken a position at CCH completing a book on the taxation of as a Tax Writer. Cindy's time with Atax will goodwill. Michael also used the time in be remembered fondly by both staff and Oxford to commence collaborative work students for her calm demeanour and 'can on the role of taxation in firms' choice of Monad Wattle cut§de the Sad Bus'ness School. do' attitude. location of intellectual property. While in Unversay of Oxford 13 atax matters issue 7 EFTA01131055  turs_R, unkaGes. International Visitors & Linkages Atax's linkage with Asia continued to develop In mid 2008, we farewelled Tian Peiyu. Atax Research Fellow for 2008 was through 2008. Professor Bob Deutsch. a senior taxation official from Xinjiang China Borbala Kolozs. formerly Associate Professor Gordon Mackenzie and Nolan Sharkey of who spent a year at Atax working closely at Etitvitis the Lorand University, Hungary. Atax developed and facilitated intensive with Nolan Sharkey on comparative tax During her five-week stay at Atax. Borbala courses on internaticnal taxation during administrative issues. presented a seminar on tax compliance from 2008 for three separate teams of officers Throughout the year. Atax continued the European perspective and collaborated from the Korean National Tax Service (NTS). to receive a steady flow of international with Professor Chris Evans and Associate In June. Associate Professor Binh Tran-Narn visitors. The Abe Greenbaum Fellow for Professor Margaret McKerchar. Other was invited by the Korean Institute of Public 2008 was Audrey Sharp from the University international presenters were Professor Finance (KIPF) to deliver a paper on recent of Auckland. During her four-week stay Reuven Avi-Yonah (University of Michigan), Australian tax reforms at the Korea and the at Atax. Audrey presented a paper on NZ Associate Professor Grant Richardson (City World Economy VII conference held at KIPF charitable laws and its impact upon the University of Hong Kong) and Professor (Seoul) and Kwangon National University taxation treatment of Maori authorities. Steven Shefirin (University of California (Chunchecn). In October, Dr Jae Jin Kim. In collaboration with Atax's Senior Lecturer at Davis). a Fellow at the KIPF, visited Atax during his Fiona Martin. Audrey produced several trip to Sydney to conduct research on credit papers for publication. card fees in Australia. 14 atax matters issue 7 EFTA01131056  inlprnalirnal VNtnrc R InkaGes. Out of Africa Professor Chris Evans was invited to deliver a keynote address at the inaugural International Tax Conference organised by the Nigerian Joint Tax Board held in Abuja, the administrative capital (Canberra in an African setting) in October 2008. He spoke co the topic of improving taxpayer compliance in Chris Evans (fifth from left) with Madan Okauro. Madam Abdulth and other state and Nigeria and delivered a paper co-written with national officias on the steps of the Natonal Assembly (paliament) in Abuja. Nigeria Atax colleague, Associate Professor Margaret McKerchar. Nigeria is currently dangerously over-reliant on oil revenues and desperately needs to improve its tax revenue collection from non-oil sources. Highlights of Chris's trip included the opportunity to discuss Nigeria's tax collection crisis in specially arranged meetings with members of the National Assembly Senate and House of Representatives Finance Committees: the two day conference itself with over 400 delegates from the various Federal and State Boards of Inland Revenue. judges, and practitioners; and meeting Madam Hasmah Abdullah, the CEO of the Malaysian Inland Revenue Board, who was the other keynote speaker. Chris also used the visit to discuss the proposed new Master of Revenue Administration program with senior Nigerian Tax Board officials. The program is scheduled to be launched in early 2010 and is aimed primarily at tax administrators from developing countries in Africa, Asia and the Pacific. Delegation from the Korean Natiora Tax Sevocia knITS) 15 atax matters issue 7 EFTA01131057 atax tfi riPfliS-arialLI1111' Mrd• or' or • Leanne Dyke Warapong Stuart O'Neill BTax student Ongkhunarak MTax '06 Complex Case Manager LLM (Tax) '08 Partner Australian Taxation Office, Mullins Lawyers, Brisbane Melbourne Senior Consultant PricewaterhouseCoopers, Stuart is one of 5 partners in the business Leanne was the winner of The New South Bangkok services team at Mullins Lawyers. Wales Bar Association Prize to the best