AIR PASSENGER TICKET LEVY (COLLECTION) BILL 2001 Explanatory Memorandum

AIR PASSENGER TICKET LEVY (COLLECTION) BILL 2001

1998-1999-2000-2001









THE PARLIAMENT OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA













HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES



















AIR PASSENGER TICKET LEVY (COLLECTION) BILL 2001























SUPPLEMENTARY EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM





Amendments and New Clauses to be Moved on Behalf of the Government

















(Circulated by authority of the Minister for Transport and Regional Services,

the Honourable John Anderson, MP)

AIR PASSENGER TICKET LEVY (COLLECTION) BILL 2001

OUTLINE

The amendments make changes to the Air Passenger Ticket Levy (Collection) Bill 2001 (the Bill), to provide for:

• the Minister to enter into arrangements for the payment of levy by operators;

• the levy to be payable on the purchase of a ticket;

• the levy to be collected by the ticketing airline;

• civil penalties as an alternative to some criminal penalties;

• refunds of overpaid levy; and

• consequential amendments.

Financial impact statement

These amendments are to facilitate the collection of the air passenger ticket levy by airline operators and have no impact on the amount of levy collected.



AIR PASSENGER TICKET LEVY (COLLECTION) BILL 2001

NOTES ON CLAUSES

Amendment 1

This amendment amends the definition of “due date” and relates it to the time when the ticket is purchased (rather than when the flight takes off), ie. due date for accounting of levy on a ticket is at the end of the month following the month when the ticket is purchased.

Amendment 2

This amendment defines “relevant flight” as an Australian flight operated as part of a regular public transport operation.

Amendment 3

This amendment provides for an additional regulation making power to prescribe the circumstances under which what would otherwise be one air passenger ticket is to be treated as 2 or more air passenger tickets for purposes of the collection of the levy.

Amendment 4

This amendment replaces subclause 9(1) to make payment of the levy due when a ticket is purchased for a relevant flight on or after 1 October 2001, and before the end of the final levy month.

Amendment 5

This amendment deletes subclauses 9(3) to 9(6).

Amendment 6

This amendment imposes the levy liability on the person who purchases the ticket (rather than the person who uses the ticket for the relevant flight).

Amendment 7

This amendment replaces clause 11 and provides that an operator who issues a ticket must collect the levy payable unless they have made adequate arrangements for the collection of the levy, eg a travel agent may collect the levy when the ticket is purchased.



New subclause 11(2) provides an exception in that where operators issue separate tickets in conjunction with each other (ie for one journey) only the operators of the first relevant flight is required to collect the levy.



New subclause 11(3) provides that the person who receives the levy from the purchaser must remit the payment to the Commonwealth by the due date unless the purchaser is entitled to a refund or the levy is applied to the purchase of another ticket.

Amendment 8

This amendment allows the Minister to make an arrangement with an operator of relevant flights for the payment of levy to the Commonwealth. In deciding whether to make such an arrangement, the Minister must have regard to relevant matters, including, the desirability of mitigating, or limiting, any distortions that the operator’s ticketing arrangements would otherwise cause in the incidence of the levy on tickets issued by the operator (compared to tickets issued by other operators). The purchaser is taken to have paid the levy when he or she purchases a ticket covered by the arrangement. Levy payable under the arrangement is recoverable by the Commonwealth by action in a court of competent jurisdiction.

Amendment 9

This amendment requires an operator to lodge a monthly return on tickets issued for relevant flights.

Amendment 10

This amendment relates the obligation to lodge a return under clause 13 to the date of purchase of the ticket (rather than the take-off of the flight), ie a return is to be lodged by the last day of the month following the month in which the tickets are purchased.

Amendment 11

This amendment makes the levy payable on purchase of the ticket.

Amendment 12

This amendment makes provision for the refund of the levy to the purchaser:

• if the levy is overpaid,

• if the ticket is cancelled; and

• if the ticket is not used for any relevant flight.

Amendment 13

This amendment changes the reference to “passengers” to “purchasers”.

Amendment 14

This amendment changes the reference to “passengers” to “purchasers”.

Amendment 15

This amendment allows an authorised officer to also seek information regarding any special arrangement made under the new clause 12A.

Amendment 16

This amendment changes the reference to “passengers” to “purchasers”.

Amendment 17

This amendment allows an inspector to obtain documents regarding any special arrangement made under the new clause 12A.

Amendment 18

This amendment inserts additional regulation making powers providing for civil penalties on operators for failure to collect the levy, failure to do what is required with the collected levy, and failure to lodge a return as required. The amendment also provides for regulations to be made for refunds of the levy by issuers of tickets on behalf of the Commonwealth.

Amendment 19

This amendment removes the power to make regulation to require persons to keep records about the use of tickets for Australian flights.

Amendment 20

This amendment removes the power to make regulation to require persons to provide information about the use of tickets for Australian flights.