ATO Tax Talk October 2017: Ride Sourcing

ATO provides tax and superannuation information in Punjabi every month on SBS Radio

ATO provides tax and superannuation information in Punjabi every month on SBS Radio Source: ATO

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The following community information is brought to you by the Australian Taxation Office. Interview with Jagjit Singh.


Ride-sourcing is transporting passengers for a fare through the sharing economy. You might also know it by names like Uber, GoCatch, Shebah or Shesafe.

Ride-sourcing is regarded as taxi-travel for GST purposes.

Providing ride-sourcing services means you are providing ‘taxi travel’ under GST law. There’s several things you need to be aware of. For income tax purposes, you need to:

  • include the income you earn in your tax return 
  • claim deductions directly related to ride‑sourcing.
If you provide ride-sourcing services you are likely to be carrying on an enterprise, which means you must have an Australian business number (ABN) and be registered for GST regardless of your turnover. You also need to:

  • pay GST on the full fare 
  • only claim GST credits related to ride‑sourcing
  • lodge business activity statements (BAS), and know how to issue a tax invoice because passengers may ask you to provide one for fares over $82.50
    Jagjit Singh, Community Relations Officer, ATO
    Jagjit Singh, Community Relations Officer, ATO Source: Supplied
You can get more information on ride-sourcing by vising ato.gov.au/other languages which provides a great breakdown of expenses that can and can’t be claimed.

Or you can speak with a tax officer in your native language by phoning the Translating and Interpreting Service on 13 14 50 and ask to be connected to 13 28 61.

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