Tax Fairness Policy Unit

The decline in corporate tax revenues is a major problem for governments around the world. It has raised both public and political awareness of the importance of tax fairness. Some of the more pressing issues in 2020 are corporate tax planning and avoidance schemes, the inadequacies of inter-jurisdictional tax treaties, tax efficiency of superfunds and the operation of the international tax system generally.

TFPU has conducted research into many aspects of tax avoidance antecedents in Australia and other countries and, in particular, has investigated tax avoidance under a dividend imputation system in Australia and the tax practices of industry superfunds. A number of research and industry papers have been written analysing the success of Australian responses to tax avoidance.

Tax fairness, integrity and transparency are essential for greater societal equity and future sustainable economic growth.

– Associate Professor Roman Lanis

The aims of the TFPU will be even more relevant coming out of the financial distress associated with COVID-19 and affecting companies in Australia and around the world. In April 2020 Australian Prime Minister, Scott Morrison and Finance Minister Mathias Cormann announced that significant corporate tax reform will be required to “turbo charge” the economy on its way out of the coronavirus shutdown. More specifically tax policy and regulation will be heavily influenced by an aggressive pro-business growth strategy. These tax policy changes will require careful assessment and analysis to balance the needs of the community and the corporate sector. They may indeed be revolutionary or even controversial. The TFPU has one of the most experienced teams (with respect to published academic research and community/policy/media impact) in Australia. In addition to its reputation, it has the resources to assess and analyse current and future government tax policy and to provide impartial scrutiny and advice at this critical time in Australia’s economic development.

TFPU critical and relevant research topic areas

• Antecedents of corporate tax avoidance in Australia and the world
• The costs and benefits of corporate tax avoidance
• Social, community, ethical (Corporate Social Responsibility) aspects of corporate tax avoidance
• Analysis of unilateral and multilateral governmental response/policies to constrain tax avoidance
• Corporate tax avoidance transparency
• Corporate tax policy responses to financial distress (the case of COVID-19)
• Corporate tax policy in Australia in the context of dividend imputation
• Tax efficiency within the superfunds industry
• Financial and tax disclosures of superfunds

TFPU researchers and associates

• Associate Professor Roman Lanis
• Professor Peter Wells
• Dr Brett Govendir
• Dr Gregory Pazmandy
• Dr Ross McClure
• Dr Thulaisi Sivapalan
• Mr Mikhail Shashnov (associate)

TFPU research in the media

• APRA's little secret by Thulaisi Sivapalan, FS Super, 10 September 2020
• Australian companies have more work to do on tax transparency by Roman Lanis and Ross McClure, The Conversation 26 September 2016
• Big businesses who give shareholders tax credits pay more tax: study by Roman Lanis, Brett Govendir, Peter Wells and Ross McClure, The Conversation, 23 April 2018
• Chevron is just the start: modelling shows how many billions in revenue the government is missing out on by Roman Lanis, Brett Govendir and Ross McClure, The Conversation, 26 April 2017
• Companies may be misleading investors by not openly assessing the true value of assets by Peter Wells, Brett Govendir and Roman Lanis, The Conversation, 5 July 2016
• Explainer: the difference between tax avoidance and evasion by Roman Lanis and Ross McClure, The Conversation, 15 April 2015
• FactCheck: Is BHP Billiton Australia’s largest taxpayer, averaging $8-10b in tax a year? by Roman Lanis and Ross McClure, The Conversation, 29 May 2015
• How will Amazon navigate Australia’s taxation system? by Roman Lanis and Brett Govendir, The Conversation, 11 October 2017
• Independent isn’t necessarily better. Why appointing independent directors can achieve little by Roman Lanis, Ross McClure and others, The Conversation, 13 September 2018
• Issues paper flags ‘lower, simpler, fairer’ tax: experts react by multiple authors including Antony Ting and Roman Lanis, The Conversation, 30 March 2015
• Panama Papers force tax authorities to act: but what took so long? by Roman Lanis and Ross McClure, The Conversation, 13 April 2016
• Revealing how much tax companies pay doesn’t move markets or reduce tax avoidance by Roman Lanis, Brett Govendir, Peter Wells and Ross McClure, The Conversation, 3 May 2018
• So now we know which companies did not pay tax; time to target aggressive avoidance by Roman Lanis, Brett Govendir and Ross McClure, The Conversation, 18 December 2015
• Some answers, more questions over Dick Smith failure by Roman Lanis, Brett Govendir and Ross McClure, The Conversation, 15 July 2016
• The accounting trick that helps multinationals avoid paying tax by Roman Lanis, Anna Bedford and Brett Govendir, The Conversation, 30 October 2015
• The government’s company tax cut win a triumph of politics over economics by Brett Govendir and Roman Lanis, The Conversation, 3 April 2017
• The tax office’s transparency reporting is looking a little opaque by Roman Lanis, Brett Govendir and Ross McClure, The Conversation, 13 December 2016
• These private companies pay less tax than we do – but reasons remain unclear by Roman Lanis and Ross McClure, The Conversation, 24 March 2016 
• Three strategies to fight the tax avoidance revealed by the Paradise Papers by Roman Lanis and Brett Govendir, The Conversation, 8 November 2017
• To really tackle corporate tax evasion we need a public register by Roman Lanis and Brett Govendir, The Conversation, 12 September 2016
• Westfield’s stoush should shine light on tax paid by property trusts by Roman Lanis and Ross McClure, The Conversation, 4 June 2014
• What’s needed for Australia to seriously tackle tax avoidance by Roman Lanis and Ross McClure, The Conversation, 2 October 2014
• Why forcing Google and other tax avoiders to have a ‘taxable presence’ won’t work by Roman Lanis and Ross McClure, The Conversation, 21 May 2015
• Without US support, multinational tax crackdowns will fail by Roman Lanis and Ross McClure, The Conversation, 29 January 2015