# a non-resident (Australia) for tax purposes



## citizen_of_the_world (Jul 28, 2017)

Hello!

Earlier this year I accepted a permanent position outside Australia, I relocated to my new country of residence, and now I intend to declare myself as a non-resident for tax purposes. 

I know that the replies on this forum aren't coming from "professionals" but any piece of information is important as it will help me to do the right thing. Also, when I approached an accountant to help me with what seems to be a straightforward tax situation, they wanted to charge me an arm and a leg  

So here's what I've done so far:

- I accepted a "permanent" position, I signed a contract with the employer and I started my new job. The contract says that I have to stay with the employer for at least a year and afterwards I can leave or stay with the same employer as much as I want.

- I have no property in Australia so no mortgage or income from rent.

- I'm staying in a permanent residence overseas. (I have a contract proving that I'm renting the place)

- I informed the ATO with my overseas address through the MyGov website but I was unable to do to so with Medicare and Centrelink since their online portals don't allow the input of overseas addresses, so I'm going ring them 

- I updated my address with my super fund and I sent an email asking them to update my tax status to "non-resident for tax purposes".

- I still have a current/checking account in Australia and I don't intend to move the money outside Australia. The account isn't a source of income since I'm not collecting any interest from it.

- I called my private health insurance and I informed them that I'm suspending my subscription for a couple of years.

- I established a bank account overseas.

- A struck my name of the electoral roll but mind keeps telling that I should at least register as an overseas elector. I still want to vote while overseas.

- I may visit Australia with in a year but I don't intent to use any services such as Medicare and Centrelink.

- I paid taxes for the income earned overseas for the FY 2016-2017 and I claimed the overseas tax paid as an offset in my tax return.

My question(s) are:

- How do I declare myself as a non-resident for tax purposes? Is there a special form to do so? How do I inform the ATO?

- Do I still need to submit a tax return for FY 2017-2018 given that I have no income source in Australia?

- How can I contribute to my super fund while overseas and how may it complicate things for me as a non-resident for tax purposes?

- How does being overseas affect my medicare levy and medicare levy surcharge?

- Does being overseas affect my Lifetime Health Cover (LHC)? As mentioned before, my private health insurance has been suspended.

Any piece of advice is most welcomed and I apologise for the lengthy post 

Have a good one!


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Have made a slight modification to the title of this thread to see if we can attract a few folks with knowledge of how things work for Australian purposes.

Different countries have different ways of becoming non-resident for tax purposes. In some countries (like the UK) you have to formally notify the tax authorities that you are no longer resident. In others, you just move and let them figure it out when you stop filing.

But a couple of things leap to mind in reading over your post: I don't know how the super funds work in Australia, but it's fairly common that once you are no longer resident in the country, you can no longer contribute to a deferred tax or other "retirement" fund, even if you can leave the fund intact to continue to accrue revenue.

I suppose the other key issue is that of your nationality. Your "flags" say you're originally from the UK, but do you have Australian nationality? That could affect your medicare and/or LHC status - or maybe not. 

Anyhow, let's see if we can flag someone down to help with these questions.
Cheers,
Bev


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## Jarrad Brown (Nov 5, 2017)

G'day 'citizen_of_the_world,

Firstly, congratulations on the new role. I hope you're settling into your new residence smoothly and enjoying the change.

As I'm sure many will have similar questions to you, I've outlined a couple of resources that we've put together for anyone else following this thread with interest:


*Insurance inside Super:* australianexpatriategroup.com/2017/05/05/insurance-inside-superannuation-can-much-good-thing/

*Australian Tax Residence:* australianexpatriategroup.com/2016/03/30/australian-tax-resident/

*HECS Debt:* australianexpatriategroup.com/2016/04/05/need-know-hecs-debt/

*Medicare:* australianexpatriategroup.com/2016/04/11/medicare-australian-expats-need-know/

*Superannuation:* australianexpatriategroup.com/2016/02/23/top-superannuation-tips-for-australian-expats-abroad/

Now to your specific questions, and please note that this is general advice / commentary only and I would always encourage seeking out personal and licensed advice where required.

- How do I declare myself as a non-resident for tax purposes? Is there a special form to do so? How do I inform the ATO? _Typically, this would be actioned when completing your Australian tax return, where you would indicate that you're a non-resident of Australia for tax purposes. Given that you've outlined you don't have any Taxable Australian Income, this is unlikely to apply for you._

- Do I still need to submit a tax return for FY 2017-2018 given that I have no income source in Australia? _This would be unlikely if you have no Taxable Australian Income. _

- How can I contribute to my super fund while overseas and how may it complicate things for me as a non-resident for tax purposes? _I would recommend checking out our Top Superannuation Tips article above here. If there's anything not covered, feel free to reach out._

- How does being overseas affect my medicare levy and medicare levy surcharge? _This one should cover this area for you - ato.gov.au/Individuals/Medicare-levy/Medicare-levy-exemption/Category-2--Foreign-residents-exemption-from-Medicare-levy/_

- Does being overseas affect my Lifetime Health Cover (LHC)? As mentioned before, my private health insurance has been suspended. _Typically, while your private health cover is suspended you remain covered for the purposes of the LHC. It may also be worthwhile confirming this with your private health fund_.

I hope this is helpful, and best of luck on your journey.

Have a great day.


Jarrad


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## citizen_of_the_world (Jul 28, 2017)

G'day Mate!

Apologies for the delayed response and thank you for the comprehensive reply. Your reply is gold as it covers many things I've never heard of before.

Cheers and have a good one.


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## Moulard (Feb 3, 2017)

Here is the link to the section of the ATO website related to going overseas...

https://www.ato.gov.au/Individuals/International-tax-for-individuals/Going-overseas/

If you are not an Australian citizen then this link may also be of use...

https://www.ato.gov.au/Individuals/...-to-Australia/Returning-to-your-home-country/


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## beaut1fulw0rld (Jan 4, 2017)

Thank you for this thread and responses. Also, has shed some light on areas worth exploring further.


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