Australia income tax on online income?

Hi there,





I am migrating to Australia soon as i recently got my Permanent Residency status there. I currently am in Nepal and work online for a US based firm and they send me monthly salary via wire transfer which is not taxed as there is no such system in Nepal.





Now, I want to continue this job, but my question is, when they wire me the money to my Australian bank account each month, will I be taxed? I have not yet applied for a tax file number and I will basically be a student in Australia, who will work online from home (but i am on a Permanent Residence status and not a student visa)





Thanks


Invictus
Australia income tax on online income?
Hi Invictus,





As a former freelance IT consultant who used to work at home in one country for a client in another foreign country, I know it for a fact that you are required to pay income tax in the country in which you physically perform your service. You do not owe taxes in the country in which your client is registered, simply because you do not have a tax identification in that country. The fact that you say that in Nepal you don't pay taxes because there is no tax system there, means that you are lucky to get away without paying them right now. Unfortunately, Australia does tax your income, so you will owe the going rate (I think it's 30%, not completely sure, though) to the Australian government. The only possible chance for you to try and get around it would be to have your client continue to pay to your account in Nepal, then wire transfer from there to Australia, as though it were your private money. The only disadvantage is that you would have to pay exchange commissions twice; once to change from US$ to currency in Nepal, then again from currency in Nepal to AUS$, plus twice the bank bank fees for international transfers. It would probably be easier to just pay the local taxes in Australia and be done with it, rather than just make the banks richer with your hard-earned money.


If you are doing it freelance, then you will also need to hire a (local) accountant in Australia to do your bookkeeping, so that you can be sure that it is done right, and in accordance with the local tax laws, so you don't get into trouble for tax fraud.