The AAT has upheld amended assessments for the 2007 to 2011 income years as the taxpayer failed to prove they were excessive or that they were issued out of time.
The taxpayer Kok Heang Chhua contended that the additional income assessed by the ATO ($2.325m) was mostly gambling winnings which were not assessable as he was not a professional gambler. However, in the absence of records and other evidence, the AAT concluded that the taxpayer had failed to prove that the assessments were excessive. The AAT also said that it was "highly improbable" that the amounts in question could have been generated by the taxpayer's gambling winnings.
The AAT also concluded that the ATO was entitled to amend the assessments for the 2007 to 2010 income years as the taxpayer failed to establish that the omission of income from his income tax returns was not caused by fraud or evasion (the amendments would have been out of time otherwise). The AAT also rejected the taxpayer's submission that the Commissioner was required to show that he had delegated his power to issue the amended assessments out of time to the relevant ATO officer. (Chhua and FCT [2022] AATA 2593, AAT, Molloy DP & Gaudion M, 12 August 2022.)
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