21 ALAMEIN ROAD REVESBY HEIGHTS New South Wales 2212
Other records
Expiry date
01/11/2023
Condition
Sanctions
None on record
Appeal
Board decision
CXL Reason
Disqualification
<strong>Period of Effect:</strong> 16/05/2023 to 16/05/2026<br/><strong>Reason:</strong> 40-25 Period during which you may not apply for registration
Suspension
None on record
Termination
<strong>Date of Effect:</strong> 16/05/2023<br/><strong>Reason:</strong> 40-5(1)(b) individual no longer meets registration requirements[POPUP_FOR_DETAILS]<br/><strong>Code breach(es):</strong> <ul><li>30-10(1) - You must act honestly and with integrity</li><li>30-10(2) - You must comply with the taxation laws in the conduct of your personal affairs</li><li>30-10(4) - You must act lawfully in the best interests of your client</li><li>30-10(7) - You must ensure that a tax agent service that you provide, or that is provided on your behalf, is provided competently</li><li>30-10(8) - You must maintain knowledge and skills relevant to the tax agent services that you provide</li><li>30-10(13) - You must maintain professional indemnity insurance that meets the Board's requirements</li><li>30-10(14) - You must respond to requests and directions from the Board in a timely, responsible and reasonable manner</li></ul><br/><strong>Registration requirement not met:</strong> <ul><li>20-5(1)(a) Individual has ceased to meet registration requirement that they are a fit and proper person</li><li>20-5(1)(b) Individual has ceased to meet registration requirement that they have the educational and experience requirements prescribed by the Tax Agent Services Regulations 2009</li></ul><br/><strong>Explanation:</strong> On 30 March 2023, after completing an investigation, the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) decided to terminate the tax agent registration of Bell Elassad (Mr Elassad). The TPB found that Mr Elassad had engaged in conduct which breached subsections 30-10(1), 30-10(2), 30-10(4), 30-10(7), 30-10(8), 30-10(13) and 30-10(14) of the Code of Professional Conduct (Code) in the Tax Agent Services Act 2009 (TASA). The TPB also determined Mr Elassad was no longer eligible for registration, as he no longer satisfied the TPB that he met the tax practitioner registration requirements as he:<br>1. No longer satisfied the TPB that he was a fit and proper person<br>2. No longer satisfied the TPB that he met the experience requirements in respect of registration. The TPB also imposed a period of three years during which Mr Elassad is disqualified from making an application for registration.<br><br>The TPB found that Mr Elassad breached subsection 30-10(1) of the Code, when he failed to act honestly and with integrity by:<br>1. Failing to declare all reportable and assessable income as required in his personal income tax returns (ITRs), including failing to report any income derived from the provision of tax agent services in those ITRs.<br>2. Providing false or misleading information to a taxation officer acting on behalf of the Commissioner undertaking enquiries pursuant to or further to the administration of taxation laws, in relation to him sharing confidential taxpayer information allowing another individual, to use his personal MyGovID credentials to lodge BAS for two clients without authorisation.<br><br>The TPB found that Mr Elassad breached subsection 30-10(2) of the Code, in that he failed to comply with the taxation laws in the conduct of his personal affairs by:<br>1. In his individual capacity, he failed to lodge his ITR by its due date.<br>2. In his capacity as director of a company, he failed to cause it to lodge its ITRs and Business activity statements (BAS) by their respective due dates.<br>3. Failing to notify the TPB in writing that he had ceased to hold professional indemnity insurance (PII) that met the TPB’s requirements, a registration requirement and a change in circumstances requiring notification to the TPB within 30 days of the change occurring.<br><br>The TPB found that Mr Elassad breached subsections 30-10(4) of the Code, in that he failed to act lawfully in the best interests of two clients by:<br>1. Failing to ensure the security and integrity of his MyGovID credentials, resulting in fraudulent BAS being lodged without the knowledge and authorisation of these clients.<br>2. Failing to supervise the preparation and lodgement of BAS for these clients, resulting in an ATO audit determining that the amounts reported were incorrect because there was no evidence of the clients carrying on a business.<br><br>The TPB found that Mr Elassad had breached subsection 30-10(7) of the Code, in that he failed to ensure that a tax agent service that he provided, or that was provided on his behalf, was provided competently by failing to supervise the preparation and lodgement of BAS for two clients, resulting in ATO audits amending both clients’ BAS to nil.<br><br>The TPB found that Mr Elassad breached subsection 30-10(8) of the Code, in that he failed to maintain knowledge and skills relevant to the tax agent services that he provides, by failing to meet the TPB’s continuing professional education requirements by failing to undertake the minimum number of hours required annually (being a minimum of 10 hours annually until 30 June 2022, and a minimum of 20 hours annually from 1 July 2022).<br><br>The TPB found that Mr Elassad breached subsection 30-10(13) of the Code, in that he did not maintain continuous PII that meets the TPB’s requirements during the period 4 November 2021 to 31 May 2022.<br><br>The TPB found that Mr Elassad breached subsection 30-10(14) of the Code, in that he did not respond to the following requests from the TPB in a timely, responsible and reasonable manner by failing to provide a complete response to the TPB’s enquiries on 3 separate occasions. <br><br>In addition to these Code breaches, the TPB determined that Mr Elassad ceased to meet the tax practitioner registration requirement that he is a fit and proper person, on the basis that he:<br>1. Breached multiple subsections of the Code within the TASA as above.<br>2. Made false statements and provided false documents to the TPB in order to gain tax agent registration, when he knew, or ought to have known, that he did not have the relevant experience to meet the registration requirements.<br>3. Provided a Statement of Relevant Experience (SoRE) to the TPB that declared he had completed periods of employment with a registered tax agent in circumstances where he did not declare any income in his ITRs lodged with the Commissioner for the income years from his declared employment.<br><br>The TPB also determined that Mr Elassad does not meet the experience requirements for registration, as prescribed by the regulations. The TPB found Mr Elassad had:<br>1. provided a false or misleading SoRE in support of an application for registration when he declared in his new registration application that he was employed by a registered tax agent and was providing tax agent services for 35 hours per week, in circumstances where he had not completed the relevant experience declared in the SoRE; and <br>2. not completed two years equivalent of full- time relevant experience in the past five years.