Carvalho v Commissioner of State Revenue (Review and Regulation) [2017] VCAT 1295
Background
A husband and wife claimed the principal place of residence (PPR) exemption from land tax for the 2016 land tax year in respect of a property in Ashburton, Victoria. The husband already received a PPR exemption for a property co-owned by him in Sydney. The material before the Commissioner indicated that the Taxpayers both spent considerable time in New South Wales, and their mail was re-directed from Ashburton to the husband’s Sydney property. Utility usage at the Ashburton property was also very low.
Decision
On 21 August 2017, the Tribunal found in favour of the Commissioner, finding the Taxpayers had failed to discharge their onus of proof to show that the Ashburton property was their PPR during the relevant period. The Tribunal noted that the fact that the Taxpayers did not rent out the Ashburton property did not necessarily mean that it must have been their PPR.
