Qantas releases statement on ABC segment on corporate tax

15 February, 2018

Qantas released (15-Feb-2018) a statement responding to a segment aired by the ABC on company tax, stating the broadcaster's analysis is "oversimplified" on an issue "that has already received wide coverage."

  • Qantas stated it has been "very well publicised" that it has not paid company tax because of "equally well publicised financial losses" and once its profits exceed those losses, it will resume payment of company tax;
  • The airline also stated that the notion that it should not argue in favour of company tax cuts because of its financial losses and resulting tax status is "nonsense" and "ignores the benefit to the broader economy that lower tax rates will bring";
  • Qantas reported it has "around" AUD950 million (USD755 million) of tax losses left to work through and expects to return to paying company tax soon, crediting this to the turnaround of the airline;
  • The airline also noted its recent profits generated "large amounts of taxable income for the Australian Government in the form of almost AUD200 million (USD159 million) in unfranked dividends" paid to shareholders since 2016;
  • Qantas stated there is a tax component to most transactions it undertakes, including GST, fringe benefit tax, payroll tax and passenger movement charges. Qantas Group reported it paid and collected a combined total of AUD3.2 billion in taxes for FY2016/2017, an increase of 14% year-on-year. [more - original PR]