Our People

Simon is a Director of the Tax Services division in Melbourne.
Contact Simon

E: [email protected]
T: +61 3 9286 8000

Simon Aitken
Partner - Melbourne


Office : Melbourne
Services : Tax services, Income tax consulting, Individual tax solutions, International tax, Tax compliance, Tax risk management
Sectors : Mining, Property and Construction, Infrastructure
Biography

Simon is a Director of the Tax Services division in Melbourne. Simon has over 25 years of corporate tax consulting experience, predominately for Australian publicly listed companies and Australian subsidiaries of multi-nationals.

Simon advises extensively to clients in the resources, building and infrastructure industries.

Simon Aitken is a Partner of RSM Australia Partner and a Director of RSM Australia Pty Ltd.

Solutions Simon provides

green_illustration_asset_34x.pngAdvising clients on all aspects of taxation law at both a compliance and strategic level

  • International tax law considerations including in-bound investment, out-bound investment, international structuring of debt and equity positions, thin-capitalisation, and tax effective profit repatriation to shareholders;

  • Tax consolidation formation and joining events;

  • Tax due diligence reviews for take-overs and management of vendor divestments;

  • Advising on the tax implications of group restructures;

  • Representing clients with ATO reviews, audits, ruling submissions and tax management matters;

  • Establishing tax governance and tax management strategies;

  • Advising on tax laws specific to the mining and petroleum sectors including capital allowance provisions and the Petroleum Resource Rent Tax; and

  • Tax compliance and tax effect accounting solutions.

Significant projects

  • Advising ASX listed resource companies in project financing and structuring for major new projects (both mining and oil projects);

  • Advising an ASX listed company on the tax implications of a convertible note issue to be listed on the Singapore stock exchange;

  • Advising an ASX listed company demerge a subsidiary, including successfully negotiating a class ruling for shareholders with the ATO;

  • Advising on a multi-national tax due-diligence project for an ASX listed entity;

  • Project finance and tax due diligence on major transport infrastructure projects in Australia;

  • Successfully managing large ATO risk reviews and audits for both income tax and PRRT.

Professional associations

  • Associate, Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand
  • Fellow, Taxation Institute of Australia

Qualifications

  • Bachelor of Commerce (Swinburne University)
  • Masters of Taxation (Monash University)
  • Registered tax agent
Publications

Significant uncertainty remains after Guardian appeal decision narrows application of Section 100A

2 February 2023
On 24 January 2023, the Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia handed down its decision in Commissioner of Taxation v Guardian AIT Pty Ltd ATF Australian Investment Trust [2023] FCAFC 3, dismissing the Commissioner’s appeal from the Federal Court decision1 insofar as it related to section 100A of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936, but...
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Federal Court decision provides increased clarity on the judicial approach to section 100A

12 January 2023
Thawley J’s judgment in the recent Federal Court case of BBlood Enterprises Pty Ltd v Commissioner of Taxation [2022] FCA 1112 (“BBlood”) has provided increased clarity on the approach of the Australian judiciary to apply section 100A of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 (ITAA 1936)1. Critically, the principles enunciated in BBlood (and t...
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Victorian Land Tax - statutory notifications due January 15

22 December 2022
The next deadline for statutory notifications for the Vacant Residential Land Tax and the Absentee Owner Surcharge is 15 January 2023.  Victorian Vacant residential land tax Vacant residential land tax was waived in 2021 as part of the Victorian Government's coronavirus relief measures and re-commenced in 2022. You must notify the V...
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Victorian State Budget 2022/23

6 May 2022
The Victorian Budget for 2022/23 has been handed down. The key points include: One new, targeted, revenue measure announced $12 billion in additional funding for Victoria’s Health system Victoria expected to be back in surplus by 2025-26 Summary The Victorian Treasurer, Mr Tim Pallas MLA handed down his ...
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Explorer to Producer: Australia’s Mining Regeneration

3 May 2022
A report by RSM on Australia’s modern miners The pace of change, the range of issues faced by Australia’s new generation of exploration and development companies on their journey to production,and the outlook for the sector, are all explored in this report. It also looks at the developments and trends altering Australia’s mineral explor...
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Tax Insights | February 2022 edition

1 March 2022
In our February 2022 edition of Tax Insights, we explain the Patent Box Regime, take a look at the ATO's tailored approach to future engagement with the Top 100 taxpayers, and more.
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Patent Box Tax Concessions Explained

17 February 2022
The Federal Government has recently published a Bill which introduces the proposed Australian Patent Box Regime announced in the 2021 Federal Budget. Summary The Australian Patent Box Regime provides concessional income tax treatment for eligible ordinary and statutory income derived by a corporate taxpayer in the exploitation of a medical or...
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Proposed tax laws for the write-off of intangible assets

8 December 2021
As part of the 2021-22 Federal Budget, the government announced a policy to allow taxpayers to self-assess the effective life of certain intangible assets effective from 1 July 2023. The existing tax law will continue to apply to intangible assets held prior to 1 July 2023. Exposure draft legislation for this measure was released on 3 Decembe...
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Victorian Windfall Gains Tax – A material new tax obligation for Victorian Land Developers

26 October 2021
The Victorian Government introduced the Windfall Gains Tax and State Taxation and Other Acts Further Amendment Bill 2021 that, among other amendments, will impose a significant new tax on unrealised gains arising from the rezoning of land in Victoria. If enacted, the provisions relating to windfall gains tax (WGT) will apply from 1 July 2023. So...
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Tax alert | Victorian State Budget 2021-22

24 May 2021
The Victorian Treasurer, Tim Pallas MLA, handed down the Victorian State Budget on Thursday 20 May 2021.  After a delayed 2020-21 budget on account of COVID-19, this budget was back in its traditional May timeslot.
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Victoria | State Budget Analysis 2021-22

21 May 2021
What does the 2021-22 Victorian State Budget mean for you and your business? The Victorian Treasurer, Tim Pallas MLA, handed down the Victorian State Budget on Thursday 20 May 2021. After a delayed 2020-21 budget on account of COVID-19, this budget was back in its traditional May timeslot.  Taxation revenue is forecast to incre...
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Victorian State Budget 2021-22 | Property & Construction announcements

21 May 2021
The Victorian Government released its 2021-22 budget on 20 May 2021. Taxation revenue is forecast to increase by 13.2% in 2021-22, partly due to economic conditions recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic slump and the introduction of new taxes.   This summary focuses on the particular announcements affecting the Property & Constructio...
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Junior Minerals Exploration Incentive – Explained for 2020/21

28 May 2020
The Junior Minerals Exploration Incentive (JMEI) was introduced in 2018 to allow junior mining exploration companies (JMEC) that are undertaking greenfield exploration in Australia, to convert tax losses into exploration credits for investors. The exploration credits provide a tax offset for investors that incentivises them to contribute new capita...
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Beware of purchasing Victorian residential land in a trust

10 February 2020
The Victorian Duties Act 2000 imposes a stamp duty surcharge of 8% on the acquisition of Victorian residential property by a foreign purchaser. This surcharge brings the top stamp duty rate to 13.5%. The breadth of this surcharge and its cost mandates that it be considered in the direct purchase of Victorian land or indirect purchase ...
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Deductibility of labour costs related to the construction or creation of assets

4 December 2019
Draft Tax Ruling TR 2019/D6 explains the Commissioner’s views as to when labour costs relating to the construction or creation of an asset is deductible for tax purposes under section 8-1 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (Tax Act).  Labour costs falling for deductibility under another provision of the Tax Act, including the research ...
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Land Development Agreements - The net widens

18 July 2019
The Victorian Duties Act 2000 contains provisions that can apply to Land Development Agreements that have been broadened since the recent enactment of the State Taxation Acts Amendments Act 2019 on 18 June 2019.   The former ‘economic entitlement’ provisions applied to the acquisition of a greater than 50% interest in a private landh...
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Junior Minerals Exploration Incentive - Get in quick!

15 May 2018
The Exploration Development Incentive (EDI) was replaced by the Junior Minerals Exploration Incentive (JMEI) for the 2018 to 2021 years. JMEI applications for the 2019 year must be electronically submitted between 1 June and 30 June 2018. $100m of JMEI credits will be available on a ‘first come first serve basis’ over the following annual ex...
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Budget 2016 - Corporate Tax Rates

4 May 2016
Income Year Annual Aggregated Turnover Thresholds Rate 2016/17 $10 million 27.5% 2017/18 $25 million 27.5% 2018/19 $50 million 27.5% ...
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Budget 2016 for Corporations

3 May 2016
Cuts to Company Tax Rate The company tax rate will be reduced to 25% over the next 10 years. The company tax rate will be progressively reduced to 25% between the 2016/17 and 2026/27 income years. A company tax rate of 27.5% will apply to companies with an annual aggregated turnover of less than $10 million for the 2016/17 year, increasing...
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New 10 percent withholding tax on acquisitions of direct or indirect interests in Australian Real Property

9 March 2016
From 1 July 2016, a new 10% withholding tax will apply to acquisitions of Taxable Australian Real Property (TARP) or Indirect Australian Real Property (IARP) interests. The withholding is based on 10% of the purchaser’s CGT cost base for TARP or IARP and must be paid to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) on or before the settlement date. ...
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Changes to the zone tax offset rules

7 December 2015
Updated July 2016 Changes to the zone tax offset (ZTO)provisions will restrict access to the ZTO  for fly in fly out (FIFO) workers in remote areas of Australia from 1 July 2015. The purpose of the offset is to provide an income tax concession to individual residents of the prescribed zone areas for the disadvantages they are subjec...
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Company taxpayers: are you ready for the public disclosure of your tax data?

4 October 2015
Since tax was first collected, a fundamental feature of tax law has been the unconditional secrecy surrounding taxpayer data. In Australia that position changed in June 2013 when Australia’s tax secrecy laws were amended, directing the ATO to publicly report certain large company tax data. Start date and implications The fir...
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Exploration development incentive - should mineral explorers opt in or out?

16 March 2015
The Exploration Development Incentive (EDI) was enacted with the passing of the Tax and Superannuation Laws Amendment (2014 Measures No. 7) Act 2014 in March 2015. Mineral explorers will need to determine whether the exploration expenditure they have incurred since 1 July 2014 will qualify for the EDI. The EDI has been restricted to $100 million...
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