Last year, the five-day trip to Broome, Fitzroy Crossing and various First Nations communities secured more than $536,000 in refunds.
Broome and Fitzroy Crossing community members in need of help understanding and managing their tax affairs will be given a helping hand from members of the Edith Cowan University (ECU) Tax Clinic.
The free, student-run initiative - led by Professor Joshua Aston and with guidance from qualified tax experts Dr Clare Tai and Tax Agent Dhvani Thakkar- will see a team of six students from the ECU clinic offer confidential and professional advice to West Kimberley remote taxpayers, as well as First Nations communities including Bidyadanga, Ardyaloon, Lombadina, Beagle Bay, Yakanarra, Bayulu, Wangkatjungka, and Yungngora.
ECU Associate Professor Prafula Pearce, Coordinator of the ECU Tax Clinic, said the seven-day visit will help unrepresented taxpayers, some of whom will travel thousands of kilometres to access the service.
"The ECU Tax Clinic experience indicates that many residents of remote Kimberley communities have a backlog of non-lodged tax returns for several reasons, including limited literacy and numeracy skills, lack of ability to understand tax obligations, and lack of available tax agent services," she said.
"There is no tax agent service located at Fitzroy Crossing. The Broome tax agents can be quite expensive, thus making them unaffordable for low-income community clients."
The team will also travel to outlying communities, namely Bidyadanga, Ardyaloon, Lombadina and Beagle Bay, as well as the Bayulu, Yakanarra, Wangkatjungka and Yungngora communities.
Hundreds of thousands worth of refunds secured
The ECU Tax Clinic began operations in 2020 and extended its service offering confidential and professional tax advice to remote and indigenous communities in 2022.
Last year, the five-day trip to Broome, Fitzroy Crossing and various First Nations communities saw the team secure more than $536,000 in refunds through 430 plus tax returns.
Professor Pearce said as a result, the ECU Tax Clinic's priority was to assist the remote and First Nations community members in lodging outstanding tax returns.
"Without lodgement, the community members forgo significant refunds, often representing thousands of dollars that could materially improve living conditions," she said.
The ECU Tax Clinic provides a hands-on learning opportunity for students studying Business and Law degrees to gain experience in taxation law and accounting under the guidance of qualified tax experts.
This year, a hybrid model will be trialled offering Perth based students an opportunity to help remote clients via a zoom link.
An Australian wide initiative
The Clinic is among 19 of its kind in Australia, which is part of the Federally funded National Tax Clinic Program (NTCP).
The ECU Tax Clinic's mission supports the NTCP's goal of increasing support for eligible vulnerable and unrepresented taxpayers to address their tax affairs.
