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Tax literacy in Australia: Not knowing your deduction from your offset
Published on 01 Jul 16 by "AUSTRALIAN TAX FORUM" JOURNAL ARTICLE
In times of global economic uncertainty and in a climate of increased consumer responsibility for financial decisions, maintaining a financial environment where consumers are protected from risk and continue to have opportunities to create wealth should be critical for governments, business and administrators. The Australian Government has recognised that, for those with the lowest levels of financial literacy, specific financial literacy programs can equip them with the appropriate financial skills and knowledge to ensure they can make well informed decisions and be less vulnerable to scams and market risks.
One of the main aims of increasing the overall financial literacy of populations is creating an environment where consumers have the knowledge, skills and confidence to protect them from financial risk. It is argued that taxation consequences often play an important role in investment decisions and are often the primary reason why people seek assistance and advice from professionals. It is also argued that making poor taxation decisions through a lack of basic understanding can pose significant risks to a person’s overall financial position and financial decision?making. Indeed, Chardon has argued that the notion of financial capability should include notions of tax and superannuation. However, to what extent do Australians understand basic tax concepts, that is - what is their “tax literacy”?
Author profiles
Prof Toni Chardon CTA
Toni works at University of Southern Queensland. - Current at 04 July 2016Dr Brett Freudenberg CTA
Brett is a Professor – Taxation at Griffith University. Brett is known for his research expertise in the tax law and policy issues facing private enterprises, as evidenced by his Fulbright Scholarship (2006) and over 80 refereed publications in leading Australian and international journals. In 2020, he was awarded the national ATTA-Hill medal in recognition of outstanding contribution to Australasian tax policy and tax teaching. Brett is passionate about education being a transformative process, and his effectiveness as a teacher has been recognised through five national awards (including the award of two Australian Learning and Teaching Council citations: 2008 & 2011). In 2019 Brett was successful in securing funding from the Federal Government to establish the Griffith Tax Clinic, which sees students under supervision providing free tax assistance to those in need in the community. Prior to commencing with Griffith University, Brett was a senior taxation consultant with KPMG and a solicitor with Corrs Chambers. - Current at 06 July 2022
Mark Brimble
Mark works for the Department of Accounting, Finance and Economics, Griffith Business School, Griffith University.Current at 1 July 2016
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