Tabcorp, the Australia-based gambling company, has successfully resolved a tax dispute with the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and has been refunded a substantial amount. The ATO has agreed to reimburse Tabcorp AU$83m, which represents 20% of the disputed tax liabilities and interest.
The dispute arose from the way Tabcorp treated income tax payments for various licenses and authorities. In order to settle the matter, Tabcorp paid the full disputed amount of tax liabilities and interest to the Commissioner.
As part of the resolution, the ATO will now refund Tabcorp approximately AU$83m, equivalent to 20% of the disputed tax liabilities and interest.
In a separate incident, Tabcorp recently faced a significant penalty from the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC). The company was fined AU$1m for a system outage that occurred during the 2020 Spring Racing Carnival. Tabcorp’s wagering and betting system was offline for 36 hours on 7 November 2020, and the company did not inform the VGCCC, resulting in a breach of its license.
Furthermore, Tabcorp is obliged to make a payment of approximately AU$37m to The Lottery Corporation Limited (TLC) under a Separation Deed between Tabcorp and TLC dated 25 March 2022.
An investigation was launched into the system outage incident, but Tabcorp failed to provide sufficient information voluntarily. Consequently, directions were issued.
Taking into account the fine and payment to TLC, Tabcorp is expected to have around AU$45m in tax benefits, which will be reflected in its FY24 financial report.