Australia is one of many countries that has committed to new global standards on the automatic exchange of financial account information. This information is required by law to be collected by financial institutions around the world for reporting to tax authorities. Tax authorities will exchange this information to help make sure everyone pays the right amount of tax.

What this means for you

The Australian Government has enacted laws and entered into international agreements in order to meet new global standards on the automatic exchange of financial account information. As part of this, BOQ is required by law to collect foreign tax residency information for reporting to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). These laws implement automatic exchange of information with:

  • The United States (US) under a system known as the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). This is for US citizens and tax residents only and applies from 1 July 2014.
  • Other countries under the Common Reporting Standard (CRS). The CRS applies to all foreign tax residents from 1 July 2017.

This means BOQ is required by law to identify accounts held by customers who are foreign tax residents or entities connected to foreign tax residents. This information must then be reported to the ATO who will share this information with the relevant international tax authority.

Where can I get further information?

If you need any further assistance, please call our Customer Contact Centre on 1300 55 72 72. Visit www.boq.com.au/contact-us for our operating hours.

If you are unsure, you should seek advice from a tax adviser. BOQ cannot provide you with any tax advice.

 

How do I provide a self-certification of my tax residency to BOQ?

If you hold a deposit account with us, it’s important for you to tell us where you are tax resident and let us know about any changes to your tax residency. This helps us keep your customer profile up-to-date and meet our reporting obligations to the Australian Taxation Office.

 

Tax Residency Self-Certification

You can complete a self-certification form to confirm your country/ies of tax residency and, if you have a foreign tax residency, provide your Tax Identification Number (TIN) in that country:

If you are tax resident of a country other than the USA, you can alternatively verbally confirm your country of tax residency (and TIN if applicable) to our Customer Contact Centre on 1300 55 72 72, visit www.boq.com.au/contact-us for our operating hours.

If you previously told BOQ that you were a foreign tax resident and now you are an Australian tax resident only, you can let us know using the same forms or Customer Contact Centre phone number listed above.