79017 Taxation Law
79017 Overview
- University of Technology Sydney
- Spring 2026
- Postgraduate
- Law
79017 Taxation Law at the University of Technology Sydney develops the legal and numerical methods needed to identify Australian tax consequences and communicate professional advice. The subject begins with the structure of the tax system, the income-tax equation, residence and source.
- Classification first Identify the taxpayer, receipt, outgoing, asset or entity relationship before selecting a computational rule.
- Authority and application Move from legislation and cases to the particular facts, then state a qualified professional conclusion.
- Visible calculations Show each input, intermediate amount and direction check so tax figures can be reviewed and corrected.
What you get in the full 79017 Exam Bible
- 6 chapters, 32 pages — every examinable topic, week by week
- 15 original practice questions, most with model answers in the Final Exam format
- 6 worked examples, solved the way 79017 marks
- 9 computed figures, redrawn from the course’s own numbers
- Exam-morning plan for the Final Exam (50%) — what to revise last, where marks are lost
Free on this page: assessment table, chapter map, one worked example, key terms, FAQ. The rest is in the full exam bible.
How 79017 is assessed
| Component | Weight | Format |
|---|---|---|
| Midsession Multiple Choice Online Test | 10% | Online multiple-choice test on interpreting taxation law, including calculations |
| Professional Task | 40% | Research and professional application using legislation, case law and ATO guidance |
| Final Exam | 50% | Written communication, critical thinking and problem solving in a professional advice setting |
The three published components total 100%. No hurdle is stated in the available assessment overview. Check the current Subject Information and official announcements for dates, examination logistics, submission settings and any later amendments.
What other students are asking about 79017
- Where can I find lecture notes or study guides for 79017 at UTS?
- The 79017 study guide in AskSia Library covers Taxation Law in 6 chapters, with the assessment table, a chapter-by-chapter topic map, key terms and a worked example, free to read on this page.
- Is there a final exam in 79017, and how much is it worth?
- Yes. In the offering this AskSia Library guide is built from, Final Exam carries 50% of the 79017 mark; the full split is Midsession Multiple Choice Online Test 10%, Professional Task 40%, Final Exam 50%.
- What does 79017 cover on individual income and fringe benefits tax?
- In AskSia Library's 79017 guide, the Individual Income and Fringe Benefits Tax chapter explains personal exertion, allowances, gifts, benefits and FBT calculations.
- What does 79017 cover on business income and trading stock?
- In AskSia Library's 79017 guide, the Business Income and Trading Stock chapter explains business indicators, extraordinary gains, stock classification and valuation.
- What does 79017 cover on investment income and capital gains tax?
- In AskSia Library's 79017 guide, the Investment Income and Capital Gains Tax chapter explains investment receipts, CGT events, cost base, losses and concessions.
What 79017 covers
Six chapters follow the verified teaching sequence from the Australian tax system and assessable income through individual and business taxation, investment income, deductions, partnerships and trusts. Each chapter turns legal classification into a repeatable advice method, with fresh calculations and professional application.
Tax System and Assessable Income
tax architecture, residence, source, ordinary and statutory incomeThis chapter builds the routing framework for Australian income tax.
- Australian tax architecture: legislation, administration, judicial interpretation and the taxpayer's income year
- The taxable-income bridge: assessable income less allowable deductions, with tax rates and offsets applied later
- Residence tests and the distinction between resident worldwide scope and foreign-resident Australian-source scope
- Source as a practical inquiry into the acts, assets, contracts and operations that produce a receipt
- Ordinary-income characteristics including periodicity, reliance, services, business nexus and substitution
- Statutory-income routing and the need to avoid double inclusion where provisions overlap
Individual Income and Fringe Benefits Tax
personal exertion, allowances, gifts, benefits and FBT calculationsThis chapter separates individual assessable income from the employer-based fringe benefits tax system. Salary, wages, allowances, bonuses, prizes, gifts and benefits are not classified by label alone.
- Income from personal exertion: salary, wages, allowances, bonuses and substitute payments
- Employment nexus and the boundary between remuneration, personal gifts, prizes and windfalls
- Benefit identification: who provides it, who receives it and whether it is in respect of employment
- FBT categories, exemptions and benefit-specific taxable-value methods
- Employee contributions and other supported reductions to taxable value
- Type 1 and Type 2 gross-up classification using the GST treatment stated in the facts
Business Income and Trading Stock
business indicators, extraordinary gains, stock classification and valuationThis chapter distinguishes carrying on a business from a hobby, investment or preparatory activity, then classifies receipts produced by that activity.
- Business indicators applied as a totality rather than a numerical checklist
- Separating different activities carried on by the same taxpayer
- Normal proceeds and receipts that are ordinary incidents of the business
- Extraordinary and isolated transactions, including profit-making purpose and commercial operation
- Trading-stock classification by purpose, taxpayer and ordinary course of business
- Closing-stock valuation using supported cost, market selling value or replacement value
Investment Income and Capital Gains Tax
investment receipts, CGT events, cost base, losses and concessionsThis chapter classifies investment returns and then applies the capital-gains sequence. Interest, rent, dividends and compensation are analysed by character, source, timing and the thing a payment replaces.
- Investment receipts: interest, rent, dividends and their ordinary or statutory treatment
- Compensation and the substitution principle: classify the thing the payment replaces
- Derivation and timing for passive receipts, business receipts and accrued entitlements
- CGT assets, events and event-specific timing rules
- Capital proceeds and market-value substitutions where consideration is absent or relationships matter
- Cost base, reduced cost base and anti-duplication for deductible expenditure
General and Specific Deductions
income nexus, negative limbs, apportionment and specific routesThis chapter treats deductibility as a two-gate inquiry. First, the outgoing or loss must have the required connection with gaining assessable income or carrying on a business for that purpose.
- The two positive limbs and the need to identify the precise outgoing and income-producing activity
- The occasion of the outgoing, including expenses incurred before or after an activity
- Capital versus revenue character and the distinction between structure and operation
- Private and domestic expenses, conventional clothing, meals, commuting and home costs
- Apportionment of mixed-purpose expenditure on a fair and reasonable supported basis
- Specific routes for travel, self-education, repairs, bad debts, tax costs and decline in value
Partnerships, Trusts and Beneficiaries
entity calculations, partner allocation and present entitlementThis chapter compares two entity allocation systems without collapsing them into a simple profit split. A partnership calculates its tax-law net income or loss and allocates supported shares to partners under the agreement.
- Partnership tax-law net income and the adjustment from book profit to the statutory result
- Partner sharing ratios, priority allocations and the treatment of partner remuneration
- Reconciliation of all partner shares to the partnership aggregate
- Trust income under the deed and general law compared with statutory net income
- Present entitlement as an immediate and indefeasible right rather than a cash-receipt test
- Beneficiary capacity, legal disability and circumstances in which the trustee may be assessed
It then examines ordinary and statutory income, individual earnings, business income, trading stock, investment returns, capital gains, deductions, partnerships and trusts. The central skill is classification. A payment can be ordinary income, statutory income, a capital receipt or outside assessable income depending on its character and connection with the taxpayer.
An outgoing can have a strong commercial purpose yet fail because it is capital, private, related to exempt income or denied by a specific provision. The guide therefore uses a stable advice sequence. Identify the taxpayer and income year. Separate each receipt, outgoing and asset. State the statutory or case-law question. Apply facts in both directions. Perform the calculation with labelled inputs.
Reconcile the result and state any assumption that could change it. Quantitative work is integrated throughout: taxable income bridges, FBT taxable values, trading-stock adjustments, capital gains, apportionment and entity allocations all require arithmetic that follows the legal classification. A correct number reached through the wrong legal route is not a reliable answer.
Assessment comprises a 10% midsession online multiple-choice test, a 40% Professional Task and a 50% Final Exam. The published assessment descriptions emphasise interpretation of tax law, calculations, research, application of legislation, cases and ATO guidance, written communication, critical thinking and problem solving in a professional advice setting.
The materials available for this guide do not state the final examination duration, section structure, question count, aids or date. Those operating details must be checked in the current Subject Information and official announcements. The six chapters track the teaching content for which substantive materials are available. They use independently written scenarios, not past examination questions.
Start each chapter by learning its routing map, then close the notes and apply the map to a changed fact pattern. Record why a fact matters, not merely the conclusion it produced. This method builds transfer: the ability to recognise the same legal issue when the parties, amounts and transaction labels change.
Worked example · free
Calculating fringe benefits tax for a Type 1 benefit
- +1Identify the benefit and the supplied taxable value. The calculation starts from $18,000 after any benefit-specific reductions already reflected in the question.
- +1Classify the benefit as Type 1 because the question states that the provider is entitled to a GST input tax credit. Use the supplied Type 1 factor rather than an unstated current rate.
- +1Calculate the grossed-up taxable value: $18,000 times 2.0802 equals $37,443.60.
- +1Apply the supplied FBT rate: $37,443.60 times 47% equals $17,598.49, rounded to cents.
- +1State the taxpayer and result: the employer has the FBT liability, while the employee does not include the benefit as ordinary salary merely because it was provided in connection with employment.
Key terms
- Assessable income
- The total of ordinary income and statutory income included for an income year, subject to provisions that make amounts exempt or otherwise non-assessable.
- Ordinary income
- Income according to ordinary concepts, assessed by character, periodicity, reliance, connection with services or business, and the facts of derivation.
- Statutory income
- An amount included in assessable income by a specific legislative provision even if it is not ordinary income.
- Residence
- A legal status tested under statutory and ordinary concepts that affects the geographic scope of Australian assessable income.
- Source
- The practical geographic origin of income, determined from the acts, assets, contracts and operations that produced it.
- Fringe benefit
- A benefit provided in respect of employment that is considered under the separate employer-based fringe benefits tax system and its exemptions.
- Trading stock
- Property kept for production or ordinary business sale, including qualifying livestock and other items held with the relevant commercial purpose.
- Capital proceeds
- Money and property received or entitled to be received from a CGT event, subject to substitution and event-specific rules.
- Cost base
- The statutory collection of acquisition and related costs used to calculate a capital gain, with exclusions that prevent double recognition.
- General deduction
- A deduction route requiring the necessary connection with assessable income or business and survival of the capital, private and other negative limbs.
- Apportionment
- A fair and reasonable division of an outgoing where only part has the required income-producing character or use.
- Partnership net income
- The partnership's tax-law result calculated before each partner includes the supported share in the partner's own tax position.
- Present entitlement
- A beneficiary's immediate and indefeasible right to demand a share of trust income, even where payment has not yet occurred.
- Tax net income
- The trust's statutory net income calculated under tax law, kept distinct from income of the trust estate under the deed and general law.
79017 FAQ
Is this Taxation Law subject difficult?
The challenge is combining legal classification with accurate calculations. A fact can change the applicable provision before it changes the number. The subject becomes manageable when you use a consistent issue, rule, application, calculation and conclusion sequence, then practise it on changed scenarios rather than memorising isolated answers.
How is this subject assessed?
The published table has three components: a 10% Midsession Multiple Choice Online Test, a 40% Professional Task and a 50% Final Exam. Together they total 100%. Check the current Subject Information and official announcements for dates, submission settings and operating instructions.
What is known about the Final Exam?
The available assessment description confirms a 50% Final Exam focused on written communication, critical thinking and problem solving in a professional advice setting. It does not establish duration, section structure, question count, aids or date, so verify those details in the current University information.
Is there a hurdle requirement?
No hurdle is stated in the available assessment overview. That is not the same as a guarantee that later official instructions contain no additional condition. Review the current Subject Information and announcements, especially if assessment arrangements have been amended during the session.
Does the subject require calculations?
Yes. The teaching materials include the taxable-income equation, individual tax rates, FBT calculations, trading-stock adjustments, capital-gain computations, deduction apportionment and partnership allocations. Show inputs and intermediate amounts because the legal classification determines which formula and direction apply.
Can an AI tutor help with this subject?
It can explain a provision, test an issue list, generate a fresh practice scenario and check arithmetic. It should not replace your own research or produce work submitted for assessment. Verify legal propositions against current legislation, cases and authorised guidance, and follow UTS academic integrity requirements.
Are the practice questions official UTS questions?
No. The worked examples and drills in this guide are independently authored to practise the concepts and methods taught in the subject. They do not reproduce a past examination, predict the exact format of a future task or represent an official marking rubric.
Questions students ask in each 79017 chapter
- Why classify before calculating?
- Classification determines whether an amount enters assessable income, which provision applies, when it is derived and whether another rule modifies it. Starting with arithmetic can conceal a capital receipt, exempt amount or timing issue. Write a classification line for each receipt before adding totals. Chapter 01 · Tax System and Assessable Income
- Is every gift from an employer taxable?
- No conclusion follows from the word gift alone. Examine the employment connection, occasion, expectation, recurrence, payer relationship and whether the amount rewards services. A genuinely personal gift may differ from a payment made because the recipient is an employee or achieved a work result. Chapter 02 · Individual Income and Fringe Benefits Tax
- Does a profit motive prove a business?
- No. It is relevant but not conclusive. Apply the full pattern of repetition, scale, commercial method, organisation, records and conduct typical of the field. A small activity can be a business, while a profitable isolated event can remain outside a continuing business. Chapter 03 · Business Income and Trading Stock
- Is insurance compensation always capital?
- No. Ask what the payment replaces. An amount calculated to replace lost rent or business income can take income character, while compensation for permanent damage to an underlying asset can point toward capital treatment. Split separate components where the facts support an allocation. Chapter 04 · Investment Income and Capital Gains Tax
- Is every work-related cost deductible?
- No. The expense must have the required connection with current income-producing activities and survive the exclusions. Practical necessity or an employer expectation does not automatically defeat private character. Identify the occasion of the outgoing and the advantage obtained. Chapter 05 · General and Specific Deductions
- Is a partner salary deductible like employee wages?
- Not merely because the accounts call it salary. A partner is not automatically treated as an outside employee of the partnership. Calculate the tax-law partnership result and then apply the agreement's priority and residual allocations, ensuring all shares reconcile. Chapter 06 · Partnerships, Trusts and Beneficiaries
How to study for the exam
Study 79017 as a sequence of classification decisions supported by authority and arithmetic. At the start of each week, make a one-page route map that names the taxpayer, the relevant amount or asset, the legal question, the main inclusion or deduction rule, the exclusions and the calculation. Then attempt tutorial problems without looking at the map.
When you check the answer, record the first decision that went wrong rather than copying the final conclusion. For the midsession multiple-choice test, practise rapid issue recognition and directional checks. Ask whether a receipt is ordinary or statutory income, whether an outgoing has the necessary nexus, and whether an amount is capital or private before touching the options.
Rework every calculation with units and a rough reasonableness check. For the Professional Task, begin early with a research table: proposition, primary authority, pinpoint, application fact, contrary argument and conclusion. Keep legislation, cases and ATO guidance distinct, and verify that each authority remains current.
For the Final Exam, build six short answer frames: assessable income, FBT, business and stock, investment and CGT, deductions, and entity allocation. Rehearse them under the conditions stated in the current University instructions. Do not memorise an unverified duration or aids rule. In every response, state assumptions where a date, taxpayer status, deed term, purpose or current-year rate is missing.
Finish with a direct answer and the fact most likely to change it. This creates professional advice that remains useful even when a problem is deliberately ambiguous.
Your AI Law tutor for 79017
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