The federal government announced in the 2017 Budget that it would remove a capital gains tax (CGT) exemption for expatriate Australians who sell their main residence while overseas. While the measure was projected to raise $581 million over the forward estimates, it has been condemned by tax and legal experts as being “unjustifiably bad policy”, and will discourage Australians who are thinking of going overseas to work. From The AFR:
Barrister Graeme Halperin, a high-profile critic of the Australian Tax Office who has practiced tax law for 30 years, said the move was “unjustifiably bad policy” and would be a disincentive to Australians considering living and working overseas…
