Oracle ramps up $250 million ATO tax dispute with new court appeal
Software company Oracle is continuing its effort to pause a local court battle with the Commissioner of Taxation, with implications for other companies with cross-border software distribution arrangements.
American software company Oracle is ramping up efforts to shut down a local court battle with the Australian Taxation Office over cross-border royalty payments, which could have wider implications for multinationals doing business in Australia.
In new documents filed to the Federal Court, Oracle argues Federal Court of Australia Judge Nye Perram made some key mistakes in his October decision to block the company’s efforts to put the long-running dispute on hold while separate negotiations under Australia and Ireland’s double taxation treaty play out.
In the software company’s corner is major law firm Herbert Smith Freehills and partner Hugh Paynter, who leads the firm’s disputes group in Sydney.
At the heart of Oracle’s $250 million tax dispute are cross border sublicence payments made by Oracle Australia to Oracle Ireland between 31 May 2013 and 31 May 2018 so that it could distribute software and hardware, technically owned by the Irish company, in Australia.
