Privacy

The ACT Revenue Office only collects personal information where it is reasonably necessary for, or directly related to, its functions and activities in the assessment, collection, management and protection of revenue and funds under the Acts it administers.

The kind of personal information collected and held by the Office includes:

• names, addresses, contact details (e.g. phone, email, fax) of individuals, their legal or financial representatives, individuals who are trustees;
• information about an individual’s identity and personal circumstances (for example: date of birth, marital status, details of family members, relationship details, citizenship or immigration status, passport details, drivers licence numbers, Australian business numbers, Services Australia reference numbers);
• taxation details (for example: assessment and customer numbers assigned by the ACT Revenue Office for the administration of taxes and grants; property and land ownership and transactions (rates, land tax, duties); payroll tax records (which may include information pertaining to employees/contractors); and information about tax exemptions and concessions);
• financial information (for example: payment details, bank account details, information about business and financial interests, shareholdings, investment interests, rental bonds and information about grants and concessions applied for);
• personal health information, to the extent it is necessary for the administration of Government financial assistance schemes such as the taxi subsidy scheme and spectacles subsidy scheme. Personal health information is specifically protected by the Health Records Act.
• employee information (for example: applications for employment with the ACT Revenue Office, work history, names and contact details of referees, employee’s professional memberships, tax file numbers, superannuation details, professional development, disciplinary action and where relevant, medical information such as medical conditions, physical or mental health details, which are specifically protected by the Health Records Act).
• sensitive information about an individual where it is necessary for the administration and enforcement of the laws or Government programs that it administers, for the management of its employees or contractors, or where authorised by law, a court or tribunal order. (for example: information about an individual’s racial origin, or biometric information (photo ID), criminal record, membership of political, professional or trade associations).

How the information is collected

The ACT Revenue Office collects personal information directly from individuals, legal or financial representatives, third parties, publicly available sources and by using its information-gathering powers.

Personal information may be collected by the ACT Revenue Office in a variety of ways, including through paper or online forms, in correspondence, emails, over the telephone, or by fax. This normally occurs when an individual transacts with the ACT Revenue Office, for example in complying with tax laws; in applying for grants, concessions, funds or assistance; in requests for information held by the Office, or requests about the operations of the Office; or in seeking or securing employment with the Office.

Where personal information is collected from an individual or their representative on a form (online or otherwise), the form will include a notice about this privacy policy.

In certain circumstances, where it is required or authorised by law, the ACT Revenue Office may collect information from other Australian, State and Territory government bodies or organisations, for example the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), other ACT Government Directorates, State or Territory revenue offices. It may also collect personal information from private organisations (such as utilities companies) and publicly available sources where it is reasonably necessary for, or directly related to the functions and activities of the Office.

Information may also be collected from third party sources through tip-offs or voluntary disclosures and where permitted by law.

Certain Acts administered by the ACT Revenue Office, for example the Tax Administration Act and the First Home Owner Grant Act, confer formal access and information-gathering powers. For example, an authorised officer may enter and inspect premises and seize, remove or take copies of documents. An individual may also be required to provide information upon request of the authorised officer.

The ACT Revenue Office takes reasonable care to ensure the personal information it collects is complete, up to date and accurate. It conducts data matching activities for audit and compliance purposes, to verify or supplement information that is provided, and to verify eligibility for grants, concessions and exemptions. Data is sourced from government agencies (such as the ATO, Land Titles Office, Environment, Planning and Sustainable Development Directorate, ACT Road Transport Authority) and other entities and is matched with the data held by ACT Revenue. The information produced from data matching is used for verifying information and to identify non-compliance with relevant laws. It also helps inform compliance programs led by the Office.

How personal information is held

The ACT Revenue Office adheres to ACT Government policies on the secure management of personal information and puts in place measures to ensure that any personal information it collects and holds about an individual is safe and secure. All reasonable efforts are taken to protect the information from loss, unauthorised access, misuse, modification or disclosure. More information on ACT Government policies adhered to can be found here: CMTEDD Information Privacy Policy (act.gov.au).

The Territory Records Act 2002 (Territory Records Act) establishes the framework by which the Territory public service manages and cares for its records, including records that contain personal information. The ACT Revenue Office is bound by this framework, which includes rules about the creation, keeping, protection, preservation, storage, disposal of, and access to those records.

The Office’s information technology systems use protections to guard against unauthorised access. Paper based files are stored securely. Personal information is only made available to staff who have a need to access it to perform their role. When information is no longer required, the Office takes reasonable steps to destroy the information, or de-identify the information in line with the requirements of the Information Privacy Act and the Territory Records Act.

Information on the use and protection of third party data can be found here.

The personal information collected by the ACT Revenue Office is used to carry out the functions and activities in the administration of the laws it has responsibility for. For example, assessing tax liability, conducting an investigation and ensuring compliance with and administering tax laws and other Territory laws conferring functions on the Commissioner.

This may affect the ability of the ACT Revenue Office to accurately assess an individual’s liability for tax, or eligibility for a grant, exemption or concession. This could lead to delays in processing and may result in the imposition of penalties and interest if it is later discovered tax is payable and due, or that an individual is not entitled to a grant, exemption or concession.

The ACT Revenue Office will not disclose the personal information it collects unless it is with the consent of the individual, or the disclosure is permitted by law.

In particular, officers of the ACT Revenue Office are restricted by the secrecy and non-disclosure provisions of the Taxation Administration Act and the First Home Owner Grant Act from disclosing certain information (including personal information) except where it is permitted by law. For example, the Taxation Administration Act permits the disclosure of personal information in certain circumstances where the information disclosed:

• does not identify a particular taxpayer or details of their personal affairs;
• is in the public interest in relation to types of statistical information;
• is disclosed with the consent of the person concerned;
• relates to the administration or execution of a tax law, or is required by law; or
• is disclosed to an authorised government official such as, the Ombudsman, the Commissioner of Police, the Auditor-General, the Treasurer, the Commissioner for Fair Trading, the Australian Crime Commission, or the Under Treasurer. (For a complete list, please see section 97 of the Taxation Administration Act and the Taxation Administration Regulation 2004.)
  
  In some situations, personal information held by the ACT Revenue Office may be provided to agents of the Commissioner for ACT Revenue or persons contracted by the Commissioner to provide services. Where this is necessary, reasonable steps are taken to ensure that these persons are engaged subject to the secrecy provisions of the Taxation Administration Act and the First Home Owner Act, and are also required to comply with the requirements of the Information Privacy Act. The Commissioner may also disclose personal information to third parties, such as the Australian Tax Office and other state and territory revenue offices for the purposes of the administration or execution of a tax law in those jurisdictions.

The ACT Revenue Office does not and is not likely to disclose personal information to overseas recipients. More information on disclosures made to overseas recipients by the  Chief Minister, Treasury and Economic Development Directorate (CMTEDD) can be found here:  CMTEDD Information Privacy Policy (act.gov.au).

It may not be possible for the ACT Revenue Office to properly administer the Acts for which it has administrative responsibility, or carry out its functions unless an individual provides sufficient personal information in order to confirm their identity. In some limited circumstances, for example if a person is making a general inquiry or when providing a tip-off, a person may remain either anonymous or use a pseudonym.

An individual may make a request that the ACT Revenue Office correct their personal information it holds if the information is incomplete, incorrect, out of date or misleading. Upon receiving such a request, the Office must take reasonable steps, where appropriate, to correct, and satisfy itself that the information is accurate, up to date, complete, relevant and not misleading in relation to the purpose for which it is held. A response to a request will normally be provided within 30 days.

An individual also has the right under the Freedom of Information Act 2016 to ask for access to their personal information that the ACT Revenue Office holds.

The ACT Revenue Office applies the following information gathering and dissemination practices to this site:

Google Analytics

Our website uses Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google Inc. (Google). Google Analytics uses cookies and JavaScript code to enable analysis on usage of this website.

You can choose to opt-out of or refuse to have your information collected by Google Analytics by changing the appropriate settings on your browser relating to cookies or by installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.

The data collected about your use of this website (including your IP address) will be transmitted to and stored on Google's servers which are in the United States. Google uses this data for compiling reports on website activity and providing other services relating to website activity and internet usage.

Google will not collect personal information about you and the reports provided by Google will only contain aggregate non-personal data about your use of our websites. (These reports may contain data relating to pages viewed, files downloaded or the completion of online subscriptions).

We use the data collected by Google Analytics to improve how our websites function. For example, we use the data to check whether visitors experience problems finding information and make access to information as easy as we can.

Google may transfer this data to third parties where required to do so by law, or where third parties process this data on Google's behalf. Google will not associate your IP address with any personal information you may have previously provided to Google. You may refuse the use of cookies by selecting the appropriate settings on your browser. Please note that if you do this, you may not be able to fully use this website.

By using our websites, you consent to the processing of data about you by Google in the manner and for the purposes stated.

Online Behavioural Content (OBA)

Google’s Ads Preferences Manager gives you the option of ‘opting out’ of receiving online behavioural content (OBA). ACT Revenue may at times use OBA to alert you to events or activities of interest based on your previous interactions with CMTEDD.  If you choose to opt-out of receiving targeted ads, this information is usually saved on a cookie. This means that if you clear your cookies, you may have to opt-out again. Some browsers are beginning to offer opt-out tools that won’t be affected if you clear your cookies.

Some companies that deliver OBA give users the options of viewing their profile, editing it or opting out of receiving targeted ads.  Opting out won't remove advertising from the pages you visit; it means that the ads you see won't be matched to your interests. Sites that let you control what information is collected about you include Your Online Choices.

Cookies

A cookie is a small text file that is stored on your computer’s browser. You will usually find information on cookies and how to manage them under ‘options’ or ‘settings’ in your browser. You can choose to see cookies before deleting them and to keep cookies from some sites.

We use cookies to maintain contact with a visitor to our websites during a browsing session. An explanation of what cookies are and how they work can be found at the site of the Privacy Commissioner. Cookies allow us to recognise the sequence of connections from browsers as they access our websites.

We use several types of cookies, which are outlined following:

• Temporary Cookies

Session cookies are used only for the duration of a web browser session and will be immediately removed when you end your internet session or shut down your computer. Our copy of your information will be automatically deleted twenty minutes after you have last used our system.

This information is only used to help you use our website systems more efficiently, not to track your movements through the internet, or to record your personal information.

• First Party Cookies

These files stay in one of your browser subfolders until you delete them manually or your browser deletes them based on the duration period contained within the first party cookie’s file (usually beyond the termination of the current session). These cookies are used to remember settings you may have customised e.g. your location, your shopping cart, and log in details.

No personal information is stored within cookies used by our website. No attempt will be made to identify anonymous users or their browsing activities unless we are legally compelled to do so.

• Third Party Cookies

At times when using some CMTEDD websites you may be sent Third Party Cookies by businesses contracted to CMTEDD to use your information to provide content like advertising and information about CMTEDD’s services, functions or activities.  These cookies are designed to track your browsing activities so that the CMTEDD can provide you with information that may ‘match’ your interests. Please refer to the section on Online Behavioural Advertising for more information about OBA’s.

Entities who you may Third Party Cookies from may include social media applications you choose to use when interacting with our websites, such as, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Gmail, Messenger, Tumbler, Pinterest and others as available or listed.

• Local Stored Object (LSO) or Flash Cookies

Local Stored Objects (LSO) known as a ‘flash cookies’ can contain more information than a regular cookie. They are also not generally cleared when you clear cookies from your browser. Depending on your browser, you may be able to install a plugin that will let you block or delete LSOs. You can also manage these cookies via the settings page in Adobe Flash.

Information Collected

When you browse our websites, our system automatically makes a record of your visit and logs the following information for statistical purposes which may be analysed to identify technical issues or difficulties with our websites:

• your IP or server address
• top level domain name (e.g. .com, .net, .gov, .au etc)
• the type of browser and operating system you used
• date and time of your visit
• the previous site visited from which you were referred to our website
• which pages are accessed
• the time spent on individual pages and the site overall
• which files were downloaded.

Verification information through the use of the Commonwealth myGovID platform will also be collected to authenticate access to ACT Revenue Office online portals.

Information about the IT device you use, including your location, when accessing our website may also be collected and used to provide you with information about ACT Government services, functions and activities.

In general, ACT Revenue will not use this information to identify individual users or their browsing activities. We may disclose information about the IT device you have used to access our website, where we believe the disclosure is: reasonably necessary for a function or activity of a law enforcement body; where required or authorised under or by an Australian law, court order, or tribunal order; or where another permitted exception under the Information Privacy Act applies.

Information collected may be analysed to determine the website's usage statistics, and patterns of use to improve our services and your use of our websites.

We collect no personal information about you unless you choose to take part in an activity that asks for information, such as:

• sending an email;
• participating in a survey;
• undertaking a payment or other transaction; or
• suggesting a link.

If you do not wish to email or use any online forms to communicate with CMTEDD, you can send a letter to us, see contact details below for more information.

If you choose not to take part in these kinds of activities your ability to use the websites won't be affected.

Use of personal information collected

Any personal information you provide when using our websites, will only be used for the primary purpose for which it was collected.  It will not be disclosed to other agencies, people or organisations for a secondary purpose without your consent, or unless required or authorised by law, or where a permitted lawful exception under the Information Privacy Act applies.

External websites

This site contains links to external websites. This privacy statement does not extend to external websites. The Australian Capital Territory is not responsible for the privacy practices or the content of external websites. For more information, refer to the disclaimer.

Exchange of information

To assist in the identification and assessment of ACT taxes and grants we disclose to and obtain information from other Revenue Offices and the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).

The exchange of information with other Revenue Offices is in accordance with part 9 of the Taxation Administration Act 1999 (ACT) and similar legislation in the States and the Northern Territory.  The disclosure of information with the ATO is in accordance with subsection 355-65 (5) Schedule 1 of the Taxation Administration Act 1953 (Cth).