Australian Expat Tax Health Check: The 9 Questions ODIN Tax Asks Every Client Before They Return Home

About the Author: ODIN Tax is Australia’s specialist tax agent practice exclusively serving Australian expats and non-residents. Led by Tax Director Pau Lam, with over 10 years of specialist expat tax experience and more than 10,000 clients served across 40+ countries, ODIN Tax brings pattern-recognition depth that no generalist accounting firm can replicate in this space.

Question 1: When exactly do you plan to return, and how does that date interact with your asset positions?

Your return date is not arbitrary. The day you re-establish Australian tax residency is the day your CGT clock resets and your income tax obligations shift. If you hold Australian investment property, shares, or foreign assets, the sequencing of a sale before versus after your return date changes your tax treatment entirely. Non-residents who were foreign or temporary residents for the entire ownership period are not entitled to the full 50% CGT discount on assets acquired after 8 May 2012, though an apportioned discount may be available where there was a period of Australian residency during ownership. Residents generally access the full discount. The specific rules are nuanced and depend on when you acquired the asset and your residency history throughout the ownership period, so exact planning around your return date with a specialist is essential.

Question 2: What is your current tax residency status, and have you ever formally determined it?

Most expats assume they are non-residents because they live abroad. That assumption is often wrong. The ATO uses four tests to determine residency: the Resides Test, the Domicile Test, the 183-Day Test, and the Commonwealth Superannuation Test. Failing to correctly apply these tests has caused significant and avoidable back-tax exposure for expats who believed they were non-resident but were not, or vice versa. A formal residency determination is not optional. It is the foundation of everything else in your return planning.

Question 3: Are all of your Australian tax returns lodged and up to date?

Overdue lodgments do not quietly disappear. The ATO has improved its data-matching capability significantly, and return to Australia often triggers renewed scrutiny. More importantly, the ATO’s voluntary disclosure framework typically results in significantly better outcomes than assessments raised after the fact. ODIN Tax regularly assists clients with multiple years of backdated returns prior to their return, including penalty minimisation strategy as part of that process.

Question 4: Do you own Australian property, and when do you plan to sell it?

The 15% Foreign Resident Capital Gains Withholding (FRCGW) regime means the ATO collects tax upfront at settlement if you sell as a non-resident. Understanding this before listing a property matters.

Question 5: Do you have foreign income, foreign assets, or foreign bank accounts that have not been declared?

Australian tax residents are taxed on worldwide income. If your return re-establishes residency and you have undeclared foreign income from prior resident years, that exposure does not expire simply because you have been living abroad. Foreign pension income, investment returns, and employment income from prior Australian-resident years all fall within scope. The Foreign Income Tax Offset (FITO) exists to prevent true double taxation, but it must be applied correctly through a formal lodgment, not assumed.

Question 6: Where does your superannuation stand, and have you made any DASP withdrawals?

Expats who took a Departing Australia Superannuation Payment (DASP) when leaving on a temporary visa and later return as permanent residents or citizens have a permanently reduced super balance. Those who did not take DASP and are returning need to consolidate funds and understand the tax treatment of employer contributions made while abroad if they were contributed to Australian funds. Super is frequently the most neglected element of a returning expat’s financial position.

Question 7: Do you have a HECS/HELP debt, and do you know what it currently looks like?

Since 2017, Australians with HECS/HELP debt living abroad have been required to make repayments if their worldwide income exceeds the repayment threshold for the relevant financial year. Many expats are unaware their HECS/HELP obligation has been accruing indexation annually and that they may owe back repayments. On returning to Australia, this debt becomes immediately visible through the tax return process. Addressing it proactively is far less stressful than discovering a larger-than-expected debt on your first resident tax return.

Question 8: Are there Double Tax Agreement (DTA) credits you have not claimed?

Australia has DTAs with many countries. If you paid foreign tax on income that was also assessable in Australia, you may be entitled to a Foreign Income Tax Offset. This is routinely under-claimed because generalist accountants are unfamiliar with the applicable DTA schedules and the offset calculation methodology. ODIN Tax works across 40+ DTA countries and applies these offsets as a standard part of return preparation, not an afterthought.

Question 9: Have you told your bank, employer, and financial institutions you are returning?

This question is practical but consequential. Non-resident withholding tax rates differ from resident rates. If your Australian bank accounts, share portfolios, or investment vehicles continue to apply non-resident withholding after you re-establish residency, you will be over-withheld and need to claim refunds through your return. Notifying institutions proactively in the lead-up to your return avoids unnecessary cash flow impact and administrative correction work.

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