Case study 1: Residence and source
Kit is a permanent resident of Australia. He was born in Chile and retains his
Chilean citizenship. Kit spends most of the year working off the coast of Indonesia on an oil rig for a United States company. He was recruited for this job in Australia and signed a contract with the company here. For the last four years, Kit’s wife has lived in Australia with their two children. They purchased a home in Australia three years ago. Kit and his wife have a joint bank account with Westpac Bank. Kit’s salary is paid directly into his account. All of the family’s other investments, including a share portfolio that generates dividend income, remain in Chile. Kit gets one month off from work every third month and, on these occasions, he meets with his family either in Australia or on holidays around South America (usually in Chile where his parents reside).
Discuss whether Kit is a resident of Australia and how his salary and investment income would be taxed (10 marks, max. 1000 words).