Andrew Kay (ILF2014)
The South Australian Business Chamber CEO Andrew Kay has called for reform to the payroll tax in the next state budget.
The chamber’s CEO Andrew Kay made a formal submission to treasurer Stephen Mullighan in early March, with six suggestions for change to the tax, which has remained unchanged since 2019.
Payroll tax is paid by employers, calculated on wages, with businesses that have a payroll between $1.5 million and $1.7 million liable to pay a variable rate from zero to 4.95 per cent. Anything above $1.7 million is charged at 4.95 per cent.
“When the reward for creating jobs, saving a struggling business or adding to the complexity of the state’s economy is a large tax bill, the problems with this tax are clear,” Kay said.
The chamber’s recommendations include lifting the payroll tax threshold from $1.5 million to $2.1 million, which would afford South Australia the most competitive threshold in the country.