International Tax Issues

At Pengelly & Co Legal, our practitioners have deep expertise with Australia’s international tax rules and cross‑border structuring.

International tax is a highly specialised and constantly evolving field, and the specialised rules can have significant tax implications for individuals and businesses with cross‑border interests.

Whether you are migrating, expanding overseas, investing into or out of Australia, or managing foreign entities and income, you need expert advice to appropriately manage your tax risks and optimise your tax position.

Jessica has highly-regarded expertise in this field, having accrued more than 15 years’ experience across private practice and the Australian Taxation Office, and having published extensively on topical international tax issues.

How we can help

We can advise and assist with matters such as:

Individuals, families & private groups 

  • Australian tax residency for individual emigrating from, or returning to, Australia
  • Foreign trust issues, including section 99B, foreign‑sourced income, controlled foreign trusts and distribution planning
  • CGT for non‑residents and temporary residents
  • Foreign purchaser duty and state‑based surcharge rules
  • Setting up efficient cross-border structures and repatriating funds tax-effectively to Australia

Businesses, funds & multinational Structures

  • Cross‑border structuring: establishing or restructuring holding companies, hybrid entities, transparent structures
  • Permanent establishment (PE) risks under domestic law and tax treaties, including service, agency and construction PEs
  • Controlled foreign company structures
  • Advice on withholding taxes and tax registration obligations

What we help with

Tax residency and permanent establishments

Tax residency and permanent establishment advice for individuals and companies

foreign trust issues

Opinions on the taxation of distributions from, or interests in, foreign trusts

Non-resident cgt

Advice for non-residents on liability for CGT, and availability of CGT discount and concessions on sales of property and shares

Cross-border structures

Advice on setting up tax-efficient cross-border structures for business or investment

withholding taxes

Advice on withholding taxes for interest, dividends, royalties and CGT

registrations

Advice on tax registration obligations for foreign-owned businesses

We’re Here When You’re Ready

Whether you have a quick question or need detailed advice, our team is ready to listen and guide you forward.