A former British waitress went to battle with the Australian Tax Office in the High Court this week over whether she was unfairly taxed as a backpacker.
British national Catherine Addy said the tax imposed on her, as a foreign national in Australia on a 417 visa, discriminated against her on the basis of nationality.
The ATO said the tax, 15 per cent on income of up to $37,000, was designed to help backpackers avoid the higher tax imposed on other foreign workers, however Ms Addy is arguing that the “backpacker tax” is discriminatory. She was charged the tax when she worked as a waitress in two Sydney hotels from January 2017 through to May 2017. She argued that the tax was at odds with an international “double tax” agreement between Australia and Britain and many other nations, but not Greece.
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Her legal team will tell the court that she was taxed at a significantly higher rate than an Australian taxpayer.
Ms Addy won her first appeal in the Federal Court, but later a full bench threw out the case, stating that the tax was not discriminatory.
Deputy Prime Minister and National Leader Barnaby Joyce introduced the tax in 2017 to apply to holders of 417 visas for young people from 18 to 31 who travel to Australia for a working holiday.
