Huang Xiangmo: ATO in court fight over Chinese billionaire’s $140m bill
The tax office has applied for the High Court to hear its case against Huang Xiangmo after the Federal Court refused a request to freeze his global assets. The ATO says the exiled Chinese billionaire owes it $140 million.
Police & Courts
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The tax office is applying to take Chinese billionaire and alleged Labor Party influencer Huang Xiangmo to the most powerful court in the land as it tries to extract $140 million from the exiled tycoon.
The High Court will now decide if it needs to weigh in on a court’s decision to undo a freezing order against Huang’s sprawling global empire.
The prominent businessman left Australia in 2018 and his residency visa was cancelled amid allegations he had gotten cosy with politicians while running a Chinese Communist Party front organisation. He denies all wrongdoing.
Huang‘s wife left Sydney one year later, in September last year, at about the same time the Australian Taxation Office issued its staggering tax bill.
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The ATO quickly realised the $13 million Mosman mansion, held in Mrs Huang’s name, wasn’t enough to cover the bill and asked the Federal Court to freeze Huang’s global fortune until it could be repaid.
The court, late last year, had heard Mr Xiangmo had been funnelling his assets out of Australia following an audit in 2017 and had cut ties with any Australian-based companies.
A judge agreed to freeze Huang’s global holdings and ordered him to divulge everything he owned, prompting the billionaire to denounce the ATO as bending to the will of “unknown dark forces” and accusing it of “political persecution”.
Mr Xiangmo appealed the court’s decision, saying his global assets shouldn’t be frozen and the Federal Court didn’t have the jurisdiction to enforce the order even if it wanted to.
The full court judges agreed there was “no realistic possibility” that the order would be enforced in Hong Kong or China — where much of his money is held — and threw out the order.
But that decision is now up in the air as the Federal Court, on Thursday, heard the ATO had applied to have the matter heard in the High Court.
A spokesman for the ATO confirmed the application in a statement to The Daily Telegraph.
“The ATO applied for special leave to appeal the decision of the Full Federal Court of Australia in the matter of Huang v Deputy Commissioner of Taxation,” the statement reads.
“The ATO has no further comment on matters before the court.”
The ATO is arguing the full court made an error when it cancelled the freezing order because it was “unrealistic” it would be enforceable overseas.
“I am satisfied that there are reasonable prospects, or not insubstantial prospects, that the Deputy Commissioner’s application for special leave will be successful,” Justice Anthony Besanko wrote on Thursday.
He ordered the Federal Court’s orders should not come into effect until the High Court either refuses the application or hears the ATO’s appeal and reaches a decision.
The High Court may refuse to consider the case, which could mean tax collectors hit a dead end.
Huang’s political ties came under increased scrutiny when the Independent Commission Against Corruption, in 2019, heard Mr Xiangmo was the source of an Aldi bag filled with $100,000 which was donated to NSW Labor.
He has denied being the source of the donation.
NSW general secretary Kaila Murnain stepped down as a result of the alleged donation, following Sam Dastyari who also stepped down in December 2017 over his ties with Huang.