Submission – ATO engagement with First Nations taxpayers

The super system has transformed retirement for millions of Australians, but many of its operating assumptions do not reflect the lived experience of many First Nations members. A central issue is a mismatch between standard ATO service settings and the circumstances of many First Nations taxpayers. ATO processes commonly assume stable identity records, continuous employment, fixed addresses, reliable internet and phone access, private devices, access to official documents, trust in government systems, English language confidence, and capacity to navigate complex systems. When these assumptions do not hold, small administrative barriers such as a missing TFN or a different spelling of a name can prevent people from finding, claiming or protecting money that is theirs. This matters because such roadblocks compound existing inequities across working life and retirement. People should not be penalised for gaps in systems that were never designed around their circumstances. The shortfall sits with the process and administration of it, not the person.

First Nations people on average are less likely to have superannuation and tend to have lower balances than other Australians, reflecting inequities in income, employment and access to support across working life. That gap is not inevitable, and it needs to change. Some barriers raised in this submission cannot be fixed by better service delivery alone. Where needed, SMC has also identified broader legislative, regulatory or system changes that may be required. Whatever the outcome of this process, the ATO must be clear about how it will assess and publicly report on the effectiveness of changes to its engagement with First Nations peoples, including through First Nations-specific service metrics where these do not already exist. SMC welcomes the Tax Ombudsman’s review to encourage a reform agenda that treats First Nations access to tax and superannuation services as a core service design issue, not an edge case. A fair system should not require First Nations members and their families to overcome barriers the system itself has created.