On 14 December 2011 the Commissioner published the following rulings and determinations.

GSTR 2011/D5 – Goods and services tax: GST treatment of care services and accommodation in retirement villages and privately funded nursing homes and hostels

GSTD 2011/4 – Goods and services tax: Are accommodation bond retention amounts or accommodation charges paid, by residents of an aged care facility covered by the Aged Care Act 1997, that is supplying GST-free services under subsection 38-25(1) of the GST Act, consideration for a GST-free supply?

• the Commissioner’s view is that the accommodation bond retention amounts and accommodation charges paid by residents are consideration for a GST-free supply, namely the GST-free supplies of services and accommodation – this is because those payments are made by the resident “in connection with” a package of services and accommodation supplied to them by the approved provider

GSTD 2011/D4 – Goods and services tax: What is ‘hospital treatment’ for the purposes of section 38-20 of the GST Act?

• save for one change, the views in the draft determination reflect those of the ATO in Issue 3.a, Issue 3.c.1 and Issue 3.2.c of the Health Industry Partnership Industry Register – the register can be accessed here.
• the draft determination accepts that where the fee for accommodation includes access to a telephone, that forms part of the GST-free supply of hospital treatment.  This is a change from the previous view of the Commissioner, which was that the provision of the telephone and calls were separate and there needed to be an apportionment of the fee.
• where a separate fee is paid for telephone or television, those items will be supplied separately from the hospital treatment.
• the draft determination is to apply from 26 March 2009 – the draft also recognises that to the extent that an entity treated access t a telephone as a taxable supply where an additional fee was not charged, they  may be entitled to a refund