Toyota says Australia’s Luxury Car Tax, introduced 11 years ago in 2000, is now inefficient, punitive and must be scrapped.
“Toyota Australia and the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries have long opposed the Luxury Car Tax on the basis that no other consumer product has an additional tax applied simply because the value of the product exceeds an arbitrary threshold,” explained Toyota’s sales and marketing chief, David Buttner. “It is a tax people have to pay in addition to GST, stamp duty and registration fees when buying a new car. On top of that they pay tax on the fuel they use in their cars.”
Toyota says its recommendation to abolish the Luxury Car Tax is consistent with the 2010 Henry Tax Review.
“The current Luxury Car Tax was introduced in 2000 and since then the price customers are prepared to pay for cars has risen. However the tax threshold has not kept pace and today customers have to pay an unfair tax on cars that exceed $57,466, a level that most people would not consider to be a luxury car,” Mr Buttner said.
In many instances, vehicles with retail prices below the Luxury Car Tax threshold are subject to tax because the owners choose to fit accessories suitable for their lifestyle.
“With an increasing number of accessories such as roof racks, bullbars and tow bars available as vehicle extras, vehicles priced below or on the cusp of the Luxury Car Tax threshold currently creep past the threshold once the accessories are added,” Mr Buttner added.
In 2010, two Toyota vehicles – the Prado and LandCruiser - were the two top-selling vehicles subjected to the Luxury Car Tax.
“Toyota would like to see the Luxury Car Tax abolished. But if not, then at the very least, it should be fundamentally reformed to feature a more realistic threshold and to exclude low emissions vehicles and parts and accessories from the tax,” Mr Buttner said.
