LAFHA - employer in Aus will not give it to me. Has this happened to anyone else?

[suksdn]

Hi

My employer has stopped giving LAFHA to all new eligible employees because their auditors were uneasy with the arrangement. Something about the company being in trouble if the employee cannot prove that he/she has a home in another country. Employees who already have LAFHA will keep it. I do have a house in Europe but that doesn't help. Has anybody else been in this situation and can somebody shed some light over if there have been new rules set up by the new government?

Many thanks
Soren

[kaz101]

Hi Soren,

Has the company said why the auditors are unhappy? If not I would ask them specifically what it is since it may not be a change to the legislation but to the way it's being enforced. Looking through a search engine I couldn't find any recent changes.

The legislation can be found at: NAT 1054 - Chapter 11 - Living away from home allowance fringe benefits

I guess if you were renting out your home back in Europe maybe that would be an issue, or whether you intend to return to your former residence? I'm just guessing from reading the legislation since it seems clear that if you have a residence elsewhere that you intend to return to then you should be entitled to the benefit.

Regards,
Karen