ATO warning as Aussies follow growing trend to boost tax returns: ‘Big difference’

Source: Yahoo News

The ATO has warned taxpayers against using ChatGPT for tax advice, calling it only slightly better than advice you'd get at a barbecue.

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is urging taxpayers not to use ChatGPT for their tax advice. Tax time is just around the corner and many people are looking for ways to boost their return.

AI tools like ChatGPT have been booming in popularity and people are going to them to ask everything, including help with their work, meal planning and even tax advice. But ATO second commissioner Jeremy Hirschhorn has pleaded with people not to do this.

“I would caution against using AI for your tax advice,” Hirschhorn told the audience at the Financial Review AI Summit.

“Whether it’s an agent or not, it’s probably only a slightly better version of the barbecue [advice] for a couple of reasons.

“Tax is small changes in facts that make a big difference in outputs, and so it’s very hard for an AI model to get those nuances.”

“And indeed, how do you know you’re getting an Australian tax answer? If the audience is to take something from this speech, please don’t use ChatGPT for your tax advice.”

CPA Australia tax lead Jenny Wong has issued a similar warning and told people to treat ChatGPT and other OpenAI tools with caution.

“AI tools are only as good as the information you put into them,” she said.

“It may be tempting to ask AI bots for tips, but they are simply not able to compute the nuances of the Australian tax system or your specific circumstances.”

Warning over using AI for fake documents

The ATO said it was aware of taxpayers using AI to produce fraudulent documents, including false invoices.

“There have been recent examples of fraudulent documents submitted by taxpayers during the audit process,” a spokesperson said.

The ATO said it can double-check financial data against bank records, and anyone found to have used AI tools to fabricate documents can face financial penalties and a criminal investigation.

Taxpayers are ultimately responsible for all information in their tax return, including if they rely on inaccurate information from ChatGPT.

Exaggerating a claim could have severe consequences, while making false tax claims could result in hefty fines, a criminal record or even imprisonment.