Economic prosperity of the gold-mining industry in Australia and the consequent gold tax

Income from gold mining in Australia was declared tax-exempt in 1924. This tax-exempt status was removed and tax on income from gold mining was imposed in 1988 with effect from 1 January 1991. This paper documents the political process that led to the imposition of this tax. It provides evidence that rapid prosperity of the Australian gold-mining industry in the 1980s led to increased political sensitivity and removal of the industry's tax-exempt status of nearly seven decades.