Learning to Love Tax | Ann Kayis-Kumar

Of all the dirty words, ‘tax’ is perhaps one the most widely misunderstood. No one likes to part with their hard-earned wages, but tax is key to addressing some of our biggest social and economic inequalities.

It’s time to wrench our heads from the sand and start paying attention to tax policy. By better understanding where our tax dollars go, we can vote to improve taxation to create a fairer Australia – and maybe even learn to love it.

Associate Professor Ann Kayis-Kumar is author of Taxing Multinationals (Oxford University Press, 2019). Ann's research conceptualises tax as a mechanism to achieve social justice across the taxpaying spectrum. She is the Founding Director of UNSW Tax and Business Advisory Clinic, an international award-winning platform for experiential work-integrated learning, innovative grassroots research and catalysing social impact across Australia.

She has provided expert evidence to the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Tax and Revenue, and consultancy advice on investigations by the Inspector-General of Taxation. Ann serves on industry-level committees including the ATO's Small Business and National Tax Clinic Stewardship Groups, the Law Council of Australia's Taxation Committee, and the Tax Institute’s NSW Technical and SME & Tax Practitioner Committees. She is also Vice President of the Australasian Tax Teachers Association, and former Deputy President of the UNSW Academic Board.