The Acting Commissioner of Taxation has forwarded the following memorandum for advice:

A case has come under notice in which a person who had enlisted with the Australian Imperial Expeditionary Force entered camp, contracted meningitis and died whilst under military control in camp.

I should be glad of your advice as to whether the deceased should be regarded as having died whilst on active service and whether the estate should be exempt from estate duty under section 9 of the above Act. According to Halsbury, a soldier is on active service when he is on an expedition, i.e. when a state of war exists and he has taken some step towards joining the field forces (see my opinion of 5 October 1916, in connection with the case of Dr Wassell⁽¹⁾).

In the present case the person had actually joined the field forces, and was, consequently, on active service.

In my opinion, the estate of the deceased is exempt from duty under section 9 of the Act.

[Vol. 15, p. 112]

(1)Opinion No. 736.

(2)This opinion is unsigned in the Opinion Book, but it is attributed to Sir Robert Garran.