iscoverAn Australian citizen has failed in his application to resolve a domestic tax dispute in an offshore court, facing arrest and a $23 million tax bill upon his return to Australia.
Aussie facing $23m tax bill refuses to return to the country
15 August 2025
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8 minute read
As of 19 February 2025, Australian citizen Darryl Gumm was found to be owing the Commissioner of Taxation $23,800,530 from numerous tax debts and interest accrued over time.
Gumm, who has resided in Thailand with his partner since 2019, has so far refused to return to Australia to resolve the tax matter in court.
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In March 2025, he applied to the Federal Court of Australia to have his case heard in an offshore jurisdiction such as Hong Kong, the US or the UK.
Gumm said he feared that once he returned to Australia, the Commissioner of Taxation would issue a departure prohibition order, which would permanently confine him to Australia and therefore prevent him from returning to Thailand, court documents read.
Once back in Australia, the only way he could leave would be by paying close to $7.6 million towards the $23 million tax bill he asserted was wrongly imposed.
The hefty tax bill resulted from amended assessments for the 2009 to 2015 income years, default assessments made for the 2016 to 2017 income years, penalty assessments and shortfall income charges.
Court documents noted that Gumm held funds totalling over $21,500,000 in offshore structures.
A central aspect of the case concerned whether Gumm was absolutely entitled to assets held in offshore entities, and whether he was presently entitled to net income from those assets.
The sums were held in the name of a UK-incorporated company, Direct Solutions Projects Limited (DSPL), which Gumm alleged held assets for a Samoan superannuation fund, Direct Solutions Superannuation Fund (DSSF), of which he was the sole member.
The Commissioner of Taxation argued that DSPL UK’s assets had been held on bare trust for Gumm, and even if the funds were held for DSSF, the benefits of the fund would be payable to him upon his retirement in mid-2016.
The court added that Gumm held significant liquid funds outside of Australia in his own name, including over $1,000,000 in offshore bank accounts, $850,000 in offshore investment accounts and $45,000 in bitcoin.
He had also prepaid the rent on his Thailand home for 30 years.
Court documents added that Gumm had failed to pay a costs order made against him in the Supreme Court of Samoa totalling $106,310, of which he had repaid approximately a quarter.
The court found that Gumm was physically able but simply unwilling to return to Australia from his Thailand residence, which he had been living in since 2019.
Ultimately, it was determined that it was not in the interest of justice to allow Gumm to engage in the proceedings from an offshore jurisdiction, and thus denied his application.
It argued that the public court process should be readily accessible to Australian taxpayers, who are entitled to attend and view the process that they support through their taxes, a privilege which would be negatively impacted if the trial were to be held offshore.
“It is [the Australian public] who have the relevant interest in the maintenance of the highest standards of the administration of justice, which is partly, if not now mostly, preserved by the Court’s being open to public scrutiny and criticism,” court documents noted.
“The benefits of such is diminished almost to nil by having hearings in the UK.”
Given the refusal of his application for an offshore trial, Gumm noted that he intended to further his proceedings based on “documentary evidence and testimony from other witnesses,” court documents said.
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