Definition of a Qualifying Farmer
The person must have been a 'qualifying farmer' at the date of transfer of the farm to the eligible descendant. A qualifying farmer was a person who had a 'qualifying interest' in the farm(s) and:
- had held a [glossary:continuous period of 15 years:] qualifying interest before the gift, and during that 15 years the person or his or her partner:
- contributed a significant part of their labour and capital to the development of a farm, and
- derived a significant part of their income from that farm, or
- acquired that qualifying interest before 15 September 1997 and the person, or his or her partner, had a [glossary:20 year involvement in farming:DEF/20 year involvement in farming] for any period in Australia:
- contributing a significant part of their labour and capital to a farm enterprise, and
- derived a significant part of their income from the farm enterprise.
Effect of acquiring adjoining parcels of land during the 15 year period
A person would have been considered to own the farm property in Australia for 15 years where he or she initially owned only a part of the currently existing farm enterprise. For example, for the purposes of RAFS the farmer could be considered to have owned the entire farm for 15 years if the farmer owned a parcel of land 15 years ago and subsequently acquired adjoining parcels of land that at the time of transfer made up the farm enterprise.
Investors
Generally, investors could not demonstrate that they had contributed a significant part of their labour to the farm enterprise or derived a significant part of their income from the farm enterprise. This is because investors often have a primary occupation and/or source of income to which they devote their time and efforts other than primary production.
Farm managers
Farm managers who acquired ownership of the farm before 15 September 1997 were regarded as qualifying farmers if they establish that they had been involved with farming for 20 years.