Course overview
- Description
This is a specialist degree in Taxation Law at a master's degree level, which will provide a detailed understanding of a range of taxation subjects relevant to tax law practice in Australia and internationally. It will give students the advanced technical skills they need as tax practitioners. Students will be able to select units covering advanced domestic taxation law and cutting edge cross-border and international taxation issues.
- Course title
- Master of Taxation Law (coursework or coursework and dissertation)
- Award abbreviation
- MTax
- Course code
- 21550
- Course type
- Master's degree by coursework or by coursework and dissertation
- Status
- Current / 2025
- Administered by
- UWA Law School
- CRICOS code
- 088236G
Course details
- Intake periods
- Beginning of year and mid-year
- Attendance type
- Full- or part-time (Student visa holders should read Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000 for more information.)
- Credit points required
- 48
A standard full-time load is 24 points per semester. - Standard course duration
- 1 year
- Time limit
- 4 years
- Delivery mode
- Multi-mode
- Locations offered
- UWA (Perth), UWA (Perth CBD), Online
- Domestic fee type
- Postgraduate fee-paying/FEE-HELP
- Available to international students
- Yes. For information on international student fees see 'Student Procedures: Fees'. (Enquiries: https://www.uwa.edu.au/askuwa)
- Course Coordinator(s)
- Winthrop Professor Nolan Sharkey
- Fees
- Visit the fees calculator.
Prospective students should see the Future Students website for details on admission requirements, intake periods, fees, availability to international students, careers information etc.
Example Study Plans
- 2025 Master of Taxation Law - Common Law Background [docx]
- 2025 Master of Taxation Law - Non Common Law Background [docx]
See study plans for more information.
Specialisations
Course structure
Key to availability of units:
- S1
- Semester 1
- S2
- Semester 2
- N/A
- not available in 2025 – may be available in 2026 or 2027
- NS
- non-standard teaching period
All units have a value of six points unless otherwise stated.
Take all units (12 points):
Note: Students who completed a law degree based on the common law cannot, unless permitted or required by the School, take LAWS4227 Foundations of Law and Legal Institutions.LAWS4227 Foundations of Law and Legal Institutions is a core unit in this program for all students who have not completed a law degree or have not completed a law degree based on the common law
Availability | Unit code | Unitname | Unit requirements | Contact hours |
---|---|---|---|---|
S1, S2 | LAWS4227 | Foundations of Law and Legal Institutions |
| Weekly attendance |
NS | LAWS5237 | Advanced Australian International Taxation | None | This unit will run intensively 14 - 17 April 2025. Attendance Compulsory |
Take units to the value of 24-36 points from this group.
Group A
Availability | Unit code | Unitname | Unit requirements | Contact hours |
---|---|---|---|---|
S1 | LAWS5132 | Income Taxation Law |
| Students must attend all day sessions on Wednesdays in April and May. Refer to the timetable for more details. |
NS | LAWS5232 | Double Tax Agreements and International Tax Law | None | Students must attend every day of the intensive period between 18-19 and 25-26 September 2025 |
NS | LAWS5233 | Base Erosion, Profit Shifting and Transfer Pricing | None | This unit will run 11-15 August 2025. Attendance at all sessions is compulsory. |
NS | LAWS5234 | Taxation of Trusts | None | Students must attend every day of the intensive period. |
NS | LAWS5235 | Taxation Law of a Foreign State | None | Students must attend every day of the intensive period, 05-09 May 2025. Refer to the timetable website for further information. |
N/A | LAWS5238 | Goods and Services Taxation | None | Intensive 24-28 March 2025. Attendance compulsory. Refer to the timetable website for further information. |
NS | LAWS5239 | Resource Taxation | None | Students must attend every day of the intensive period 6-7 & 13-14 March |
N/A | LAWS5240 | Special Topics in Tax | None | |
S1, S2 | LAWS5694 | Research Paper I |
| This research unit involves unstructured contact with a supervisor throughout the semester. |
N/A | LAWS5813 | Legal Issues for Not-for-Profit Entities |
| This unit runs intensively 3-6 September. Students must attend every day of the intensive period. |
Take units to the value of 0-12 points from this group.
Group B
Availability | Unit code | Unitname | Unit requirements | Contact hours |
---|---|---|---|---|
NS | LAWS5100 | Sustainability Law and Policy in Resource Development | None | The unit will run over four days: 24-25 July, 31 July and 01 August 2025. Attendance at all sessions is mandatory. |
N/A | LAWS5111 | Corporate Environmental and Social Governance |
| Estimated 35 hours in total run as a one week intensive. |
S1 | LAWS5165 | Public International Law |
| 3 hours per week |
S1 | LAWS5167 | Comparative Legal Method |
| 3 hours per week |
N/A | LAWS5176 | Australian Financial Transactions Law and Regulation | 3 hours per week | |
NS | LAWS5241 | International Dispute Settlement | None | This will run across Tuesdays in July and August 2025 - refer to timetable for more details. |
NS | LAWS5260 | Intersections of Law, Policy and Governance | The on campus session for this unit will run in the mid semester break in semester 2, with the online pre-recorded modules to be completed beforehand. | |
NS | LAWS5517 | Mining Law |
| Students must attend sessions on 2-3 and 9-10 October 2025. |
NS | LAWS5532 | Energy Agreements: Oil and Gas, Alternative Energy and Sustainability |
| Students must attend sessions on 21-22, 26 and 28-29 of August 2025. |
N/A | LAWS5576 | International Commercial Arbitration |
| Students must attend every day of the intensive period 24-28 June 2024. Refer to the timetable website for further information. |
S1, S2 | LAWS5695 | Research Paper II (12 points) | This research unit involves unstructured contact with a supervisor throughout the semester. |
See also the rules for the course and the Student Rules.
Rules
Applicability of the Student Rules, policies and procedures
1.(1) The Student Rules apply to students in this course.
(2) The policy, policy statements and guidance documents and student procedures apply, except as otherwise indicated in the rules for this course.
Academic Conduct Essentials and Communication and Research Skills modules
2.(1) A student who enrols in this course for the first time irrespective of whether they have previously been enrolled in another course of the University, must undertake the Academic Conduct Essentials module (the ACE module) and the Communication and Research Skills module (the CARS module).
(2) A student must successfully complete the ACE module within the first teaching period of their enrolment. Failure to complete the module within this timeframe will result in the student's unit results from this teaching period being withheld. These results will continue to be withheld until students avail themselves of a subsequent opportunity to achieve a passing grade in the ACE module. In the event that students complete units in subsequent teaching periods without completing the ACE module, these results will similarly be withheld. Students will not be permitted to submit late review or appeal applications regarding results which have been withheld for this reason and which they were unable to access in the normally permitted review period.
English Language competency requirements
3. To be considered eligible for consideration for admission to this course an applicant must satisfy the University's English language competence requirement as set out in the University Policy on Admission: Coursework.
Admission requirements
4.(1) To be considered for admission to this course an applicant must have
(1) (a) a Juris Doctor or Bachelor of Laws, or an equivalent qualification, as recognised by UWA;
or
(2) (a) (i) a bachelor's degree in a cognate area, or an equivalent qualification, as recognised by UWA, and (ii) the equivalent of a UWA weighted average mark of at least 50 per cent;
or
(3) (a) (i) a bachelor's degree, or an equivalent qualification, as recognised by UWA, and (ii) the equivalent of a UWA weighted average mark of at least 50 per cent, and (iii) at least two years of relevant professional experience.
Admission ranking and selection
5. Where relevant, admission will be awarded to the highest ranked applicants or applicants selected based on the relevant requirements.
Articulations and exit awards
6.(1) The following courses form part of an articulated sequence:
(2) A student who withdraws from the Master of Taxation Law course before completing it, but after fulfilling the requirements of a lesser award in the above sequence, may apply for the relevant award.
(3) Credit for units completed in the Graduate Diploma will only be given if the course is not conferred.
Course structure
7.(1) The course consists of units to a total value of 48 points.
(2) Units must be selected in accordance with the course structure, as set out in these rules.
Satisfactory progress
8. To make satisfactory progress a student must pass units to a point value greater than half the total value of units in which they remain enrolled after the final date for withdrawal without academic penalty.
9. A student who has not achieved a result of Ungraded Pass (UP) for the Communication and Research Skills module (the CARS module) when their progress status is assessed will not have made satisfactory progress even if they have met the other requirements for satisfactory progress in Rule 8.
Progress status
10.(1) A student who makes satisfactory progress in terms of Rule 8 is assigned the status of 'Good Standing'.
(2) Unless the relevant board determines otherwise because of exceptional circumstances
(a) a student who does not make satisfactory progress for the first time under Rule 8 is assigned a progress status of 'On Probation';
(b) a student who does not make satisfactory progress for the second time under Rule 8 is assigned a progress status of 'Suspended';
(c) a student who does not make satisfactory progress for the third time under Rule 8 is assigned a progress status of 'Excluded'.
11. A student who does not make satisfactory progress in terms of Rule 9 is assigned the progress status of 'On Probation', unless they have been assigned a progress status of 'Suspended' or 'Excluded' for failure to meet other satisfactory progress requirements in Rule 8.
Award with distinction
12. To be awarded the degree with distinction a student must achieve a course weighted average mark (WAM) of at least 80 per cent which is calculated based on
(a) all units above Level 3 attempted as part of the course that are awarded a final percentage mark;
(b) all relevant units above Level 3 undertaken in articulating courses of this University that are awarded a final percentage mark;
and
(c) all units above Level 3 completed at this University that are credited to the master's degree course.
Deferrals
13. Applicants awarded admission to the course are entitled to a deferral of up to 12 months, as per the University Policy on: Admissions (Coursework).
Additional rules
Credit
14. Credit will not be granted for units that were taken in another degree that was conferred.