As a single and investor my accountant always informs me that I have to pay tax on my personal investments. Which isnt very often in the last few years Ill admit. On the other side if you make a loss then you can claim that loss against future profits and pay very little tax. Which sheds some light on why people who make a lot of money often have bucket companies that make a loss due to taking loans from the fund the same person has. This in turn sheds light on offshore profit shifting by companies and how it is done.
The answer is yes I pay tax on any profit from investing, it is classed as income.
The fund also pays tax if it makes a profit but has the ability to disburse that profit to beneficiaries who in turn pay tax on that money in their normal income tax each year.
Make no mistake whether it is as a private single investor or a beneficiary of a fund the tax is paid. I once got a letter from the ATO telling me I owed about $5, yes that is correct from a bank account that had just sat with very little money in it.
The letter from the ATO said they would overlook it this once. It probably cost the taxpayer $100 to send it.
