An AMIT Member Annual (AMMA) statement is a tax document issued by Australian managed funds and ETFs each financial year. It breaks down the components of your annual distributions, including franked dividends, foreign income, capital gains, and tax-deferred amounts, so investors can correctly complete their tax return.
Last updated: Q2 2026.
Why do ETFs issue AMIT statements?
Most Australian ETFs are structured as registered managed investment schemes that have elected into the Attribution Managed Investment Trust (AMIT) regime. Under this regime, the fund attributes its taxable income to investors each year, including amounts that are reinvested rather than paid as cash. The AMMA statement is the document that reports those attributed amounts. It exists so that the tax characteristics of the income, such as franking credits or foreign income, flow through to the investor and are reported correctly.
What information is on an AMIT statement?
An AMMA statement separates your total annual distribution into its components. These typically include franked and unfranked dividends, franking credits (also called imputation credits), foreign source income and any foreign income tax offsets, capital gains (often split into discounted and other categories), and tax-deferred or tax-free amounts. It also reports any AMIT cost base net amount, which can adjust the cost base of your units for capital gains tax purposes. Each component is reported against the tax return label it belongs to. Read your statement alongside current ATO guidance and the relevant product disclosure statement.
How do I use my AMIT statement at tax time?
Your AMMA statement maps each distribution component to the corresponding labels in your tax return. Many investors, or their tax agents, transcribe these figures directly, or import them where ATO pre-fill is available. The capital gains and franking credit components in particular need to be entered accurately, because they affect both assessable income and any tax offsets. Tax rules are complex and your situation may differ. Consider speaking with a registered tax agent. You can estimate the franking credits attached to Australian share distributions with the ETFLens Franking Credits calculator.
Which ETFs issue AMIT statements?
Most Australian-domiciled ETFs that are registered managed investment schemes issue AMMA statements, including widely held funds such as VAS and VDHG. Exchange-traded products structured differently, such as some exchange-traded commodities (ETCs) and certain foreign-domiciled funds, may use alternative tax reporting methods. Your statement is generally provided by the ETF issuer or your broker's share registry. Always confirm the fund's structure in its product disclosure statement.
What the AMIT statement components mean
An AMMA statement typically contains the following components. Each is treated differently for Australian tax purposes:
| Component | Tax treatment |
|---|---|
| Franked dividends | Included in assessable income; franking credits offset tax |
| Unfranked dividends | Included in assessable income at full marginal rate |
| Foreign income | Assessable; foreign income tax offsets (FITOs) may apply |
| Net capital gains (discounted) | 50% CGT discount applies if fund held underlying assets 12+ months (for eligible entity types) |
| Net capital gains (non-discounted) | No discount, full gain assessable |
| Return of capital | Not assessable; reduces cost base of your units |
Which ETFs use the AMIT structure?
The AMIT structure was introduced to reduce unexpected capital gains distributions from managed investment trusts. ETFs using the AMIT structure include A200, DHHF and most BetaShares and iShares products. Vanguard's VDHG uses a traditional trust-of-funds structure rather than AMIT, a key structural difference discussed in our VDHG vs DHHF guide.
How to use your AMIT statement in your tax return
Your AMMA statement provides the figures you or your tax agent enter into your Australian tax return. The key fields are the total assessable income from the fund (sum of dividends, foreign income and capital gains), the franking credits attached, and any foreign income tax offsets. Most Australian tax software and registered tax agents are familiar with AMMA statements. Consider speaking with a registered tax agent for guidance specific to your circumstances.
Which ETFs use the AMIT regime?
Most major Australian ETFs are structured as Attribution Managed Investment Trusts (AMITs). The large issuers (Vanguard, iShares and BetaShares) predominantly use the AMIT regime for their ASX-listed funds, so if you hold mainstream index ETFs your annual statement is almost certainly an AMIT (also called an AMMA) statement.
The statement arrives after 30 June each year, usually by the end of July, once the fund has finalised its income components for the year. You need it to complete your tax return, it replaces the older-style distribution statement and breaks each distribution into its taxable parts. For the broader picture of how those parts are taxed, see how ETF distributions are taxed in Australia.
What each line on your AMIT statement means
An AMIT statement attributes several distinct components to you. The lines you are most likely to see are:
- Assessable income: Australian dividends, interest and other income passed through from the fund's holdings.
- Net capital gains: gains the fund realised when it sold holdings, split into short-term and longer-term (discounted) components.
- CGT discount: the 50% discount that applies to gains on assets the fund held for 12 months or more (for eligible entity types such as individuals and complying super funds).
- Foreign income and foreign income tax offsets (FITOs): income from overseas holdings, plus a credit for foreign tax already paid on it.
- Franking credits: the company tax already paid on Australian dividends, which you can generally claim against your own tax.
- Cost base adjustments: AMIT can move your units' cost base up or down where the amount attributed to you differs from the cash actually paid; this changes your future capital gain when you sell.
For a closer look at the franking component specifically, see franking credits and ETFs.
Worked example: reading a VAS AMIT statement
Imagine you held approximately $10,000 of VAS for a full year. At VAS's approximate trailing yield of 3.3%, that points to cash distributions in the order of approximately $330 across the year. On your AMIT statement, that figure is not shown as a single number, it is broken into the components above.
Because VAS holds Australian companies, the bulk would appear as Australian dividend income, a portion of which is franked; franking credits are listed separately and effectively gross up the taxable amount while giving you an offsetting credit. A smaller slice may appear as net capital gains (with any CGT discount noted), and foreign income is minimal for an Australia-only fund. Cost-base adjustment figures may also appear, which you keep on record for when you eventually sell.
This is a simplified example for illustration. Your actual AMIT statement will differ, and the split between components changes every year. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns, and distribution amounts vary.
This article provides general information about AMIT statements and Australian ETF tax reporting. It does not constitute financial or tax advice. Tax rules are complex and your situation may differ. Consider speaking with a registered tax agent or financial adviser before making decisions based on this information. This is general information only and does not constitute financial advice. Consider your personal circumstances and read the relevant PDS before making any investment decisions. ETFLens does not hold an Australian Financial Services Licence.