Uber to pay $81m in payroll tax after High Court ruling

Uber will have to fork out $81 million after the High Court of Australia determined the rideshare company owed payroll tax in New South Wales.

The company lodged a High Court challenge to an assessment that payroll tax be imposed on the fares given to Uber drivers between the 2015 and 2020 financial years.

Uber had argued that it was merely a "payment collection agent" that gave the fare to the driver after deducting service fees, and that it should not be captured by NSW payroll tax rules.

But the High Court, by majority, dismissed the company's appeal in full today.

It declared that Uber's drivers were employed under contracts and that the fares they received were deemed to be wages for the purposes of payroll tax legislation.

Uber will also be required to pay the costs to the NSW Chief Commissioner of State Revenue.

The decision is likely to spark ramifications for the broader gig economy.