In the last 15 years, I have spent less than 3 weeks a year in Australia. When I retire, I want to spend a few months a year there and the rest in SE Asia. When I stop working I’ll sit down with my accountant and work out if the benefits of residence, such as Medicare and tax free income threshold, outweigh the downside of being tax resident, and plan accordingly.
Back in the 1990s CX pilots were able to get away with it as they started working full time in HKG and quietly moved back to Australia when a base became available. A foreign address and under 6 months at home meant they didn’t flag up to the ATO. QF long haul pilots then wanted they same treatment as they were out of the country for over 6 months as well. The ATO caught on and computer matching of immigration data came in together with additional criteria to define residency, such as having a home available, a car, family living full time etc.