Latest News
Deductions For A Company Or Trust Home-Based Business
The ATO has reminded taxpayers that, if they run their home-based business as a company or trust, their business should have a genuine, market-rate rental contract (or similar agreement) with the owner of the property. The agreement will determine which expenses the business pays for and can claim as a deduction. If there isn’t a […]
Federal Court Provides Clarification On The PSI Rules
The Federal Court recently handed down two decisions relating to the personal services income (‘PSI’) rules. Income is classified as PSI when more than 50% of the income received under a contract is for a taxpayer’s labour, skills or expertise. The PSI rules are integrity provisions which ensure individuals cannot reduce or defer their income […]
$30,000 Instant Asset Write-Off
The ATO is reminding businesses that are looking to expand or improve their business and thinking of buying new or second hand assets, that medium sized businesses with a turnover up to $50 million (but at least $10 million) are eligible for the instant asset write-off. This now applies to assets that cost up to […]
ATO Watching for Foreign Income This Tax Time
| | | The ATO is urging taxpayers who receive any foreign income from investments, family members or working overseas to make sure they report it this tax time. New international data sharing agreements allow the ATO to track money across borders and identify individuals not meeting their obligations. “This year, the ATO has […]
The ATO Hits the Road
The ATO plans to visit almost 10,000 businesses this financial year in all States and Territories, across a variety of industries, as part of their strategy to deal with the black economy (they visited nearly 9,000 businesses in the 2018/19 financial year). According to Assistant Commissioner Peter Holt, there are a number of businesses in […]
Motor Vehicle Registries Data Matching Program Protocol
The ATO will match the data provided by the State and Territory motor vehicle registering authorities against the ATO’s taxpayer records with the objective of identifying those who may not be meeting their registration, reporting, lodgment and payment obligations. Details will be requested where records indicate a vehicle has been transferred or newly registered during […]
What’s New For Taxpayers
Before you complete your tax return for 2015, there are some changes you should be aware of in case they affect you. Mature age worker tax offset You can no longer claim the Mature age worker tax offset (MAWTO) in your tax return. Previously, to be eligible for the offset you needed to be an […]
Travel between home and work and between workplaces
While trips between home and work are generally considered private travel, you can claim deductions in some circumstances, as well as for some travel between two workplaces. If your travel was partly private and partly for work, you can only claim for the part related to your work. What you can claim You can […]
Gifts and donations
You can only claim a tax deduction for gifts or donations to organisations that have the status of deductible gift recipients (DGRs). Deductions for gifts are claimed by the person that makes the gift (the donor). For you to claim a tax deduction for a gift, it must meet four conditions: The gift […]
Capital gains tax checklist
The following questions will help you to identify possible capital gains tax (CGT) obligations. If you answer ‘yes’ to any of these questions, CGT may apply. Some questions are intended to highlight the possibility of a capital gain or loss arising in the current year, others to alert you to the possibility of a […]
Tax on Super Contributions
The tax you pay on your super contributions generally depends on whether the contributions were made before or after you paid income tax, you exceed the super contributions cap or you are a very high-income earner. Before-tax super contributions The super contributions you make before tax (concessional) are taxed at 15%. Types of before-tax contributions […]
Zone Tax Offset – exclude ‘fly-in-fly-out’
In the 2015–16 Federal Budget, the government announced that it will exclude ‘fly-in-fly-out’ and ‘drive-in-drive-out’ (FIFO) workers from the Zone Tax Offset where their normal residence is not within a ‘zone’. Currently, to be eligible for the Zone Tax Offset, a taxpayer must reside or work in a specified remote area for more than 183 […]