Latest News
ATO warning regarding private use of work vehicles and FBT
Employers that supply work vehicles to their employees need to check how the work vehicles are used and whether any exemptions apply to determine if they attract fringe benefits tax (‘FBT’). FBT generally applies when a work vehicle is made available for private use, even if it is not actually used. Private use includes any […]
Tips to help sole trader clients
The ATO is seeing sole traders make mistakes in the following areas: not reporting all income — this includes income earned outside their business (like a ‘side hustle’), cash jobs, or payments in-kind/barter deals; overclaiming expenses — this includes claiming the portion of an expense related to personal use, or overstating the cost of goods […]
Correctly dealing with rental property repairs
Taxpayers who have had work done on their rental property should ensure the expense is categorised correctly to avoid errors when completing their tax return. A deduction for ‘repairs and maintenance’ expenses can be claimed for work done to remedy, or prevent defects, damage or deterioration from using the property to earn income. These expenses […]
Reminder of September Quarter Superannuation Guarantee (‘SG’)
Employers are reminded that employee super contributions for the quarter ending 30 September 2025 must be received by the relevant super funds by Tuesday, 28 October 2025. If the correct amount of SG is not paid by an employer on time, they will be liable to pay the SG charge, which (as noted above) includes […]
Employees incorrectly treated as independent contractors
The ATO is warning businesses that if they incorrectly treat an employee as an independent contractor, then they risk receiving penalties and charges, including: PAYG withholding penalty for failing to deduct tax from worker payments and send it to the ATO; Super guarantee charge (‘SGC’), which is more than the super that would have been […]
PAYGW reminders for activity statement lodgments
The ATO will be sending certain employers a reminder to lodge their activity statements. The reminder will include the amounts the ATO has on record for them, such as: PAYG withheld amounts reported through Single Touch Payroll; and any other pre-filled amounts, including GST instalments and PAYG instalments (instalment amount option). The ATO’s reminders are […]
Avoid a tax time shock
Individual taxpayers can take the following steps right now to ensure the correct amount of tax is being put aside throughout the year: let their employer know if they have a study or training support loan, such as a HECS or HELP debt; check they are only claiming the tax-free threshold from one employer; consider […]
Reminder of September Quarter Superannuation Guarantee (‘SG’)
Employers are reminded that employee super contributions for the 1 July 2024 to 30 September 2024 quarter must be received by the relevant super funds by 28 October 2024 in order to avoid being liable to pay the SG charge.
myGovId changing its name to myID
The digital identity app ‘myGovID’ will soon be changing its name to ‘myID‘. While the name is changing, the login and security will not change. Taxpayers who have already set up their myGovID and use it to access government online services will not need to do anything when the app changes to myID. They will […]
ATO security safeguards for victims of fraud recently enhanced
Where a taxpayer has been the victim of identity, tax or super fraud, the ATO may apply security safeguards to their account to prevent further harm. This may require the impacted taxpayer to contact the ATO each time they need to access their information and cause inconvenience for the taxpayer as well as their tax […]
Valuing fund assets for SMSFs
One of the many responsibilities SMSF trustees have every income year is valuing their fund’s assets at market value. The market value of an asset is the amount that a willing buyer and seller would agree to in an arm’s-length transaction. These valuations will be used when preparing the fund’s accounts, statements and SMSF annual […]
ATO’s notices of data-matching programs
The ATO will acquire officeholder data from ASIC and other bodies for the 2024 to 2027 income years, including name, address, date of birth, ABN, contact details, organisation details and officeholder details. The ATO estimates that records relating to more than 11 million individuals will be obtained. The ATO will acquire property management data from […]