Latest News
Hybrid vehicles and FBT changes
Employers that provide plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (‘PHEVs’) to employees (or associates) for personal use should remember the following. Home-charging expenses — new shortcut method The ATO has updated its guidelines to include a new method to make it easier to calculate PHEV electricity costs when a vehicle is charged at an employee’s home. To […]
When a hobby becomes a business
Taxpayers may not think they are running a business from their hobby or ‘side hustle’ activities. However, if they start to earn money from doing these activities regularly, they may be carrying on a business without realising it. Generally, carrying on a business involves ongoing and repeated activities with the intention of making a profit. […]
Know when a new logbook is required
Editor: Keeping a car logbook may be required to accurately calculate the business-use percentage of vehicle expenses (e.g., fuel, registration, insurance and depreciation) for tax deductions. Taxpayers can keep the same logbook for their car for five years, but there are circumstances where they may need a new one during that period. Relying on a […]
Work-related expense claims rejected by Administrative Review Tribunal (‘ART’)
The Administrative Review Tribunal (‘ART’) recently disallowed a taxpayer’s claims for many different types of work-related expenses. The taxpayer was employed full-time as an engineer, working from home two days a week. For the 2023 income year, he claimed deductions totalling over $61,000, in relation to (among other things) car expenses, travel expenses, clothing expenses, […]
Check GST credit claims before lodging BASs
Taxpayers who are registered for GST can get GST credit claims (or ‘input tax credits’) for the GST included in the price of goods and services they buy for their business. However, if they buy something for both business and private use, they need to apportion their GST credit to only claim the business use. […]
Government payments programs
The ATO is reminding taxpayers that receive government payments for delivering services under a Commonwealth program, such as healthcare, disability support or child care, that they have an obligation to: keep accurate records; and report any such income they receive in their tax return. The ATO recently advised that it would be contacting taxpayers and […]
Labor Commits To Income Tax Cuts And Certainty On Negative Gearing
The ALP has formally announced that, if elected to Government, they will deliver “the same legislated tax relief . . . as the Morrison Government”. This means they have committed to upholding the legislated changes to personal income taxes and will also maintain the existing regimes for negative gearing and capital gains tax to […]
Changes To STP Reporting from 1 July 2021
| | | Employers should have already been reporting through Single Touch Payroll (‘STP’) unless they only have closely held payees, or they are covered by a deferral or exemption. From 1 July 2021, there have been changes to STP reporting for small employers with closely held payees and quarterly reporting for micro employers. […]
Maximum Contributions Base for Super Guarantee
The maximum super contributions base is used to determine the limit on any individual employee’s earnings base for superannuation guarantee purposes on a quarterly basis. Employers do not have to provide the minimum quarterly support for earnings above this limit. For the 2022 financial year, the maximum contributions base has increased to $58,920 (up from […]
The ‘Gigs Up’ With A New Sharing Economy Reporting Regime
| | | Treasury has released draft legislation introducing the long-awaited third party reporting regime (proposed to apply from 1 July 2022). The new regime will initially require ride-sharing and short term accommodation online platform operators to report transactions they facilitate directly to the ATO. This measure was first announced in the 2020 MYEFO (following […]
Reminder Of Superannuation Caps Indexation For 2022
| | | From 1 July 2021, the superannuation contributions caps have been indexed for the 2022 income year. The new concessional contributions cap for the 2022 financial year is now $27,500 (increased from $25,000). The new non-concessional (i.e., non-deductible) contributions cap for the 2022 financial year is now $110,000 or (where the ‘bring […]
Taxable Payments Annual Reports (‘TPARs’) Due 28 August
2021 TPARs are due to be lodged for businesses who have paid contractors to provide the following services: building and construction; cleaning; courier, delivery or road freight; information technology (‘IT’); or security, surveillance or investigation. With specific reference to the TPAR due on 28 August 2021, the ATO has reminded taxpayers they may need to […]