Latest News
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 […]
ATO AFCX data-matching program
The ATO will acquire relevant account and transaction data (data-matching) from the Australian Financial Crimes Exchange (‘AFCX’) for the 2025 to 2027 income years, including the following: Client identification details (names, addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, identity verification document details, IP addresses, etc); and Bank account transaction details (bank account details, transaction date and […]
Small Business Superannuation Clearing House is closing
The Small Business Superannuation Clearing House (‘SBSCH’) will close on 1 July 2026. Editor: The SBSCH is a free online service provided by the Australian Government through the ATO. The SBSCH can be used by employers to pay superannuation for all their employees through a single payment. The SBSCH will then distribute the money to […]
Getting the main residence exemption right
The ATO has the following tips for taxpayers in relation to the CGT main residence exemption. They should consider if they have bought or disposed of property in the past income year. If they have sold property, were they using it solely as their primary place of residence, earning income from it (rental or business), […]
Bill to reduce student debt now law
Legislation has recently been enacted which delivers on the 2025/26 Federal Budget announcement to reduce student debts. Pursuant to this legislation: there is a one-off 20% reduction to Higher Education Loan Program debts and other student loans that were incurred on or before 1 June 2025; the minimum repayment threshold is increased from $54,435 in […]
ATO to include tax ‘debts on hold’ in taxpayer account balances
From August 2025, the ATO is progressively including ‘debts on hold’ in relevant taxpayer ATO account balances. Editor: A ‘debt on hold’ is an outstanding tax debt where the ATO has previously paused debt collection actions. Tax debts will generally be placed on hold where the ATO decides it is not cost effective to collect […]
Reminder of March 2023 Quarter Superannuation Guarantee (‘SG’)
Employers are reminded that the SG obligation for the 1 January 2023 to 31 March 2023 quarter is due by 28 April 2023. If the correct amount of SG is not paid by an employer on time, they will be liable to pay the SG charge, which includes a penalty and interest component. As a […]
Taxpayers not carrying on an agistment business
The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (‘AAT’) has held that two taxpayers were not carrying on a business of providing services to a company (which they owned) and consequently were not entitled to various deductions. The taxpayers had claimed those deductions on the basis that they were carrying on a business of providing agistment and full care […]
Residential investment property loan data-matching program
The ATO has advised that it will acquire residential investment property loan data from authorised financial institutions for the 2021/22 through to 2025/26 financial years, including: client identification details (names, addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, etc); account details (account numbers, BSBs, balances, commencement and end dates, etc); transaction details (transaction date, transaction amount, etc); […]
Electric vehicle home charging rates: cents per km
The ATO recently released draft guidelines setting out a methodology for calculating the cost of electricity when an electric vehicle (‘EV’) is charged at an employee’s or individual’s home. The draft guidelines may be relied on by employers and individuals who satisfy the required criteria for FBT and income tax purposes respectively, as set out […]
May 2023 Federal Budget for Individuals – What It Means for You
The 2023 Federal Budget was announced on Tuesday 9 May 2023, with a focus on cost-of-living relief and modernising our economy. There were only a few tax and superannuation changes announced, which is good news. However, no mention was made of the previously announced Stage 3 Income Tax cuts that are planned to begin on […]
May 2023 Federal Budget for Businesses – What It Means for You
The 2023 Federal Budget was announced on Tuesday 9 May 2023, with a focus on cost-of-living relief and modernising our economy. There were only a few tax and superannuation changes announced, which is good news. However, no mention was made of the previously announced Stage 3 Income Tax cuts that are planned to begin on […]