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 […]
Taxpayer unsuccessful in having excess contributions reallocated
The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (‘AAT’) recently held that a taxpayer was liable to pay excess concessional contributions tax in relation to contributions made on his behalf by his employer. In the 2021 income year, the taxpayer’s employer made concessional super contributions to his super fund totalling $31,737, which resulted in the taxpayer exceeding his concessional […]
ATO’s three focus areas this tax time
The ATO will be taking a close look this ‘tax time’ at the following common errors made by taxpayers: Work related expenses: Taxpayers using the ‘revised fixed rate method’ of calculating a working from home deduction must have comprehensive records to substantiate their claims, including records that show the actual number of hours they worked […]
End of financial year obligations for employers
The ATO reminds employers they need to keep on top of their payroll governance. This includes: using their tax and super software to record the amounts they pay; withholding the right amount of tax; and calculating superannuation guarantee (‘SG’) correctly. As 30 June gets closer, employers should check their reporting obligations, along with any upcoming […]
Getting trust distributions right
As trustees prepare for year-end distributions, they should do the following: review the relevant trust deed to ensure they are making decisions consistent with the terms of the deed; consider who the intended beneficiaries are and their entitlement to income and capital under the trust deed; notify beneficiaries of their entitlements, so that the beneficiaries […]
Support available for businesses experiencing difficulties
By paying their tax bill in full and on time, taxpayers can avoid paying the general interest charge (‘GIC’), which is currently 11.34%, and which accrues daily for any overdue debts. The ATO advises taxpayers that, if their business is dealing with financial difficulties, there are some options to help make their tax bill “less […]
Minimum yearly repayments on Division 7A loans
To avoid an unfranked dividend under the Division 7A rules, loans from a private company to its shareholders or their associates must be either repaid in full or be covered by a ‘Division 7A complying loan agreement’ before the company’s lodgment day. Complying loan agreements require minimum yearly repayments (‘MYRs’) comprising of interest and principal […]