Tax ‘safe harbour’ for inherited property When someone inherits a dwelling there are some special rules contained within the main residence exemption provisions that can provide a full exemption if certain conditions are met. If the conditions are not met, the beneficiary might face a nasty capital gains tax (CGT) bill for their good fortune.…
New domestic violence leave entitlements come into force A Fair Work Commission decision created a new entitlement for most Australian employees; unpaid family and domestic violence leave. The Fair Work decision provides five days’ unpaid leave per annum to all employees (including casuals) experiencing family and domestic violence. The leave will also be available in…
The impending changes to speed up your HELP repayments The Government has moved to put an end to ‘eternal students’ who constantly study and never earn an income and speed up the payment cycle for those with outstanding debt. New lifetime caps on Higher Education Loan Program (HELP) debt will prevent people from constantly going…
190,000 taxpayers ‘examined’ in ATO online rental blitz The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has announced a new data-matching program targeting taxpayers earning income from the exploding popularity of short-term rentals available on platforms like AirBNB and Stayz. Utilising information from online platform sharing sites matched to information from financial institutions, the ATO is targeting 190,000…
Last minute changes to company tax and franking rate passed by Parliament Legislation passed by Parliament late last month introduces a new test that will restrict some companies from accessing the lower company tax rate from the 2017-18 financial year. Across a 3 year period, the company tax and franking rate changed, then the definition…
Will Australians pay more for a good cause? In the same month that desperate farmers made headlines preparing to destroy starving flocks and pleading with the public to pay a few cents more for their dairy products, Dick Smith’s nationalistic brand announced its closure. The question is, will Australians pay more for a cause? Comments…
Take all the tax advantages you can For small business, in particular, there is a range of concessions and funding you can access. Many businesses simply don’t realise the opportunities available to them. A simple example is trading stock valuations Your trading stock is an asset that is recorded on your balance sheet. In most…
Successful start for Single Touch Payroll Single Touch Payroll (STP) reporting is off to a successful start, with around 40,000 employers already sending tax and superannuation information from their payroll software each time they pay their employees. The STP transition year for employers with 20 or more employees started on 1 July, delivering on the commitment to streamline reporting obligations and…
Clothing deductions hung out to dry The Australian Taxation Office is closely examining work-related clothing and laundry expense claims of taxpayers submitting their 2017-18 tax returns. The ATO says that clothing claims are up nearly 20% over the last five years with people either making mistakes or deliberately over-claiming. Common mistakes include people claiming ineligible…
What can you claim if you’re a flight attendant, police officer or a nurse? What you can and can’t claim Each occupation has specific circumstances which affect what can and cannot be claimed. Here are some snippets from some ATO occupation guides. Remember, regardless of the occupation you are in, you can only claim the…