Further to the Federal Government’s Part 1 Business Stimulus Package ($17.6B) the Government yesterday announced a further stimulus package referred to here as Business Stimulus Package Part 2 ($66B). These business measures announced yesterday by the Government have been provided to support Australian businesses to manage the cash flow challenges and retain employees as result…
The Australian Taxation Office (‘ATO’) has announced a temporary simplified short cut method to make it easier for individual taxpayers to claim deductions for additional running expenses incurred (e.g., additional heating, cooling and lighting costs), as a result of working from home due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Refer to the ATO’s Media Release of 7…
The ATO’s recently released interpretation of the tax treatment of capital gains distributed by an Australian discretionary trust to non-resident beneficiaries will have a significant negative impact for some.
The ATO has again flagged that underreporting of foreign income is an issue, but this time the gloves are off.
New figures give visibility to tax compliance issues within small business sector and indicate where ATO expects resources to be focussed now and in the future. Read our 4 tips to make your business ATO-proof.
Ridesharing and the FBT taxi travel exemption When an employee uses a taxi service for travel to or from work or if the employee is sick, it is generally exempt from Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) under the FBT taxi travel exemption. The question is, what about Uber and other ridesharing services, do they also qualify for…
‘Proof of life’ certificates required for overseas pensioners One of the stranger pieces of legislation to be introduced into Parliament last month is an attempt to ensure that overseas welfare recipients over the age of 80 are in fact, alive. There are approximately 96,000 people permanently living overseas who currently receive an Australian social security…
The ATO is airing the ‘dirty laundry’ on work-related clothing and laundry expenses warning that it is closely reviewing claims Last year around 6 million people claimed work-related clothing and laundry expenses, with total claims adding up to nearly $1.8 billion. “While many of these claims will be legitimate, we don’t think that half of…
How to Prepare for a Tax Office Visit The Tax Office is actively targeting geographic areas for special visits as part of a nationwide crackdown on the black economy. A consistent theme this tax time is overclaiming and under-reporting. With the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) getting more and more sophisticated in its data matching approaches,…
ATO’s compliance approach The ATO works with employers by providing tools and calculators to help them understand and meet their super guarantee (SG) obligations and ‘get it right’. The ATO’s compliance approach supports employers who engage with them and want to get things right. They do take firmer action for those unwilling to meet their…