Tag - ATO

JobKeeper Update In welcome news, the ATO is extending the due date for lodgement of the December JobKeeper business monthly declaration to Thursday 28 January 2021 (instead of 14 January 2021).  The key dates are as follows : Between 4 January 2021 and 28 January 2021 – complete the December business monthly declaration (this is an extension...

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Tax cuts pass Parliament The Government announced various tax measures in the 2020 Budget on 6 October 2020, and it was able to secure passage of legislation containing some of the important measures very shortly afterwards, as summarised below. Tax relief for individuals The Government brought forward ‘Stage two’ of their Personal Income Tax Plan...

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Superannuation guarantee rate increase update Recently, arguments both for and against increasing the rate of compulsory superannuation guarantee (‘SG’) have continued to be tossed around! The SG is the compulsory amount of superannuation an employer must pay into an eligible employee’s chosen super fund. The rate of SG has been frozen at 9.5% of an...

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JOBKEEPER UPDATE On 21 July 2020, the Government announced that the JobKeeper Payment (‘JKP’) would be extended until 28 March 2021 (i.e., for a further six months beyond its original end date of 27 September 2020). As a result, JKPs would now be made over two separate extension periods, being: Extension period 1 – which covers the...

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JobKeeper declaration due 14 June Businesses that have enrolled in the JobKeeper Scheme and identified their eligible employees are reminded that they will need to make a monthly declaration to the ATO to ensure they continue to receive JobKeeper payments. The monthly declaration must be made by the 14th day of each month to claim...

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Coronavirus: Government’s JobKeeper Payment A major part of the Government’s response to the Coronavirus (or ‘COVID-19’) pandemic is the ‘JobKeeper Payment’ Scheme. The JobKeeper Payment is a wage subsidy that will be paid through the tax system (i.e., it will be administered by the ATO) to eligible businesses impacted by COVID-19. Under the scheme, eligible...

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Coronavirus: Government announces new tax measures The Government has announced a number of economic responses to the Coronavirus (or ‘COVID-19’) pandemic, including economic stimulus packages worth billions of dollars. Some of the key tax measures include: From Thursday 12 March 2020, the instant asset write-off threshold has been increased from $30,000 (for businesses with an...

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Employer’s requirements and the deductibility of WREs Some employees may wonder whether a work-related expense (or ‘WRE’) becomes deductible merely because their employer specifically requires the employee to incur the expense. Importantly, the ATO’s recent draft ruling on the deductibility of work-related expenses reiterates that an employer’s requirements do not determine the question of deductibility....

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Lifestyle assets continue to be an ATO audit target The ATO has revealed it will request a further five years’ worth of policy information from over 30 insurance companies about taxpayers who own marine vessels, thoroughbred horses, fine art, high-value motor vehicles and aircraft.  The ATO expects to receive information about assets owned by around...

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$30,000 instant asset write-off The ATO is reminding businesses that are looking to expand or improve their business and thinking of buying new or second hand assets, that medium sized businesses with a turnover up to $50 million (but at least $10 million) are eligible for the instant asset write-off. This now applies to assets...

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Tax cuts become law The Government has announced that more than 10 million Australians will receive immediate tax relief following the passage of legislation through the Parliament, which increases the top threshold for the 19% tax rate from $41,000 to $45,000 and increases the low income tax offset from $645 to $700 in 2022/23. In...

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Continued focus on the cash economy ATO Assistant Commissioner Peter Holt has announced that, in the 2019/20 financial year, the ATO will be visiting a further 10,000 small businesses across the country, including up to 500 small businesses in Tasmania. He further said that businesses that advertise as ‘cash only’ and businesses that are operating...

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Division 293 assessments The ATO has been issuing ‘Additional tax on concessional contributions (Division 293) assessments’ with respect to liabilities relating to the 2018 income year. Division 293 imposes an additional 15% tax on certain concessional (i.e., taxable) superannuation contributions. It applies to individuals with income and concessional superannuation contributions exceeding the relevant annual threshold....

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Fast-tracking tax cuts for small and medium businesses The Government has fast-tracked the already legislated tax cuts to small and medium businesses by bringing them forward five years. Companies with an aggregated turnover of less than $50 million will have a tax rate of 25% in the 2022 income year (instead of the 2027 income...

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Further company tax cuts deferred (for now . . .) Government has decided not to put the Treasury Laws Amendment (Enterprise Tax Plan No. 2) Bill 2017 to a vote in the Senate … for the present point in time (it had already passed the House of Representatives without amendment). The Bill aims to progressively...

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Personal Income Tax Cuts passed! Parliament has passed the Government’s Personal Income Tax plan, meaning that the first stage of the proposed income tax cuts will start to take effect from 1 July 2018. According to the Prime Minister, taxes “will now be lower, fairer and simpler”. The Government’s plan has three steps: Step 1:...

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New superannuation rates and thresholds released  The ATO has published the key superannuation rates and thresholds for the 2018/19 income year. The Non-Concessional Contributions cap will remain at $100,000 (although transitional arrangements may apply), and the Concessional Contributions cap will remain at $25,000.  The CGT cap amount will be $1,480,000. The Division 293 tax threshold...

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Work-related tax deductions relating to cars, travel, clothing, internet, mobile phones, and self-education are among the top claims the ATO will be watching at tax time. The move for closer scrutiny follows an announcement which revealed 6.7 million taxpayers claimed a higher-than-expected $7.9 billion in work-related claims last year, with the ATO noting this included...

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Big changes proposed to eligibility for the CGT SBCs The Treasurer has released draft legislation containing new “integrity improvements” to the CGT small business concessions (‘SBCs’) (i.e. including the 15-year exemption, the retirement exemption, the 50% active asset reduction and the small business roll-over). Due to the government’s “continued support for genuine small business taxpayers”, it...

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Further ‘affordable housing’ measures passed Parliament has passed the legislation allowing first home buyers to save for a deposit inside superannuation through the First Home Super Saver Scheme (FHSSS), and also allowing older Australians to ‘downsize’ and then contribute the proceeds of the sale of their family home into superannuation. From 1 July 2018, a...

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