Tax issues for businesses that have received a support payment
Navigating Tax Implications for Government Support Grants What Business Owners Need to Know Taxpayers who have received a government support grant or payment recently to help their business recover from COVID-19 or a natural disaster should check if they need to include the payment in their assessable income. Grants are generally treated as assessable income, […]
Notice of visa data-matching program
ATO’s Enhanced Data Collection for Visa Holders The 2024-2026 Visa Data Acquisition Program in Detail The ATO will acquire visa data from the Department of Home Affairs for the 2024 to 2026 income years, including the following: address history and contact history for visa applicants, sponsors, and migration agents; active visas meeting the relevant criteria, […]
ATO lodgement penalty amnesty about to end
The ATO is remitting failure to lodge penalties for eligible small businesses Businesses which have not yet taken advantage of the ATO’s lodgment penalty amnesty only have until 31 December 2023 to do so Businesses must meet the following criteria in order to be eligible for the amnesty: had an annual turnover under $10 million […]
Christmas parties and gifts
Common entertainment scenarios for business How FBT applies to businesses for Christmas parties If your business holds a Christmas party: on a working day, on your business premises, and only for your current employees, you don’t pay fringe benefits tax (FBT) for the food and drink off your business premises, or the party includes associates […]
Choosing the right PAYG instalment method
Understanding PAYG Instalment Methods ATO Case Studies on Instalment Amount and Instalment Rate Methods The ATO advises that Pay as you go (‘PAYG’) instalments are calculated using either the instalment amount method or the instalment rate method. It recently provided the following two case studies to illustrate the two methods: Case study 1: Kelly the […]
Taxpayers need to get their rental right
Important Tax Considerations for Rental Property Owners Reporting Rental Income and Managing Rental Expenses The ATO reminds rental property owners and their tax agents to take care when lodging their tax returns this tax time. When preparing their tax returns, taxpayers should make sure all rental income is included, including income from short-term rental arrangements, […]
ATO gives ‘green light’ to lodge
ATO’s Tax Filing Guidance for Simple Affairs Timely Tips for Taxpayers and Key Information on Lodging Income Tax Returns The ATO is giving taxpayers with simple affairs the ‘green light’ to lodge their annual income tax returns. ATO Assistant Commissioner Tim Loh said that most taxpayers with simple affairs will find the information they need […]
Luxury car tax: determining a vehicle’s principal purpose
ATO Guidance on Determining the Principal Purpose of a Car for Luxury Car Tax (LCT) Insights into Assessing LCT Liability for Vehicles Used for Carriage of Goods versus Passengers The ATO recently explained how to determine the principal purpose of a car for ‘luxury car tax’ (‘LCT’) purposes (since LCT is not payable on the […]
Claiming GST credits for employee expense reimbursements
Claiming GST credits for employee expense reimbursements Employers may be entitled to claim GST input tax credits for payments they have made to reimburse employees for expenses that are directly related to their business activities. A ‘reimbursement’ is provided when a taxpayer pays their employee the amount, or part of the amount, of a particular […]
Masters course fees not deductible as self-ed expenses
Administrative Appeals Tribunal case ruling The AAT has held that tuition fees for a public policy Masters course were not deductible. This ruling was reached on the basis that the course did not relate to the taxpayer’s work as a music teacher. The taxpayer was a qualified teacher who specialised in teaching music. He had […]
