ATO SMS text messages
ATO to send text messages if bank account details incorrect The ATO has advised that it will send SMS text messages directly to taxpayers where incorrect bank account details were included in their tax returns and they were entitled to a refund. The SMS will advise impacted taxpayers that: their refund cannot be processed due […]
Christmas Parties & Gifts 2018
Year-end (and other) staff parties With the well earned December/January holiday season on the way, many employers will be planning to reward staff with a celebratory party or event. However, there are important issues to consider, including the possible FBT and income tax implications of providing ‘entertainment’ (including Christmas parties) to staff and clients. FBT […]
Single Touch Payroll
Proposed expansion of STP to smaller employers Single Touch Payroll (‘STP’) commenced on 1 July 2018 for approximately 73,000 employers who have 20 or more employees. There is currently legislation before Parliament to expand STP to all employers from 1 July 2019 and it is estimated that there will be more than 700,000 employers who […]
Beware of fake tax debt scam
Scammers impersonating tax agents The ATO has received increasing reports of a new take on the ‘fake tax debt’ scam, whereby scammers are now impersonating registered tax agents to lend legitimacy to their phone call. The fraudsters do this by coercing the victim into revealing their agent’s name and then initiating a three-way phone conversation […]
Home office expense claims
Increased scrutiny of home office claims Last year, 6.7 million taxpayers claimed a record $7.9 billion in deductions for ‘other work-related expenses’, which includes home office expenses. Reportedly, due to a high number of mistakes, errors and questionable claims for home office expenses, the ATO has recently advised that it will be increasing attention, scrutiny […]
Avoid 5 common GST reporting errors
ATO identifies five common errors when reporting GST Errors make up more than half of the overall corrections made to GST reporting. In most cases, the mistakes are due to a taxpayer error. With some simple checks, you can avoid these most common errors. When reporting GST: make sure the timing is correct, and report for […]
‘Fake tax debt’ scam warning
Scam Warning – Scammers may be impersonating Tax Agents In a recent twist in the ‘fake tax debt’ scam, we have received increasing reports of a new scam method where scammers impersonate registered agents to lend legitimacy to their phone call. The fraudsters do this by: coercing the victim into revealing their tax agent’s name, […]
Company tax
The Company Tax Rate Saga In the last week of the August Parliamentary sittings, the controversial corporate tax cut plan for the big end of town (i.e. companies with an aggregated turnover of over $50 million) was defeated. In addition, long-awaited legislation impacting the company tax and franking rates for small to medium companies (i.e. […]
Super Guarantee (SG) Amnesty
SG Amnesty still pending The proposed superannuation guarantee (SG) amnesty is a one-off, 12-month opportunity to self-correct past non-compliance (i.e., from 24 May 2018 to 23 May 2019). It will apply to previously undeclared SG shortfalls for any period from 1 July 1992 up to 31 March 2018. The ‘carrot’ currently on the table is […]
Cryptocurrency
Transacting with cryptocurrency With interest in cryptocurrencies (such as Bitcoin) increasing, the ATO has issued guidance regarding various tax consequences of transactions involving cryptocurrencies. Any capital gains made on the disposal of a cryptocurrency (including using the cryptocurrency or converting it to Australian dollars) may be taxed, although certain capital gains or losses from disposing […]
