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 […]
Appointing an SMSF auditor
Important Reminders for SMSF Trustees and Auditors Key Requirements for Appointing and Engaging Approved SMSF Auditors The ATO reminds SMSF trustees that they need to appoint an approved SMSF auditor for each income year, no later than 45 days before they need to lodge their SMSF annual return. An SMSF’s audit must be finalised before […]
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 […]
Fuel tax credit rate change 1 August
Use the correct fuel tax credit rates Rates changed on 1 July and 1 August — use the ATO’s calculator to apply the correct rates when making a claim on your BAS. The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has made changes to the Fuel Tax Credit rates, impacting claiming credits for eligible fuel use. To benefit from Fuel […]
Private company loan arrangements
Know your private company loan arrangements before you lodge The ATO advises taxpayers that, if they or an associate take a loan from their private company, they should not forget the requirements of repaying a private company loan for income tax purposes. Otherwise, they could find the loan treated as a Division 7A deemed dividend […]
Proportional indexation of transfer balance caps from 1 July 2023
The ATO reminds taxpayers that, from 1 July 2023, the general transfer balance cap will be indexed. Individuals will have a personal transfer balance cap between $1.6 and $1.9 million, based on the highest ever balance of their transfer balance account between 1 July 2017 and 30 June 2023. While indexation occurred on 1 July […]
Engaged in ride-sourcing services?
ATO ride sourcing data-matching program The ATO will acquire ride-sourcing data relating to approximately 200,000 individuals to identify individuals that may be engaged in providing ride-sourcing services during the 2022/23 financial year. Here’s what you need to know. The data items include: identification details (driver identifier, ABN, driver name, birth date, mobile phone number, email […]
Side hustles in the ATO’s sights
ATO pursuing more forms of income as tax A recent ATO article highlights the fact that it is increasingly trying to bring more modern techniques of money-making into its tax net. ‘Side hustles’ have really grown over the past few years — everything from the gig economy and drop shippers to content creators and influencers. […]
ATO advice regarding year-end trustee resolutions
5 Tips for trustee resolution compliance The ATO has advised that, in the lead-up to 30 June, trustee clients who wish to make beneficiaries presently entitled to trust income for the 2023 income year should ensure their trustee resolutions are effective. This includes where trustees may want to make beneficiaries ‘specifically entitled’ to franked dividends […]
