The ATO says that it recognises that most trusts are used appropriately and for legitimate purposes. It says it will continue to help those who make genuine mistakes or are uncertain about how the law applies to their circumstances. But even so, the ATO has a number of “trust risk rules” in place to identify...

Operators in some Australian industries as well as select government entities are required by the ATO to lodge a taxable payments annual report (TPAR). The information provided in these reports provides the ATO with the information that allows it to identify contractors who have: not included all their income on their tax return not lodged...

When completing your tax return, you’re entitled to claim deductions for some expenses, most of which are directly related to earning your income. To successfully claim a deduction for work-related expenses, it’s important that you must have spent the money yourself and weren’t reimbursed, it must be directly related to earning your income, and importantly...

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If you are an employer, you may appreciate knowing what the ATO is looking out for, and the fringe benefits you’re expected to report, so you can avoid attracting its attention or making costly mistakes. In this year’s updated ATO list for taxpayers, titled “What attracts our attention”, there are six items that specifically relate...

It’s known by a variety of names, such as the black economy, or even the cash or hidden economy. But whatever the label, its existence is a pebble in the ATO’s shoe that it is forever looking to prise out. As part of that ongoing effort, it has settled upon certain “averages” of what constitutes...

Under the superannuation downsizer scheme, people aged 65 and older can make a non-concessional (post-tax) contribution of up to $300,000 from the proceeds of selling what was once their family home. Downsizing enables more effective use of housing stock, and existing contribution caps and restrictions will not apply to the downsizer contribution. The scheme applies...

In last month’s article about working from home, mention was made of the small business instant asset write-off. However this was written before the Federal Budget, which made changes to the write-off. The small business instant asset write-off threshold has now been increased to $30,000. It has also been extended to cover medium sized businesses...

Being a director of a company, as with any elevation of status, is a role that also brings with it added responsibilities and duties. Company directors need to keep in mind that the Corporations Act holds directors personally liable for many of the legal and financial obligations expected from a company. These include, but are...

The ATO can issue public rulings that provide guidance on the interpretation of various tax laws. Public rulings generally deal with priority issues that have been found to require clarification, so if you have a concern about a particular area of tax law, you may find that many of your concerns are shared by others...