Did you know that an immediate deduction for depreciable assets costing $300 or less is available to certain taxpayers? This deduction most commonly applies to individual taxpayers who are earning non-business income, such as salary and wage earners as well as investors. To be entitled to the immediate deduction, four eligibility tests must be fulfilled...

The goods and services tax (GST) costs businesses money in two ways. The most obvious is the tax levied on a business’s goods and services, but there is a second, more subtle, cost — the professional fees, time and other administrative costs associated with GST. Most businesses focus on reducing the costs of complying with...

While it might be unsavoury and tough to think about, it is inevitable that you will leave your business someday. Whether you decide to sell up, retire or leave due to health reasons, it is important that you prepare yourself for that eventuality. A recent nationwide survey revealed that more than 40% of family businesses...

Do-it-yourself superannuation, in one form or another, has been around for about 30 years. But it has only been over the last few years that these smaller super funds (or as they are more commonly called, self-managed superannuation funds, or SMSFs) have made an indelible mark on Australia’s retirement savings landscape. The SMSF sector now...

ATO warns business: Don’t claim loss carry-back…yet Business owners are being warned that a back-log of bills sitting in parliamentary in-trays means that one of the government’s long-promised business tax breaks, the $700 million loss carry-back legislation, will most likely not be passed and made available before the looming tax time. Implementation of the measure...

More than 11,000 individuals and businesses who may be evading their tax obligations through various online selling websites such as eBay and Gumtree will be targeted by the ATO as a part of its data matching program. Individuals who are involved in selling goods and services of a total value of $20,000 or greater will...

Change to tax refunds From July 1, 2013, your income tax refunds will be deposited into a bank account when we lodge your tax returns for you via the electronic lodgement service (ELS). Depending on the arrangement you have with us, refunds can be deposited straight into your account, or in some cases where we...

Hankering for a Harley? Think again, SMSFs The ATO regularly warns self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs) of the perils of investing in artwork, but do trustees know about the significant risks of motor vehicle investments? Common questions SMSF trustees need answers to include: is a vehicle such as a Harley Davidson considered a motor vehicle under...

If you haven’t heard of “blackhole” expenditure before, it is a term used to describe some legitimate capital business expenditure that, by accident, design or otherwise, falls outside of the ambit of other provisions of Australia’s tax legislation. It broadly refers to certain outgoings that are neither depreciable nor deductible in general terms, and that...

How long can the ATO hold on to your GST refund? Have you ever been under pressure with cash flow problems and wondered how long the ATO is able to hold on to your goods and services tax (GST) dollars? Up until relatively recently, the common practice with regard to GST credit refunds, should something...