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The ATO has reported that some businesses are making simple mistakes reporting their GST, and has reminded taxpayers to avoid the following common GST reporting errors:
The ATO has recently provided information about how the tax system applies for someone who receives compensation from a financial institution that provided inappropriate advice and/or did not provide advice it should have.
The report of the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Tax and Revenue into Taxpayer Engagement with the Tax System has been tabled.
ATO Assistant Commissioners Superannuation Tara McLachlan and Dana Fleming recently spoke at the Self Managed Superannuation Fund (SMSF) Association Technical Days in various capital cities.
This year, the ATO has launched its biggest ever education campaign to help taxpayers get their tax returns right. The ATO says the campaign, which is running throughout tax time, includes direct contact with over three million selected taxpayers, as well as specialised guides and toolkits for taxpayers, agents, employers and industry bodies.
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has released its submission in response to the Productivity Commission’s draft report on superannuation efficiency and competitiveness.
The ATO has reminded taxpayers that they need to lodge a tax return for a financial year in which they exceed their non-concessional contributions cap, and may have to pay extra tax.
The ATO has warned taxpayers to be on “high alert” for tax-related scams.
The term “black economy” refers to people and businesses who operate outside the tax and regulatory systems, or who are known to the authorities but do not correctly report their tax obligations.
Amendments contained in the Treasury Laws Amendment (2018 Measures No 1) Act 2018 require purchasers of newly constructed residential properties or new subdivisions to remit GST directly to the ATO as part of settlement.
The ATO reports that a record number of tax returns were finalised in the first two months of tax time this year, thanks to the ATO’s data prefilling arrangements and correction of mistakes using analytics and data-matching.
The ATO has started issuing excess transfer balance (ETB) tax assessments to self managed super fund (SMSF) members, or their agents, who had previously received an ETB determination and rectified the excess.
More than 100 Australians have been identified as “high risk” and requiring further ATO investigation because they have links to Swiss banking.
The ATO has issued a fact sheet explaining its compliance approach to employers who fail to meet their superannuation guarantee (SG) obligations.
The foreign resident capital gains tax (CGT) withholding regime requires a purchaser of certain Australian property to withhold an amount from the purchase price.
The government has released exposure draft legislation to ensure that a superannuation reversionary transition to retirement income stream (TRIS) will always be allowed to automatically transfer to eligible dependents on the death of the primary recipient.
The Federal Court has ruled that pay-as-you-go (PAYG) amounts were “withheld” from a taxpayer’s salary.
A Bill has been introduced to amend the A New Tax System, requiring purchasers of new residential premises and new subdivisions of potential residential land to remit the GST on the purchase price directly to the ATO as part of the settlement process.
Treasury has released draft legislation aimed at ensuring that taxpayers will only be able to access the small business capital gains tax.
The black economy includes people who don’t correctly report and meet their tax obligations, and people who operate entirely outside the tax and regulatory system.
Treasury has released draft legislation aimed at ensuring that taxpayers will only be able to access the small business capital gains tax concessions for assets that are used (or held ready for use) in the course of a small business or are an interest in a small business.
The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) has affirmed the ATO’s decision that income a taxpayer earned working for the United States Army in Afghanistan is not exempt from Australian income tax under s 23AF of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 (ITAA 1936).
Not surprisingly, the ATO has moved quickly to state its views on the implications of the recent Federal Court decision regarding Uber.
The ATO places a high priority on resolving disputes early, including through settlements where appropriate.
Did you know that a finance subsidy of 0.70% is available for equipment that meets Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC)?
The ATO has issued a Practical Compliance Guideline which sets out the Tax Commissioner’s compliance approach, in the context of GST, to entities that enter into countertrade transactions as part of carrying on their enterprise.
In a long-running saga, the High Court has unanimously dismissed the appeals of four corporate taxpayers
The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) has affirmed the Commissioner’s decision to refuse a taxpayer’s deduction claim for certain work-related travel expenses.
The Government has announced that it will establish a $2 billion Australian Business Securitisation Fund.
The Government has announced that it will develop an electronic information-sharing mechanism between the ATO and the Family Law Courts to allow superannuation assets held by relevant parties during family law proceedings to be identified swiftly and more accurately.
Assistant Treasurer Stuart Robert says the Federal Government has asked the Board of Taxation to undertake a review of the tax treatment of “granny flat” arrangements, and to recommend potential changes.
The ATO says it is reviewing arrangements involving property developers acquiring land from government entities, specifically where the developer provides development works to the government entity as payment for the land.
The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) has decided that a property a small business owner used to store materials, tools and other equipment was an active asset for the purpose of the small business capital gains tax (CGT) concessions.
Taxpayers must keep all relevant documents, usually for five years, to show that they have incurred the expense for which they are claiming a tax deduction.
The ATO has advised tax agents that it is currently emailing Single Touch Payroll (STP).
The ATO has released an employees' guide for work expenses to help employees decide whether their expenses are deductible, and what records they need to keep to substantiate them.
The ATO has clarified a number of issues around FBT and taxi travel.
The Assistant Treasurer, Michael Sukkar, has announced that older Australians downsizing from their family homes have contributed $1 billion to their superannuation funds.
The ATO has released a consultation paper, The ATO’s administrative approach to the disclosure of business tax debt information to credit reporting bureaus.
The ATO has recently updated and reissued Practice Statement Law Administration PS LA 2011/13 Cross border recovery of taxation debts.
Salary sacrifice strategies are a great way to boost retirement savings. But unwelcome loopholes in the law mean some workers may be getting less than they bargained for.
Your clients who are business owners can deduct the cost of work trips they need to take for business. But what happens when they mix business with some hard-earned time for relaxation?
For many people, SMSFs are a great option for building retirement savings, but they may not be suitable for everyone.
Made a tax loss? If you’re a sole trader or individual partner, you may be able to apply the loss against other income like salary or investment income, or carry the loss forward to a future year.
08/01/2020 Crowdfunding has fast become a go-to strategy for people in need of large amounts of money quickly, but is the money raised considered to be income and therefore taxable?
Businesses with tax debts need to be aware that the ATO will now be able to disclose the details of their tax debts to credit ratings agencies.
17/01/2020 If you don’t hold private hospital cover – or are thinking about dropping it – make sure you understand the financial consequences. You could be hit with an extra tax surcharge of up to 1.5% or cost yourself extra premiums in future.
31/01/2020 Did you know that when you sell your shares, the size of your capital gains tax bill is affected by how long you’ve held the shares, and how you offset your capital gains and losses?
14/02/2020 With all the pandemonium of the new year, your super is probably the last thing on your mind. However, this is precisely the right time to think about implementing some strategies to increase your super for the coming year.
16/10/2020 The ATO has reminded employers that the superannuation guarantee (SG) amnesty closed on 7 September 2020.
27/11/2020 The Federal Government’s Coronavirus Supplement has once again been extended for a further three months, accompanied by an associated cut-in rate.
11/12/2020 On 10 November 2020, the ATO advised that the recent reduction in the company tax rate had not been applied correctly in its systems from 1 July 2020.
05/02/2021 To many individuals, the difference between tax planning and tax avoidance is not immediately obvious, while the ATO considers the former to be a legal way of arranging your affairs to minimise the tax you pay, the latter could land you in legal hot water.
18/02/2021 The ATO has again extended – this time from 31 December 2020 to 30 June 2021.
05/03/2021 With insecure, contract and casual work becoming increasingly common, particularly in the current COVID-19 affected economy, it’s no surprise that many young and not-so-young Australians may have income from more than one job.
19/03/2021 The ATO is kicking into gear in 2021 with another two data-matching programs specifically related to the JobMaker Hiring Credit and early access to superannuation (COVID-19 condition).
01/04/2021 Having insurance through superannuation can be a tax-effective and cost-effective way of protecting yourself and your loved ones.
28/05/2021 Small businesses now have another pathway to resolve tax disputes, with the ATO making its independent review service a permanent option for eligible small businesses
03/06/2021 The ATO has announced that it will run a new data-matching program to collect property management data for the 2018–2019 to 2022–2023 financial years.
18/06/2021 As the economy adjusts to the removal of most COVID-19-related government support measures, coupled with the slow national vaccination rollout and mostly closed international borders, there is no doubt that many Australians are facing financial difficulties in the immediate short term.
24/01/2022 The ATO has announced the extension of its Medicare exemption statement data-matching program.
11/02/2022 As a part of an economic package to help businesses recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Federal Government provided low-cost credit to qualifying small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the form of the SME Recovery Loan Scheme.
04/03/2022 The ATO has recently finalised its stance on the issue of commercial debt forgiveness – in particular, the “natural love and affection” exclusion.
18/03/2022 Businesses that need a little more financial help will have one last opportunity to claim the loss carry-back in their 2021–2022 income tax returns.
08/04/2022 The recent devastating flooding in South East Queensland and parts of New South Wales has left many people homeless, caused vast amounts of property damage and has sadly led to loss of life.
08/07/2022 Under the current statutory formula for valuing car fringe benefits, electric cars are arguably at a disadvantage compared to fossil fuel-consuming cars, but this may soon change.
22/04/2022 The maximum amount that individuals can take out of their super under the First Home Super Saver Scheme will be increased from $30,000 to $50,000 for any release requests made on or after 1 July 2022.
01/07/2022 Tax-related debts are sometimes ignored by those struggling with inflationary pressures and sky-high energy prices.
01/08/2022 Small businesses are again in the ATO’s sights this tax time, with a focus on stamping out deductions not related to business income, overclaiming of expenses, omission of business income and insufficient records to substantiate claims.
14/09/2022 Rental property income and deduction mistakes continue to be one of the main focus areas for the ATO this tax time.
16/09/2022 The Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) has warned small and micro businesses to be alert for payment redirection scams.
28/10/2022 To reduce the impact of selling and buying a new principal home and to encourage pensioners to downsize, the government, in conjunction with the announcement of its intention to reduce the eligibility age for downsizer super contributions, has introduced a Bill.
24/02/2023 People who are thinking of starting a self managed superannuation fund (an SMSF) in 2023 need to be aware of the recent changes made by the ATO.
03/03/2023 The $250 non-deductible threshold for work-related self education expenses has now been removed with the recent passing of legislation.
17/03/2023 A new revised fixed-rate method for calculating working from home expenses will apply from 1 July 2022 onwards.
23/06/2023 Tax time 2023 is fast approaching and as with previous years, the ATO has provided some insights to the areas it will be focusing on consisting of rental property deductions, work-related expenses, and capital gains tax.
28/03/2024 The ATO has updated its ruling on the tax deductibility of work-related self-education expenses.