Making claims for travel allowances is a handy deduction for many employees, especially as the ATO has seen fit to make an exception to substantiate these claims in many circumstances. However this consideration comes with a warning — get it right, or lose that exception. We run over the particulars. Did you know that there […]
The ATO is on the warpath over incorrect deductions that many taxpayers try to claim for holiday rental properties, so we take a look at the issues that have been grinding the taxman’s gears. And if you’re going to soon make an appointment to complete your tax return, we’ve made a general checklist of things […]
The end of the financial year is in sight, but businesses shouldn’t assume their 2016-17 tax outcome is set in concrete just yet — there are still some legitimate tax planning strategies that can help us help you not pay a cent more tax than you have to. We also look at how to make […]
The budget announcements contain a suite of tax and superannuation measures aimed at increasing housing stock and improving housing affordability. While the government has not gone close to clamping down on the political and social hot potato of negative gearing, it has taken some steps to restrict the travel expense and depreciation tax breaks enjoyed […]
There can be capital gains conundrums when sub-dividing the family property, so we run through the typical scenarios to dissect the likely tax outcomes. And another perennial head-scratcher is the deductibility of the interest payable on borrowed funds. A GST exemption is available when a “going concern” business is involved, so we look at the […]
There’s nothing wrong with sourcing certain business assets through peer-to-peer websites like Gumtree or even a Facebook group. It’s when it comes to substantiating a tax claim that these sorts of transactions can end up being difficult. The ATO’s rules regarding deductions claimed for work clothing, or for laundering clothes, are fairly straight-forward, but there […]
FBT and the provision of cars to employees continues to cause potholes in the road to smooth tax compliance for businesses. We run over the usual FBT return problem areas. Also, as the “sharing economy” is becoming more prevalent, the ATO has found it necessary to issue some guidance. A not-uncommon conundrum for many […]
There is a particular speed hump to negotiate when chasing one of the valuable small business CGT concessions, and that is if the asset involved is “active” as opposed to “passive”. We explain the difference. There are certain steps to take when tying up the loose ends when looking after a deceased estate, so we […]
With the festive season close at hand, we look at the ways in which the spirit of giving can be extended in a tax effective way. We also look at the details we know so far about the new transfer balance account requirement for SMSFs, and the cap imposed on these accounts. And as the […]
If you have the unfortunate consequence of having a tax debt, there are certain steps that can be taken to help ease the pain. We look at the relief available. Sometimes a valuation is necessary for tax purposes, but there are various ways to go about getting one. There are similarities also in getting deductions […]