Tax

Australia’s “Google Tax” May Be the Second in the World but It’s Too Early to Tell if It’s the “toughest”

By Antony Ting When introducing the draft legislation for the diverted profits or so-called “Google tax”, Federal Treasurer Scott Morrison claimed it would: “reinforce Australia’s position as having amongst the toughest laws in the world to combat corporate tax avoidance.” Australia is the second country to introduce this type of tax, after the UK in April […]

December 5, 2016
Business Management Tax

Record Keeping for Small Business Owners

  Quick guide for good record keeping… It’s never too late to start a good record keeping system for your business. It’s an important part of being a small business owner and to ensure you’re meeting your tax obligations. Benefits of record keeping While it can be tedious, there are many benefits to keeping good […]

November 30, 2016
Tax

Novated Leases and the Deductibility of After-tax Running Costs

By: Steve Burnham Including a car in a salary package is a popular remuneration arrangement, and doing so as part of a salary sacrifice package will often give rise the a “novated lease”.  Costs in operating the vehicle can also be salary sacrificed.  This is typically referred to a fully novated lease. A novated lease […]

November 16, 2016
Tax

When Is a Residence a Place of Business

By: Max Newnham Don’t make this common mistake. Many small businesses are often started on a part-time basis while the owner is working full-time. This can mean a portion of the owner’s home, or the property that the home is situated on, is often used for business purposes. A common mistake made is for owners to […]

November 15, 2016
Tax

Home Office Deductions: What Substantiation Will the ATO Accept?

By: Steve Burnham Home office expense claims are subject to the same general substantiation requirements as other deductions – that is, records must be kept for five years. But in practice, full compliance with the substantiation rules may be difficult. It may be simple to keep a receipt for a printer purchased for a home […]

November 11, 2016
Tax

Modernising the Ato’s Existing Public Rulings

By: Steve Burnham The ATO has produced a large number of public rulings over many years. Although most are current, many have not been updated in a very long time. To address this situation it has announced a program of modernisation of its database of rulings under its new “advice under development” program. This initiative allows […]

October 29, 2016
Tax

Trusts Demystified

By: Steve Burnham A dictionary definition of a trust is: “A fiduciary relationship in which one person (the trustee) holds the title to property (the trust estate or trust property) for the benefit of another (the beneficiary).” Why create a trust? One of the big motivations will be to protect assets. Property and assets can be […]

October 22, 2016
Tax

Dasp Explained, and Where the Revised Backpacker Tax Fits

By: Steve Burnham Whether you’ve been on a working visa and have been slogging away bagging bananas in Tully for six months, or decided to quit your city job and move to Peru, your employer has been putting money aside for your superannuation. Among sorting out all your affairs, you’re probably also wondering what will happen […]

October 20, 2016
Tax

Top 10 Tips for First Time Lodgers

By: Steve Burnham The ATO says that last year about half a million Australians lodged a tax return for the first time, with a similar number if not more expected to lodge by the time the looming October 31 deadline arrives for getting your tax return in to the ATO. Of course given that close deadline, […]

October 18, 2016
Tax

5 Tips to Get Home Office Deductions Right

By: Steve Burnham Your client might be sick of the daily commute, or want more flexibility of hours – or it could be that they have a talent or skill that they trust will translate into a fulfilling career in their own business. Or it could just be that the idea of working from home seems […]

October 17, 2016