Blog
ATO Releases Latest Business Benchmarks
The ATO says that the 2013/14 data is now available for the 'Small business benchmarks'. The ATO uses these benchmarks as a guide on industry trends to identify businesses that may be avoiding their tax obligations by not reporting some or all of their income. The ATO says that usi ..
Warning to employers to withhold tax from some car allowances
The ATO has reminded taxpayers that, in relation to claiming car expenses, the one-third of actual expenses method and 12% of original value method were abolished from 1 July 2015. The cents per kilometre method now uses a standard rate of 66 cents per kilometre for all cars, rather than a r ..
Immediate deductibility of capital start-up expenses
From 1 July this year, new provisions apply to allow certain small businesses, or an entity that is not in business, to immediately claim some start-up costs, including business costs associated with raising capital. Claimable business-related start-up costs Expenses can be fully deduc ..
Registering an SMSF for an ABN
An SMSF cannot be registered if no assets are held. Therefore: If a member expects to receive a rollover, transfer or contributions in the near future, an SMSF can be established with a nominal amount (for example, $10). Once an ABN is issued, a bank account can be opened and the $10 deposite ..
More Tax Changes for Small Business
The government has introduced legislation for the following three small business measures that, if passed, will apply from 1 July 2015: A tax offset to individuals who run small businesses (with an aggregate annual turnover of less than $2 million), or who have a share of a small business’ inco ..
ATO warns over-claiming is easier to detect than ever
In relation to 2014/15 individual income tax returns to be lodged this year, the ATO says it will be focusing on: Unusually high work-related expense claims across all industries and occupations Expenses claimed that have already been reimbursed by employers Claims for private expenses such as ..
Government moves to get Single Touch Payroll right
Under Single Touch Payroll, employers’ accounting software will automatically report payroll information to the ATO when employees are paid. This will eliminate the need for employers to report employee-related Pay As You Go Withholding (PAYGW) in their activity statements throughout the yea ..
Guidance Regarding the Payment of Death Benefits
The Superannuation Complaints Tribunal, which can resolve disputes between large superannuation funds and their members, recently provided some guidance regarding the payment of death benefits from superannuation funds, possibly because the largest category of complaints the Tribunal determined ..
ATO Supporting Small Business to Implement SuperStream
As the SuperStream rollout for small businesses continues, the ATO claims that it is helping employers in select industries who need support implementing SuperStream. The ATO has also stated: "With only two quarters left until SuperStream becomes mandatory, now is a good time for employ ..
Reminder of small business tax cuts
The ATO has reminded taxpayers that, from 1 July 2015, a new two-tier company tax system took effect and applies to all companies. This system sees the whole of a company’s taxable income subject to the following rates: 28.5% if the company’s aggregated turnover is below a $2 ..
Recent Posts
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