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Hands off our super

Many media reports are suggesting Bill Shorten the minister for Financial Services and Superannuation is about to raid the superannuation piggy bank to keep their promise of a budget surplus. (Labor is reportedly considering increasing superannuation tax) While it is prudent to ensure governments are run on budget over the business cycle it is very poor governments that try to achieve surplus at all cost. Superannuation is a great structure for building wealth for retirement see What is Super but many Australians are distrustful of the super system and constantly changing superannuation rules. I can certainly understand their distrust and confusion. Over the last number of federal labor budgets we have seen continuous tweeks to the system to help improve the budget bottom line.

  • Salary sacrifice contribution limit was $50,000 in 2007 for those under age 50 and $100,000 for those above age 50. The current [Read more…]

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Tax planning is essential to minimize your tax bill

It is no use getting to the accountant in September and asking them to save you tax. While they can claim all you’re entitled to, they can’t take advantage of things you could have done to reduce your tax.

There are a number of aspects to tax planning, including:

• Deferral of income
• Splitting of income to take advantage of lower tax rates and tax offsets
• Bringing forward expenses to the current tax year

We have broken tax planning down into 3 categories. [Read more…]

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Medical Tax offset

Did you know that you can claim your medical tax offset for medical expenses paid for or on behalf of dependants in your tax return? A medical tax offset can be claimed for you, your spouse, your children and even possibly an invalid relative.

The medical tax offset is calculated based on your net out of pocket expenses. That is your total medical expenses less any refunds that either yourself or your dependants have received or are entitled to receive. This includes refunds from both Medicare and your private health insurer.

You can claim the following for your medical tax offset: [Read more…]

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Education Tax Refund

Ensure you get the most back at tax time.

Eligible parents can claim the Education Tax Refund (ETF) in their individual tax returns. The ETF is a fully refundable tax offset that will be paid as part of your tax assessment. (For those not required to lodge an income tax return, a stand-alone claim form can be used).

The maximum you can claim is 50% of eligible expenses up to:

  • $780 for each eligible student in primary school – that is, a refund of up to $390
  • $1,558 for each eligible student in secondary school – that is, a refund of up to $779.

If the expenses exceed your refund for the financial year, you can carry forward the excess expenses from one year to the next, for one year only (as long as you are still eligible).

Eligible education expenses that you can claim include:

[Read more…]

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End of Year Tax Tips for 2010

The end of the tax year is fast approaching and many people scramble to reduce the dreaded tax bill. Paying money to the tax office that could have been used to benefit your own position can be painful, however there are still some last minute tax strategies that can help you and hopefully with effective tax planning for next year you can reduce your need to panic when June rolls around again. [Read more…]

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2010 Federal Budget

What does it mean for you?

Treasurer Wayne Swan released the Government’s third Federal Budget on Tuesday, 11 May 2010.  It has been reported to be a budget with a “few surprises”, however there is potentially a number of proposals that may impact you.

The proposed changes still need to be legislated before becoming effective, therefore the final form of these proposals may differ significantly. It is important to seek professional financial advice in relation to the impact these measures may have on your personal financial position.

The budget aims to return us to a surplus by 2012/2013 after a budget deficit for 2009/2010, estimated at $57 billion. [Read more…]

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50% Business Tax Break – Will it be of real benefit to your business?

A 50% tax break on a new car makes that new car sound like a bargain; it’s a very tempting offer. It also sounds like a great idea to reduce tax for small business owners. But when considering taking the government up on their offer, you really need to think about the real cost of the new car. Any new assets for your business can be a significant cost to your business, so buying one needs to be a purely business decision. [Read more…]

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