Education Tax Refund – no longer exists. The government has removed this initiative retrospectively and replaced it with the School Kids Bonus. The good news is that you no longer need to spend money and keep receipts for school items in order to be reimbursed 50% of the cost as the government are just going to hand out the money. Bad news for people who have already purchased items throughout the year that they really didn’t need. If you were planning on buying that new computer before 30 June just to get the education tax refund – don’t.
Flood Levy – is payable this year by certain taxpayers. The big insurance companies don’t like paying out so we all have to chip in.
Dependant Tax Offset – is being phased out. The reasoning is that the government want people back in the workforce and not at home. We suspect it is that they don’t like parting with their tax revenue.
Farm Management Deposits – some good news here if you have suffered from a natural disaster and received a Cat C Natural Disaster Assistance payment. Withdrawals within 12 months of deposit may not penalise you with a denial of your original deduction for the deposit. Check with us first for any fine print.
LITO gone for children – bad news for minors who receive unearned income e.g interest & trust distributions. The low income tax offset for minors in this situation has been abolished. Conditions apply so call us for further details.
SMSF auditor requirements – Have a Self Managed Superfund and concerned that the auditor your accountant uses to audit his/her work is not sufficiently independant? Check the SMSF tax return for auditor details including auditor number and professional body membership. Enquire with your accountant as to who they are using and confirm with regulatory bodies that they are professionally competent and registered with ASIC. You don’t want unqualified auditors checking over the work of your accountant (in some cases it is the same person! Big no no).
