The rapid growth of contractors in Australia has prompted the ATO to review those arrangements where the ATO believes there may be a risk of employees being incorrectly treated as contractors. The ATO is concerned that some employers might be incorrectly classifying their employees as contractors in order to avoid having to pay PAYG Withholding, wo...
Superannuation Updates
26 June 2012
Are you receiving a pension from your SMSF? Consider Minimum Pension Payments.
Changes to the Business Name Register
26 June 2012
From 28 May 2012, a new online national business name register managed by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) replaced the state and territory registers.
Individual Income Tax Rates
26 June 2012
From 1 July 2012, the following marginal income tax rates will apply for the 2013 and 2014 income years for resident taxpayers:
Changes to the Private Health Insurance (PHI) Rebate
26 June 2012
As explained in our March 2012 newsletter, the changes to the PHI rebate mean that those taxpayers who earn more than $84,000 for singles or $168,000 for families, will be entitled to a reduced or no PHI rebate from 1 July 2012, depending on what income tier they fall into.
Federal Budget 2012/2013
11 May 2012
The Treasurer, Mr Wayne Swan, handed down the controversial 2012/2013 Federal Budget on 8 May 2012. The much vaunted promise to return the budget to surplus has been the key driver behind the changes which are expected to achieve a very slim $1.5 billion surplus for 2012/2013. Considering that the Government is currently in a position of approximat...
Changes to Medicare levy and private health insurance rebate
28 Mar 2012
The widely debated changes to the Medicare levy surcharge (MLS) and the private health insurance rebate became law in February and will apply from 1 July 2012. The new rules are based on a three tier system, as follows.
Personal Property Securities Register update
28 Mar 2012
The new Personal Property Securities Register ('PPSR') became live and operational on 30 January 2012 as foreshadowed in our December newsletter.
FBT year end to do list
28 Mar 2012
As the 2012 FBT year comes to the end on 31 March, it is now essential to ensure that you are ready to discharge your FBT obligations. Most importantly, the following information needs to be completed and available for the preparation of your 2012 FBT returns and also to keep in mind for future FBT years:
Increased asset and motor vehicle deductions for small business
28 Mar 2012
The legislation increasing the immediate asset write off threshold for small business from $1,000 to $6,500 has recently passed both houses. It will come into effect from 1 July 2012 and will allow small businesses to write off depreciating assets costing less than $6,500 n the year in which they start using the asset or have it installed ready for...