Did you know you can reduce your income tax by making a personal tax-deductible contribution from your take-home pay to your super? This strategy may be particularly useful if you will be earning more income this financial year or if you have sold an asset this year and made a large capital gain.

For property developers (or would-be property developers) a recent decision of the Federal Court may be of interest.

Looking to boost your employees’ skills and your tax deductions at the same time? Then keep reading to see if you could be eligible for the small business skills and training boost!

The CGT small business concessions are invaluable to those who make a capital gain from a small business. They can eliminate a gain entirely; they can reduce a gain; and they can allow for the gain to be CGT-free if paid into a superannuation fund.

The ATO has issued a reminder around trademarks!

For background, a trademark legally protects your brand and helps customers distinguish your products or services in the market from others. Trademarks can be used to protect a logo, phrase, word, letter, colour, sound, smell, picture, movement, aspect of packaging or any combination of these. In short, they protect your brand, products and services.

There is no specific provision in the income tax legislation that allows a deduction for self-education expenses. Rather the expenditure falls for consideration under the general deductibility provision of Tax Act. In broad terms this allows for, but also limits, deductible expenses to those incurred in the course of earning assessable income. This requires a close nexus between the expenses incurred and assessable income: the expense must be incidental and relevant to the gaining of the assessable income.

The capital gains tax (CGT) discount can reduce a capital gain that you make when you dispose of (sell) a CGT asset that you have owned for 12 months or more by 50%.

I run a small business that requires me to travel quite a lot, particularly to country areas where I will often stay overnight. To save on accommodation costs, I have purchased a caravan. I have a business logo on the side of the caravan that is on display when I attend town shows and events. Will the costs of purchasing and maintaining my caravan be deductible in my individual income tax return?

The recent ATO crackdown on trusts will no doubt have some business owners asking themselves the question: Is this structure still the best option for my business?

For the first time, many Australians are finding themselves in a position where they are being told they owe the ATO money after completing their tax return this year.

Some employers, especially at Christmas time or for birthdays, give small gifts to their employees or the employee’s associates (i.e. spouses). These gifts typically take the form of bottles of wine, movie tickets, gift vouchers etc. The tax treatment of these gifts from an employer standpoint, depends upon a range of factors.

The ATO has issued a reminder for companies wishing to claim a tax offset for their R&D (research and development) activities. The reminder was issued in the context of the ATO’s success in the Federal Court decision T.D.S. Biz Pty Ltd v FCT (2023 FCA 710).

Since Budget night, the ATO has released more information around the small business lodgement amnesty…which can now be taken advantage of from 1 June 2023!

The amnesty was announced in the recent Budget. It applies to tax obligations that were originally due between 1 December 2019 and 28 February 2022 and runs from 1 June 2023 to 31 December 2023.

The ATO has just announced that the cents per kilometer rate has increased to 85 cents per kilometer for 2023/24.

With the end of the financial year on our doorstep, the ATO has announced its three key focus areas for 2022-23 Tax Time – rental property deductions, work-related expenses, and capital gains tax (CGT). To maximise your claims in this area and protect yourself from ATO audits and adjustments, be sure to keep the appropriate records.

Are you a self-funded retiree who does not qualify for the Age Pension? If you’ve answered yes, then help may be available for certain living expenses by way of the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card (CSHC).

Last month’s federal budget confirmed that temporary full expensing (TFE) is now in its final days.

To recap, TFE will cease and be replaced by a $20,000 instant asset write-off (IAWO) from 1 July 2023.

With the cost of living skyrocketing, have you taken up a side hustle? With new and emerging ways to make money, the ATO is reminding taxpayers to consider if they are ‘in business’ and to declare to their tax agent if they are engaged in a side hustle.