It is possible to receive amounts that are not expected by the ATO to be included as income in your tax return. Although some of these amounts may be used in other calculations, and may therefore need to be included elsewhere in your tax return.

The ATO classifies the amounts that it doesn’t count as assessable into three different categories: Exempt income; non-assessable non-exempt income; and other amounts that are not taxable.

When you sell or otherwise dispose of real estate, the time of the event (when you make a capital gain or loss) is usually when one of the following occurs:

• You enter into the contract (the date on the contract), not when you settle. The fact that a contract is subject to a condition, such as finance approval, generally doesn’t affect this date.
• The change of ownership occurs if there is no contract – such as when a property passes to a beneficiary.

A lump sum payment in arrears is a payment you may receive that relates to earlier income years. The tax offset that can be utilised with these sorts of payments works to alleviate the problem of a taxpayer being expected to pay more tax in a year when a lump sum of back payments is received — where they would be disadvantaged by paying more tax than if the income had been spread over several income years.

The ATO knows that many business owners naturally help themselves to their trading stock and use it for their own purposes.

This common practice can occur in businesses such as butchers, bakers, corner stores, cafes and more.

It regularly issues guidance for business owners on the value it expects will be allocated to goods taken from trading stock for private use.