The Australian Tax Office has recently collaborated with industry representatives to develop a safe harbour for car fringe benefits. A safe harbour is a guideline that allows Australian businesses to make use of an efficient way to calculate tax where certain conditions are met. This particular safe harbour will simplify the approach for working out […]

Since superannuation forms one of a couple’s biggest assets, splitting superannuation after a separation can be a complex process. Superannuation is treated as property under the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth). Once a relationship ends, superannuation can either by split by agreement or court order. Generally, parties will try to negotiate an agreement between themselves […]

Tax offsets (also known as’rebates’) can directly reduce the amount of tax payable on a person’s taxable income. While claiming certain tax offsets can reduce a person’s tax payable to zero, on their own, they cannot create a tax refund. Here are three common types of tax offsets some individuals are eligible to claim: Health […]

Australians are required to meet a condition of release under superannuation law before they are allowed to cash preserved benefits, restricted non-preserved benefits or access any of their super. Some conditions of release restrict the form of the benefit or the amount of benefit that can be paid. These are known as ‘cashing restrictions’. The […]

The Australian Tax Office has warned small businesses that time is running out to start paying superannuation contributions in the new and mandatory electronic standard called SuperStream. SuperStream is the new mandatory way employers must make super contributions on behalf of their employees. It involves employers sending all super payments and employee information electronically in […]

Taking out a chattel mortgage to finance the purchase of a business vehicle is an attractive option for small business owners from a tax-saving perspective. A chattel mortgage is a mortgage on a movable item of property i.e. motor vehicles. A finance company lends money to a business to purchase a car, which the business […]