Are you ready for 30 June?
The end of financial year is upon us again and the team here at Advivo are already busy preparing Tax Planning and Forecasting for many of our monthly clients.
If you have a discretionary trust, you can expect to be contacted for clarification of your Trustee Distribution Resolutions as trust distributions are required to be decided upon and documented before 30 June.
Trust distributions and tax planning are often more complex than people understand. This is partially because strategies appropriate for some may be completely inappropriate for others, and vice versa. Most of our monthly clients require, and benefit from, tax planning strategies and forecasting pre-30 June. If you are an annual client you can still benefit from tax planning techniques and forecasting tailored specifically to the needs of you and your family/group. Please contact your Advivo partner or accountant if you would like to discuss potential tax planning opportunities further. Full Article
Employsure Update | Minimum Wage Increase
There has recently been press & litigation around paying staff correctly. Please see below article written by Employsure, if you are unsure please check Fair Work or get in touch with our office and we will put you in touch with Employsure.
The Fair Work Commission (FWC) has delivered its annual wage review. This decision will have a significant impact on all businesses and industries, and over 1.86 million employees who are paid at the national minimum wage or minimum modern award rates.
With effect from the first full pay period commencing after 1 July 2016:
- all modern award rates will increase by 2.4 per cent (with weekly wages rounded to the nearest $0.10)
- the national minimum wage will increase by 2.4 per cent to $17.70 per hour (and $672.70 per week for a full-time employee), an increase of $0.41 per hour
This decision does not affect the superannuation guarantee rate which will remain at 9.5 per cent. Full Article
Property Developers Face ATO Scrutiny
The ATO has warned property developers in the past against using trusts to return the proceeds from property developments as capital gains instead of income. The ATO said it has previously made adjustments to increase the net income of a number of trusts. It said there are penalties for those taxpayers found to be deliberately using special purpose trusts to mischaracterise the proceeds of property developments. Full Article
Wildly Excessive: Tax Deduction Claims Removed
Individuals can claim tax deductions for various expenses they incur in gaining or producing their assessable income. It’s important to critically analyse how these expenses help produce assessable income. If a dispute came before the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT), a taxpayer would need to prove a sufficient link to claim the expense. A recent case looked at, among other things, home office expenses. Full Article
Lifestyle Assets Used to Paint ‘Wealth Picture’
Data on insured lifestyle assets can help the ATO to paint a better picture of an individual’s wealth. The ATO has gazetted a notice announcing that it will acquire details of insurance policies for certain classes of assets, including marine vessels, enthusiast motor vehicles, thoroughbred horses, fine art and aircraft where the value exceeds nominated thresholds for the 2013–2014 and 2014–2015 financial years. Full Article
Disclaimer of Liability
Our firm provides the information in this e-newsletter for general guidance only, and does not constitute the provision of legal advice, tax advice, accounting services, investment advice, or professional consulting of any kind. The information provided herein should not be used as a substitute for consultation with professional tax, accounting, legal, or other competent advisers. Before making any decision or taking any action, you should consult a professional adviser who has been provided with all pertinent facts relevant to your particular situation. Tax articles in this e-newsletter are not intended to be used, and cannot be used by any taxpayer, for the purpose of avoiding accuracy-related penalties that may be imposed on the taxpayer. The information is provided “as is,” with no assurance or guarantee of completeness, accuracy, or timeliness of the information, and without warranty of any kind, express or implied, including but not limited to warranties of performance, merchantability, and fitness for a particular purpose.
