Posts by Luke Star
Uber drivers must register for GST
In Uber B.V. v FC of T, the Federal Court has held that services provided by an Uber driver constituted a supply of “taxi travel” for GST purposes. Accordingly, the driver was required to be registered for GST. The ATO have advised that ride-sourcing enterprises should: • keep records • have an ABN register for…
Read MoreATO warning on making R&D claims
The ATO and the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science (DIIS) have jointly released two new taxpayer alerts as a warning to taxpayers who incorrectly claim or deliberately exploit the research and development (R&D) tax incentive program. The alerts (TA 2017/2 and TA 2017/3) relate to particular issues identified in the building and construction industry…
Read MoreWorking holiday makers – employer registration extended
The ATO has announced that employer registration for working holiday makers has been extended to Tuesday 31 January. Working holiday makers are those with visa sub-classes 417 and 462. Employers of working holiday makers must register with the ATO. Once registered, a withholding rate of 15 per cent applies to the first $37,000 of a…
Read MoreHigh deductions on ATO’s radar
The ATO has issued a warning that it’s paying extra attention to taxpayers claiming higher than expected deductions for the 2015-16 income year. the ATO warns that taxpayers should ensure: • their claims are justified • they have not already been reimbursed for the expenses by their employer • they are getting good advice •…
Read MoreRenting out a room is rental income
With the rise of AirBNB and other sharing economy platforms, the ATO is reminding taxpayers that money they earn from renting out a room in their house is rental income for tax purposes. This applies to rooms rented by traditional means or through a sharing economy website or app. The ATO also states that if…
Read MoreGovernment backs down on “backpacker tax”
The government has announced that it has dropped its plan to introduce a 32.5 per cent tax (commonly referred to as the “backpacker tax”) on temporary working holiday makers. Instead, from 1 July 2017, working holiday makers will be taxed at 19 per cent from their first dollar earned, up to $37,000, with ordinary marginal…
Read MoreATO reminder – ensuring SMSF has active electronic service address
The ATO has reminded self managed super funds (SMSFs) that they now need to be able to receive SuperStream-compliant contributions. To do this, the following details need to be sent to employers: • SMSF Australian business number (ABN) • SMSF bank account details to receive the contributions • an active electronic service address to receive…
Read MoreGovernment proposes changes to super budget announcements
The government is proposing a number of changes to its super policy announcement from the May budget. The changes include: • replacing the proposed $500,000 lifetime non-concessional contributions cap with an annual non-concessional contributions cap of $100,000 (down from the current $180,000 cap). Individuals aged under 65 will be able to “bring forward” three years’…
Read MoreACCC warning against tax scams
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (the ACCC) is warning Australians to steer clear of tax scams, after more than $1 million has been reported lost to their “Scamwatch” already in 2016, with over 300 people reporting they lost money to tax scams in the first half of 2016. According to the ACCC, these scams…
Read MorePAYG and non-resident capital gains withholding
The Commissioner has issued a legislative instrument, F2016L01123 , to ensure that the correct amount of foreign resident CGT withholding tax is withheld where there is a sale of Australian property by multiple sellers and one of them is an Australian resident and at least one is a foreign resident. The PAYG amount must be…
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