Latest ATO Targets- Is it YOU!

The ATO are clamping down on people who avoid paying tax and fees. They will not tolerate people who don’t follow the rules. Below are a list of current targets. If you are a foreign investor, plan to develop a property, have to pay super to employees or pay car allowances, then it is important to read more.

Clamp Down on Foreign Investors in Australia

Roy A. McDonald is located in Doncaster East and in Doncaster East and surrounding suburbs like Box Hill, Doncaster, Donvale there are a high number of foreign investors. If you are a foreign investor, this section is for  you.   

If you are a foreign investor or represent foreign investors and have bought property in Australia, there were changes to the foreign investment framework in December 2015. Fees now apply to all people who made a purchase of residential real estate on behalf of foreign investors. These applications are usually done by lawyers, conveyancers and real estate agents.

If you are knowingly avoiding paying the fee there will be penalties to breaches in foreign investment and real estate rules.

Planning to develop property?

We have a number of real estate developers and investors who are clients. One problem we’ve seen by some clients is not claiming and paying GST, thereby missing out on money rightfully yours.

Before you start investing in property you should look at the financial structure of your business. If you are set up as a trust/ and or corporate entity , did you know that if you build and sell new houses/ premises you pay GST on the sale? Of course, you can claim GST credits for other items including construction costs and purchases (like advertising) related to the sale. Before you start the build give us a call. It is important to understand your GST obligations especially if you are entitled to claim GST refunds. We have had multiple examples of significant GST refunds that the client was entitled to if they only had seen us months, and in some cases years earlier.

In summary, check with us before lodging your BAS. We can make sure you are not missing out on BAS or tax refunds and allocating money to the ATO for money that is rightfully theirs.

Stop Everything! Have you paid your employee’s Super?

How would you feel if the money you were required to retire on was not paid into your account ? Money that was legally yours? 

Remember superannuation is your money and is required by law to be paid by your employer. This is why we suggest you allow us to manage your super because then we can see what contributions have been made by your employer. If your super is run by an industry fund, it may be time to review who you are with.

If you are an employer, your employees super contributions were was due on the 28 January 2016. If you haven’t paid it, give us a call and we can liaise on your behalf to the ATO as there are significant penalties for non-compliance. We should also state fines of this nature are difficult at best to get reversed.You need to pay a minimum of 9.5% of all of your teams ordinary time earnings in super by the due date. This amount is counted as being paid only when it is reachs the super account. This is why is it best to pay before the 28^th of January  and all future due dates. Which are as follows: 28th April 2016, 28th July 2016 and the 28th October 2016.

Don’t get that V8 Car For Work

There used to be 3 rates for calculating the car allowance based on car size. Anyone who has a car bigger than 2.6 litre is potentially out of pocket by up to $500.00

Now there is just one flat rate of 66c. Since July 2015 any car allowance paid to employees over 66c per kilometre should now be taxed at your team members nominal rate. If you haven’t been doing this, you should begin to withhold tax on the amount you pay over 66c and advise the person concerned. The good news is if you haven’t started doing this, the impact to an employee will not be significant. However you should increase the withholding amount to cover the difference and the remainder of the financial year.

We hope this information is helpful in assisting you with any tax obligations you may have. Please don’t hesitate to call our office should you have any questions on 03 9848 5933.