Category: Income Tax
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Immediate Asset Write Off
I keep getting asked about the start date of the immediate asset write off reduction from $6.5k to $1k. People ask this because the first mining tax repeal bill had this measure applying from 1 January 2014 – but the bill was defeated in the Senate… But now some more clarity. In the MINERALS RESOURCE…
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Thin capitalisation is a thing of the past… For most
Thin capitalisation is one of those thing many of us learned to pass a tax exam, and have never thought of again. In summary (a very, very quick summary) if you decide to fund your Australian operation with lots of debt rather than equity, you might have to pay heaps of interest but the thin…
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UPEs and Division 7A…
Another discussion paper on how to solve the problem of UPEs and Division 7A has been released… And it is very very interesting. This discussion paper is by the Board of Taxation. And they suggest that a UPE to a corporate beneficiary should be excluded from Division 7A. But if you want a trust that…
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Increased tax rate starts now
Remember that from 1 July 2014 the Medicare Levy goes to 2% (from 1.5%) so the marginal tax rates all go up. And remember we are doing this to afford the NDIS… Raising $3.3 billion a year to “afford” a $9-14 billion a year program… Thanks greatest Treasurer in the world… But you don’t have…
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Clearing the Tax and Super Decks
Apart from the changes in the Mining Tax and Carbon Tax repeal bills (small business instant asset write off, carry back losses…), and the promise to remove the means testing of the private health insurance offset, the government only has a series of promises to do certain things the previous government announced. There are 37…
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Employee Benefit Trusts And “Deep Throat”
Many years ago I received a call from a very junior ABC journalist (her career has very much blossomed since the and she is now a household name). We met in a meeting room where I worked an she provided me with two private rulings – both about employee benefit trusts. The first was a…
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The purpose of Dividend Access Shares
I have been asked for as long as I have been working in tax about dividend access shares. I have lots of profits in company but the shares are owned by high taxed individuals. Sell the shares? But there is a whopping huge uncrystalised capital gains on the shares so this does not work. So…
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Adam, Eve and Family Trust Elections
In ATOID 2014/3 the Commissioner states that the individual specified in the Family Trust Election must be alive at the time the trustee of the trust makes the election. He comes to this conclusion after finding the term “individual” is not defined and takes a very loose analysis of the various dictionary definitions. So why…
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Cash to accruals gets taxed
In ATOID 2014/1 (http://law.ato.gov.au/atolaw/view.htm?docid=%22AID%2FAID20141%2F00001%22) the Commissioner considers the following facts… “The taxpayer carries on a business of providing services to clients. The taxpayer had previously accounted for the income of the business on a cash basis. Due to the nature and growth of the taxpayer’s business, the taxpayer decides it is more appropriate for the…
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The Commissioner and the good Samaritan
I am one of those Jesus freaks so when i hear about “good samaritan laws” – being those that compel a person to help or be penalised – i think they missed the whole idea of what made him good. That he was not compelled but did it out of love. Do you love the…
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