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May 2023 Federal Budget

Budget 2023 – 2024 Summary

May 10th, 2023 Posted by Businesses, Federal Budget, Individuals, News, Superannuation No Comment yet

After the October Budget non-event we were looking forward to a more pro-active and interesting May 2023 Federal Budget.  

Just as is the case with many movie sequels, the May 2023 Budget was disappointing.  

The Government obviously wanted to test reaction to various measures by leaking the measures in advance to gauge what the community reaction would be.  Despite the Treasurer talking down the economy at every opportunity since taking the reins, the Budget should be in surplus this time next year.  This should not come as a shock given that we essentially have full employment (i.e. the number of available jobs compared to the number of unemployed is now 1:1), commodity prices for the best part of the 2022 financial year were at record highs and the tax payable on these profits has now been paid.

In our Budget Summary over the past 20 odd years we have focused on the changes that will impact clients from a taxation perspective.  This year is no different.  However, our Budget Summary is brief because there was not a lot for small business or individuals in the Budget.  The main points that we have taken from the Budget are as follows:

Superannuation Changes

1.1  

A few years ago the “non-arms length” income and expense provisions (NALI and NALE) within the Income Tax Assessment Act were tightened and made more complicated.  While the deferment of the application of these measures was welcomed the measures remain abstract and difficult for many to have a clear understanding of what is permissible and what is not permissible.  In our view the recent amendments should simply be abolished and we go back to a system that was much simpler and easier for everyone to understand.  As this will not happen the Budget provided the framework for further changes to the NALI/NALE provisions and these are:

  • Limiting income of SMSFs and Small APRA Funds that are taxable as NALI to twice the level of a general expense.  Fund income taxable as NALI will exclude contributions.
  • Large APRA Funds (i.e. industry funds) will be exempt from the NALI provisions for both general and specific expenses of the Fund
  • Expenditure that occurred prior to the 2019 income year will be exempt

Not surprising, industry funds are now exempt from these provisions given that the superannuation policies of this Government appear to be dictated by industry funds.

1.2  

Government is committed to introducing an additional 15% tax on notional/unrealised earnings on superannuation balances greater than $3.0m per person.  The Budget stated that only 80,000 people would be affected by the change.  However, the omitted to state that as the $3.0m threshold is not to be indexed that the number of people affected in the future will grow significantly.

1.3  

From 1 July 2026 employers will be required to pay their employees’ Superannuation Guarantee entitlements to the employees’ nominated superannuation fund on the same day as the employer pays the employees’ salaries and wages.  We think that this is actually a good measure as it should reduce the rate of delinquency of employees’ superannuation entitlements not being paid.


Personal Income Taxes

Again there was not a lot in the Budget in relation to personal income tax and using the tax system to provide some cost of living relief.  In relation to personal income taxes we note the following from the Budget:

2.1

The current marginal tax rates will remain in place until 30 June 2024 and these are:

ThresholdTax RateTax Payable ($)
0 – 18,2000%$0
18,201 – 45,00019%$0 + 19% of every dollar over 18,200
45,001 – 120,00032.5%5,092 + 32.5% of every dollar over 45,000
120,001 – 180,00037%29,467 + 37% of every dollar over 120,000
180,001+45%51,667 + 45% of every dollar over 180,000

If the Government does not make any changes to the existing proposed marginal tax rates from 1 July 2024 then the applicable marginal tax rates effective from that date will be:

ThresholdTax RateTax Payable ($)
0 – 18,2000%$0
18,201 – 45,00019%$0 + 19% of every dollar over 18,200
45,001 – 200,00030%5,092 + 30% of every dollar over 45,000
200,001 & above45%51,592 + 45% of every dollar over 200,000

2.2

 Increase in the Medicare Levy Low Income Thresholds

With effect from 1 July 2022 the Medicare Levy low income thresholds will be as follows:

Taxpayer Group Annual SavingsOld ThresholdNew ThresholdAnnual Savings
Single$23,365 $24,276$18.22
Family$39,402$40,939$30.74
Single – Seniors/Pensioners$36,925$38,365$28.80
Family – Seniors/Pensioners$51,401$53,406$40.10
For each dependant child/student add$3,619 $3,760$2.82

As you can see from the table above the annual savings will not make any impact on the cost of living pressure of those who need it the most.

The Low and Middle Income Tax Offset was not extended and this will cause individuals to be worse off by up to $1,500 this year.  Further, the Low Income Tax Offset was not adjusted and remains at a maximum of $700 for those on incomes below $37,500 or a lesser amount as the offset shades out between incomes of $37,501 and $45,000.  The Government could have used the Low Income Tax Offset as a means of ensuring that those who most need the cost of living assistance actually received the assistance.  Rather than introducing new schemes and further bureaucracy the Government could have simply increased the Low Income Tax Offset.


Small Business Support

The following Budget measures announced are supposed to assist small business:

3.1

Management of Tax Instalments and Improve Cash Flow

The Government has proposed to set the GDP Adjustment factor for PAYG Instalments and GST Instalments at 6% for the 2023/24 tax year and this is a reduction from the 12% that would have otherwise been applicable.  While this sounds wonderful because they have halved the GDP Adjustment Factor all it does is alter the calculation of the increase in the quarterly instalments.  Hence, as is the case with the Medicare Levy Low Income thresholds the actual dollar benefit for most small businesses will be insignificant.  For example, if a small business had an annual tax bill of $100,000, the change in the GDP Adjustment Factor means that instead of paying PAYG Instalments of $28,000 (being $100,000 x 1.12 divided by 4), they will now pay instalments of $26,500 (being $100,000 x 1.06 dividend by 4).  

How does this make a meaningful improvement to a small business’ cash flow?

Given the economic climate and the fact that business profits would decline over the next 12 months we would suggest that the best way from small businesses to manage their own cash flow will be to look to vary their quarterly PAYG instalments.  That is, we need to be pro-active in this area to ensure that we preserve cash flow for the business.  By reviewing the operating position of the company each quarter we can then calculate the quarterly PAYG instalment payable based on actual profit.  This will be a much more effective tool in managing your business’ cash flow than accepting a PAYG Instalment issued by the ATO with a reduced GDP Adjustment Factor.

3.2

$20,000 Instant Asset Write Off

Businesses with an aggregated annual turnover of less than $10.0m will be able to immediately write off the full cost of eligible assets costing less than $20,000 that are first used or installed for use between 1 July 2023 and 30 June 2024.

3.3

Small Business Energy Incentive

Businesses with an aggregated annual turnover of less than $50m will be eligible to deduct an additional 20% of the cost of eligible depreciating assets that support electrification and more efficient use of energy.  The maximum incentive is $20,000 and eligible assets will need to be first used or installed ready for use between 1 July 2023 and 30 June 2024.  Certain exclusions (such as electric cars) will apply.

3.4

Lodgement Amnesty Period – 1 June 2023 to 31 December 2023

A lodgement amnesty period will be provided for small businesses with an aggregated annual turnover of less than $10m to encourage them to bring their tax lodgements up to date.  Under the amnesty the ATO will remit all Failure to Lodge penalties.  The amnesty period will commence on 1 June 2023 and finish on the 31 December 2023.

Importantly, the Budget was silent on remission of General Interest Charges which indicates that general interest charges will be applied and collection enforced for any late payment of tax liabilities.


Travelling Overseas?

If you travel overseas from the 1 July 2024 the cost of your holiday will increase by $10 per person as the Government announced that the cost to depart Australia will increase from $60 per person to $70 per person.


Overall the Budget was a non-event as most measures were leaked or announced prior to the Budget being handed down. 


If you would like to discuss how the 2022 – 2023 Federal Budget may impact you please contact our office.

Budget 2022 - 2023 Summary

Budget 2022 – 2023 Summary

October 26th, 2022 Posted by Businesses, Federal Budget, Individuals, News, Superannuation No Comment yet

With all the rhetoric from the current Government about easing the cost of living expenses during and after the last election and how they have to manage an out of control budget deficit and an irresponsible level of Government debt, the first Budget of Jim Chalmers was a non-event.  We learn from the Budget that the Government debt will rise over the next four years, that the Budget deficit will fall and there is virtually no support to ease cost of living expenses unless you have a young family in need of child care or you spend a lot of money on pharmaceutical products.

We have been writing Budget summaries for well over 15 years and this will be the shortest summary we have ever prepared.  The following is a summary of the main points from the Budget that we consider to be noteworthy:

Superannuation

  • Downsizer eligibility age will be reduced to the age of 55.  This means that anyone who has owned their main residence for more than 10 years and who is 55 years or over will be able to make a contribution to their superannuation fund of $300,000.  While mentioned in the Budget the legislation to put this change through was introduced into Parliament on the 3 August this year.  While mentioned again in the Budget papers, it is not actually a Budget initiative.  The effective date will be the first day of the quarter following the provisions being passed through Parliament and receiving Royal Assent.
  • The previous Coalition Government announced that they would replace the annual audit requirement with a requirement to have a Self-Managed Superannuation Fund audited every 3 years for Funds that had a good history of compliance and record keeping.  Despite the fact that this would have been good for SMSFs in reducing costs the current ALP Government, in their infinite wisdom, has chosen to scrap this proposal. 
  • Residency rules relating to SMSFs (and Small APRA Funds) which were to extend the central management and control test safe harbour rules from two to five years and also remove the active member test have been deferred.  The new rules were to commence on 1 July 2022 but this has now been pushed out to a date when the relevant legislation receives Royal Assent.
  • The Government gave no indication on whether they would allow an amnesty period for pensioners to exit certain legacy pensions (such as market linked pensions, life-time expectancy pensions and life-time pensions).  This was a proposal by the previous Government that would be extremely useful for a number of self-funded retirees.  It is now a wait and see game as to whether the current Government will give this amnesty.
  • The current Superannuation Guarantee Charge (SGC) rate for 2022/23 tax year is 10.50%.  The Government will not interfere with the planned increases from the current rate of 10.50% to 12.00% by 1 July 2025.
2022/2310.50%
2023/2411.00%
2024/2511.50%
2025/26 & beyond12.00%

Individuals

  • The Stage 3 tax cuts proposed by the previous Coalition Government will, at this stage, proceed as planned.  This will mean that from 1 July 2024 the tax rates and tax brackets will be as follows:
$0 to $18,2000%$Nil
$18,201 to $45,000 19%$Nil + 19%
$45,001 to $200,000 30%$5,092 + 30%
$200,001 +45%$51,592 + 45%
  • A positive for seniors is that the eligibility income thresholds to receive a Commonwealth Seniors Health Card will increase.  Again, this is not actually a Budget measure but was included in the Budget paper.  The legislation for the change is currently before Parliament (introduced on the 27 July 2022) and the increases will take affect 7 days after the legislation receives Royal Assent.  The new income thresholds will be:
Singles$90,000Up from $61,284
Couples living together$144,000Up from $98,054
Couples separated by illness$180,000Up from $122,568

Business

  • The previous Coalition Government had planned to allow taxpayers to self assess the effective life of intangible depreciating assets.  The Budget included a statement that the ALP Government will not proceed with this measure which means that the relevant intangible assets may only be depreciated in accordance with the prescribed rates.
  • The Thin Capitalisation rules which place a restriction on the deductibility of foreign held debt will be amended.  The current rules that are based on a balance sheet approach will now be based on earnings test.  The deductibility of interest (i.e. debt related deductions) will be limited to 30% of profits using an EBITDA based measure of profit.  EBITDA refers to “Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation and Allowances”.  Any interest deduction denied as a result of applying these rules will be able to be carried forward to future years for up to 15 years.  It is proposed that these changes will take affect from 1 July 2023.
  • No Fringe Benefits Tax on electric vehicles acquired after 1 July 2022 that have a value less than the luxury car tax threshold (currently $84,916 for fuel efficient cars) .  Whilst not a Budget specific announcement, it was again referred to in the Budget.

Other

  • Another change that the Government is looking to introduce is to align the tax treatment of off-market share buy-backs undertaken by publicly listed companies with the tax treatment afforded to on-market share buy-backs.  In the past the off-market share buy-backs have allowed listed companies to undertake capital management programmes that enable them to buy shares back at a discount to their market value (typically a 14% discount) and use the tax system (in particular, franking credits) to more than make up for the discount selling price.  This has been a very good source of additional income for SMSFs and now looks like it will end. 

All in all the Budget was extremely disappointing.  As we wrote in our previous Budget Summary, there was a real opportunity to finally abolish Fringe Benefits Tax.  It is a tax that generates only marginally more than 1% of Government revenue and the cost to business is enormous.  With the hospitality and entertainment/leisure sector still recovering from two years of COVID there was a real opportunity to abolish FBT and encourage businesses to support these sectors and help them recover and generate more jobs (especially when they are now forecasting that unemployment rates will rise and the economy will slow down).


If you would like to discuss how the 2022 – 2023 Federal Budget may impact you please contact our office.

2022 - 2023 Federal Budget

The 2022 – 2023 Federal Budget

March 30th, 2022 Posted by Businesses, Federal Budget, Individuals, News, Superannuation No Comment yet

On Tuesday, 29 March 2022, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg handed down the 2022-23 Federal Budget.

In an election Budget, the Treasurer announced a range of cost of living measures, including a one-off $420 cost of living tax offset for low and middle income earners, and a $250 payment for pensioners and welfare recipients. The fuel excise will also be reduced by 50% for 6 months, starting from midnight on Budget night.

For small businesses, a Skills and Training Boost will provide a new 20% bonus deduction for eligible external training courses for upskilling employees from Budget night. In addition, businesses will receive a similar 20% bonus deduction for expenditure on digital technologies (eg cloud computing, eInvoicing, cyber security and web design) for investments of up to $100,000 per year.

We have summarised the key points related to individuals, businesses, and superannuation below:

Individuals

Low income offset – LMITO increased by $420 for 2021-22 (but not extended to 2022-23)

The low and middle income tax offset (LMITO) will be increased by $420 for the 2021-22 income year so that eligible individuals will receive a maximum LMITO benefit up to $1,500 for 2021-22 (up from the current maximum of $1,080).

This one-off $420 cost of living tax offset will only apply to the 2021-22 income year. Importantly, the Government did not announce an extension of the LMITO to 2022-23. So it remains legislated to only apply until the end of the 2021-22 income year (albeit up to $1,500 instead of $1,080).

The Government said the LMITO for 2021-22 will be paid from 1 July 2022 to more than 10 million individuals when they submit their tax returns for the 2021-22 income year. Other than those that do not require the full offset to reduce their tax liability to zero, all LMITO recipients will benefit from the full $420 increase. That is, the proposed one-off $420 cost of living tax offset will increase the maximum LMITO benefit in 2021-22 to $1,500 for individuals earning between $48,001 and $90,000 (but phasing out up to $126,000). Those earning up to $48,000 will also receive the $420 one-off tax offset on top of their existing $255 LMITO benefit (phasing up for incomes between $37,001 and $48,000) – see table below.

All other features of the current LMITO remain unchanged (including that it will only apply until the end of the 2021-22 income year). Consistent with the current LMITO, taxpayers with incomes of $126,000 or more will not receive the additional $420.

Low and middle income tax offset for 2021-22 (only)

Taxable income (TI)LMITO 2021-22 (current)LMITA 2021-22 (proposed)
$0 – $37,000$255$675
$37,001 – $48,000$255 + ([TI – 37,000] x 7.5%)$675 + ([TI – 37,000] x 7.5%)
$48,001 – $90,000$1,080$1,500
$90,001 – 126,000$1,080 – ([TI – 90,000] x 3%)$1,500 – ([TI – 90,000] x 3%)
$126,001 +NilNil

As noted above, the Government has proposed that eligible taxpayers with income up to $126,000 will receive the additional one-off $420 cost of living tax offset for 2021-22 on top of their existing LMITO benefit.

Currently, the amount of the LMITO for 2021-22 is $255 for taxpayers with a taxable income of $37,000 or less. Between $37,000 and $48,000, the value of LMITO increases at a rate of 7.5 cents per dollar to the maximum amount of $1,080. Taxpayers with taxable incomes from $48,000 to $90,000 are eligible for the maximum LMITO of $1,080. From $90,001 to $126,000, LMITO phases out at a rate of 3 cents per dollar.

Low income tax offset (unchanged)

The low income tax offset (LITO) will also continue to apply for the 2021-22 and 2022-23 income years. The LITO was intended to replace the former low income and low and middle income tax offsets from 2022-23, but the new LITO was brought forward in the 2020 Budget to apply from the 2020-21 income year.

Low income tax offset for 2021-22 and 2022-23 (unchanged)

Taxable income (TI)Amount of offset
$0 – $37,500$700
$37,501 – $45,000$700 – ([TI – $37,500] x 5%)
$45,001 – $66,667$325 – ([TI – $45,000] x 1.5%)
$66,668 +Nil

The maximum amount of the LITO is $700. The LITO will be withdrawn at a rate of 5 cents per dollar between taxable incomes of $37,500 and $45,000 and then at a rate of 1.5 cents per dollar between taxable incomes of $45,000 and $66,667

Personal tax rates unchanged for 2022-23; Stage 3 start from 2024-25 unchanged

The Low & Middle Income Tax Offset (LMITO) that was introduced for the 2020 tax year has been In the Budget, the Government did not announce any personal tax rates changes. The Stage 3 tax changes commence from 1 July 2024, as previously legislated. 

Resident rates and thresholds for 2022-23

The 2022-23 tax rates and income thresholds for residents (unchanged from 2021-22) are:

Taxable income ($)Tax Payable ($)
0 – 18,200Nil
18,201 – 45,000Nil + 19% of excess over 18,200
45,001 – 120,0005,092 + 32.5% of excess over 45,000
120,001 – 180,00029,467 + 37% of excess over 120,000
180,001+51,667 + 45% of excess over 180,000

Stage 3: rates and thresholds from 2024-25 onwards

The Stage 3 tax changes commence from 1 July 2024, as previously legislated. From 1 July 2024, the 32.5% marginal tax rate will be cut to 30% for one big tax bracket between $45,000 and $200,000. This will more closely align the middle tax bracket of the personal income tax system with corporate tax rates. The 37% tax bracket will be entirely abolished at this time.

Therefore, from 1 July 2024, there will only be 3 personal income tax rates – 19%, 30% and 45%. From 1 July 2024, taxpayers earning between $45,000 and $200,000 will face a marginal tax rate of 30%. With these changes, around 94% of Australian taxpayers are projected to face a marginal tax rate of 30% or less.

Resident rates and thresholds – from 2024-25 onwards

The Government has proposed that the existing tax residency tests for individuals will be replaced with a The tax rates and income thresholds from the 2024-25 for residents (as already legislated) are:

Taxable income ($)Tax Payable ($)
0 – 18,200Nil
18,201 – 45,000Nil + 19% of excess over 18,200
45,001 – 200,0005,092 + 30% of excess over 45,000
200,001+51,592 + 45% of excess over 200,000

Rates and thresholds – summary

Tax rates and income thresholds

Rate2021-222022-23 to 2023-24From 1.7.2024 (unchanged)
Nil$0 – $18,200$0 – $18,200$0 – $18,200
19%$18,201 – $45,000$18,201 – $45,000$18,201 – $45,000
30%N/AN/A$45,001 – $200,000
32.5%$45,001 – $120,000$45,001 – $120,000N/A
37%$120,001 – $180,000$120,001 – $180,000N/A
45%$180,001 +$180,001 +$200,001 +
Low and middle income tax offset (LMITO)Up to $1,500 (proposed)N/AN/A
Low income tax offset (LITO)Up to $700Up to $700Up to $700

Foreign residents

For 2022-23, the tax rates for foreign residents (unchanged from 2021-22) are:

  • $0 – $120,000 – 32.5%;
  • $120,001 – $180,000 – 37%;
  • $180,001+ – 45%.

For 2024-25 and later income years, the tax rates for foreign residents are:

  • $0 – 200,000 – 30%;
  • $200,001+ – 45%.

Working holidaymakers

For 2022-23, the rates of tax for working holiday makers (unchanged from 2021-22) are:

  • $0 – $45,000 – 15%;
  • $45,001 – $120,000 – 32.5%;
  • $120,001 – $180,000 – 37%;
  • $180,001+ – 45%.

For 2024-25 and later income years, the rates of tax for working holiday makers are:

  • $0 – $45,000 – 15%;
  • $45,001 – $200,000 – 30%;
  • $200,001+ – 45%.

Medicare levy low-income thresholds for 2021-22

For the 2021-22 income year, the Medicare levy low-income threshold for singles will be increased to $23,365 (up from $23,226 for 2020-21). For couples with no children, the family income threshold will be increased to $39,402 (up from $39,167 for 2020-21). The additional amount of threshold for each dependent child or student will be increased to $3,619 (up from $3,597).

For single seniors and pensioners eligible for the SAPTO, the Medicare levy low-income threshold will be increased to $36,925 (up from $36,705 for 2020-21). The family threshold for seniors and pensioners will be increased to $51,401 (up from $51,094), plus $3,619 for each dependent child or student.

Date of effect

The increased thresholds will apply to the 2021-22 and later income years. Note that legislation is required to amend the thresholds and a Bill will be introduced shortly.

COVID-19 test expenses to be deductible

The Budget papers confirm that the costs of taking a COVID-19 test to attend a place of work are tax deductible for individuals from 1 July 2021. In making these costs tax deductible, the Government will also ensure FBT will not be incurred by businesses where COVID-19 tests are provided to employees for this purpose.

Date of effect

The changes will take effect from 1 July 2021 (ie last year). It was previously announced on 8 February 2022: see 2022 WTB 6 [105].

The cost to revenue is stated to be “significant but unquantifiable”.


Businesses

Deduction boosts for small business: skills and training and digital adoption

The Government announced two support measures for small businesses (aggregated annual turnover less than $50 million) in the form of a 20% uplift of the amount deductible for expenditure incurred on external training courses and digital technology.

External training courses

An eligible business will be able to deduct an additional 20% of expenditure incurred on external training courses provided to its employees. The training course must be provided to employees in Australia or online, and delivered by entities registered in Australia.

Some exclusions will apply, such as for in-house or on-the-job training.

The boost will apply to eligible expenditure incurred from 7:30pm (AEDT) on 29 March 2022 until 30 June 2024.

The boost for eligible expenditure incurred by 30 June 2022 will be claimed in tax returns for the following income year. The boost for eligible expenditure incurred between 1 July 2022 and 30 June 2024, will be included in the income year in which the expenditure is incurred.

Digital adoption

An eligible business will be able to deduct an additional 20% of the cost incurred on business expenses and depreciating assets that support its digital adoption, such as portable payment devices, cyber security systems or subscriptions to cloud-based services.

An annual cap will apply in each qualifying income year so that expenditure up to $100,000 will be eligible for the boost.

The boost will apply to eligible expenditure incurred from 7:30pm (AEDT) on 29 March 2022 until 30 June 2023.

The boost for eligible expenditure incurred by 30 June 2022 will be claimed in tax returns for the following income year. The boost for eligible expenditure incurred between 1 July 2022 and 30 June 2023 will be included in the income year in which the expenditure is incurred.


Superannuation

Superannuation pension drawdowns – 50% reduction extended to 2022-23

The temporary 50% reduction in minimum annual payment amounts for superannuation pensions and annuities will be extended by a further year to 30 June 2023.

The 50% reduction in the minimum pension drawdowns, which has applied for the 2019-20, 2020-21 and 2021-22 income years, was due to end on 30 June 2022. However, the Government announced that the SIS Regulations will be amended to extend this temporary 50% reduction for minimum annual pension payments to the 2022-23 income year. Given ongoing volatility, the Government said the extension of this measure to 2022-23 will allow retirees to avoid selling assets in order to satisfy the minimum drawdown requirements.

Minimum drawdowns reduced 50% for 2022-23

The reduction in the minimum payment amounts for 2022-23 is expected to apply to account-based, allocated and market linked pensions. Minimum payments are determined by age of the beneficiary and the value of the account balance as at 1 July each year under Sch 7 of the SIS Regs.

Age of beneficiary (years)Standard percentage factor (%)Minimum drawdown for 2019-20 to 2021-22 (and 2022-23 proposed) (after 50% reduction)
0-6442
65-7452.5
75-7963
80-8473.5
85-8994.5
90-94115.5
95+147

No maximum annual payments apply, except for transition to retirement pensions which have a maximum annual payment limit of 10% of the account balance at the start of each financial year.

For the purposes of determining the minimum payment amount for an account-based pension or annuity for the financial years commencing 1 July 2019, 1 July 2020, 1 July 2021 (and 1 July 2022 proposed), the minimum payment amount is half the amount worked under the formula in clause 1 of Sch 7 of the SIS Regs. The relevant percentage factor is based on the age of the beneficiary on 1 July in the financial year in which the payment is made (or on the commencement day if the pension commenced in that year).

For market linked income streams (MLIS), the minimum payment amount for the financial years commencing 1 July 2019, 1 July 2020, 1 July 2021 (and 1 July 2022 proposed) must be not less than 45% (and not greater than 110%) of the amount determined under the standard formula in clause 1 of Sch 6 of the SIS Regs.

Super Guarantee no change to legislated rate rise to 10.5% for 2022-23

The Government introduced “Downsizer” contribution rules which allowed persons aged 65 or above to

The Budget did not announce any change to the timing of the next Super Guarantee (SG) rate increase. The SG rate is currently legislated to increase from 10% to 10.5% from 1 July 2022, and by 0.5% per year from 1 July 2023 until it reaches 12% from 1 July 2025.

With the SG rate set to increase to 10.5% for 2022-23 (up from 10%), employers need to be mindful that they cannot use an employee’s salary sacrificed contributions to reduce the employer’s extra 0.5% of super guarantee. The ordinary time earnings (OTE) base for super guarantee purposes now specifically includes any sacrificed OTE amounts. This means that contributions made on behalf of an employee under a salary sacrifice arrangement (defined in s 15A of the Superannuation Guarantee (Administration) Act 1992 (SGAA)) are not treated as employer contributions which reduce an employer’s charge percentage.

SG opt-out for high-income earners

The increase in the SG rate to 10.5% from 1 July 2022 also means that the SG opt-out income threshold will decrease to $261,904 from 1 July 2022 (down from $275,000). High-income earners with multiple employers can opt-out of the SG regime in respect of an employer to avoid unintentionally breaching the concessional contributions cap ($27,500 for 2021-22 and 2022-23). Therefore, the SG opt-out threshold from 1 July 2022 will be $261,904 ($27,500 divided by 0.105).


Other Measures

One-off $250 cost of living payment

The Government will make a $250 one-off cost of living payment in April 2022 to 6 million eligible pensioners, welfare recipients, veterans and eligible concession card holders.

The $250 payment will be tax-exempt and not count as income support for the purposes of any Government income support. A person can only receive one economic support payment, even if they are eligible under 2 or more of the categories outlined  below.

The payment will only be available to Australian residents who  are eligible recipients of the following payments and to concession card holders:

  • Age Pension
  • Disability Support
  • Pension
  • Parenting
  • Payment
  • Carer Payment
  • Carer Allowance (if not in receipt of a primary income support payment)
  • Jobseeker Payment
  • Youth Allowance
  • Austudy and Abstudy Living Allowance
  • Double Orphan Pension
  • Special Benefit
  • Farm Household Allowance
  • Pensioner Concession Card (PCC) holders
  • Commonwealth Seniors Health Card holders
  • eligible Veterans’ Affairs payment recipients and Veteran Gold card holders.

Temporary reduction in fuel excise

The Government will reduce the excise and excise-equivalent customs duty rate that applies to petrol and diesel for 6 months by 50%. The excise and excise-equivalent customs duty rates for all other fuel and petroleum-based products, except aviation fuels, will also be reduced by 50% for 6 months.

The Treasurer said this measure will see excise on petrol and diesel cut from 44.2 cents per litre to 22.1 cents. Mr Frydenberg said a family with 2 cars who fill up once a week could save around $30 a week or around $700 over the next 6 months. The Treasurer made a point of emphasising that the ACCC will monitor the price behaviour of retailers to ensure that the lower excise rate is fully passed on.

Date of effect

The measure will commence from 12.01am on 30 March 2022 and will remain in place for 6 months, ending at 11.59pm on 28 September 2022.

The measure is estimated to decrease receipts by $5.6bn, and decrease payments by $2.7bn over the forward estimates.

Apprentice wage subsidy support extension

The Budget confirms the Government’s earlier announcement to extend the Boosting Apprenticeship Commencement (BAC) and Completing Apprenticeship Commencements (CAC) wage subsidies by 3 months to 30 June 2022.

The Budget also includes funding over 5 years to introduce a new Australian Apprenticeships Incentive System from 1 July 2022 as further support to employers and apprentices in “priority occupations”.

Company registration and lifecycle management system to be modernised

The Government confirmed that Australia’s Business Registers (ie its company registration and lifecycle management system) will be moving to a modernised platform by September 2023. The reforms include:

  • removing the companies annual late review fee;
  • reducing the number of fees paid for ad hoc lodgements under current requirements;
  • removing fees for searches conducted on the new registry website; and
  • providing funding to Treasury to redesign wholesale business register search services (facilitated by third-party services).

First Home Guarantee Scheme: additional places announced

The Government has announced that it will expand the Home Guarantee Scheme in the 2022-23 Budget to make available up to 50,000 places each year, including 10,000 places for a new Regional Home Guarantee open to non-first home buyers.

Under the expanded Scheme, the Government said it will make available:

  • 35,000 guarantees each year (up from the current 10,000), from 1 July 2022 under the First Home Guarantee, to support eligible first homebuyers to purchase a new or existing home with a deposit as low as 5%;
  • 10,000 guarantees each year (from 1 October 2022 to 30 June 2025), under a new Regional Home Guarantee, to support eligible homebuyers (including non-first home buyers and permanent residents, to purchase or construct a new home in regional areas), subject to the passage of enabling legislation; and
  • 5,000 guarantees each year (from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2025) to expand the Family Home Guarantee to help eligible single parents with children to buy their first home or to re-enter the housing market with a deposit of as little as 2%.

Mr Frydenberg said the Home Guarantee Scheme seeks to ensure part of an eligible buyer’s home loan is guaranteed by the Government so they can buy a home sooner with a smaller deposit and without needing to pay lenders mortgage insurance.

Under the existing Scheme, eligible first home buyers can obtain a loan to build a new home or purchase a newly built home with a deposit of as little as 5%. The Scheme provides a Government-backed guarantee equals to the difference between the deposit and 20% of the purchase price. Applications can be made as part of the standard home loan application process through participating lenders.


If you would like to discuss how the 2022 – 2023 Federal Budget may impact you please contact our office.

Personal Insurances

Personal Insurances

March 15th, 2022 Posted by Insurance, News No Comment yet

When someone mentions personal insurance whether that be life insurance, total & permanent disability insurance (TPD), critical illness (trauma) insurance or income protection insurance many will run for the hills as the perception of many is that personal insurance is a waste of money and if I did have a claim, it would not be paid.

The truth of the matter is that insurances are an important pillar of your financial wellbeing and that most legitimate claims are paid.

Insurance has a purpose and that purpose is to simply provide you, your partner and your family with financial protection should you suffer an injury or illness that resulted in a fatality, a permanent disability or a terminal illness.  A severe health issue or even a diagnosis of a illness can have significant financial impact on you and your family.  You can go from a situation where you and your family are comfortable to struggling.  The questions that you need to be asking yourself include:

  • If I can no longer work because of health issues, can I maintain mortgage repayments and cover the day to day bills and costs that I currently incur?  If yes, for how long?
  • How can I afford to repay any debts?  Do I have to sell assets to be able to repay debts?
  • If I were to pass away, what does the financial position of my family look like?  Are they able to maintain current lifestyle?  Are the children able to continue to attend the same schools? Will my partner have enough assets to be comfortable in retirement?
  • If I were to become totally and permanently disabled, how do we repay the debt, how do we cover the mortgage repayments, how do we afford the additional medical attention and potential caring costs now and into the future?

How many times do you hear on the news of a tragic accident where someone has passed away and left a family with virtually nothing.  A “go fund me” page may raise some money but it will never be enough.  You cannot rely on your parents to fund you and your family as they have their own retirement to fund.  Unless you win Tattslotto, insurance is the answer.  Insurance enables you to transfer the financial risk of something happening to you to a third party and it is this insurance that will financially protect you and your family.

Insurances should be taken out at the right stage of life and not all insurances are always appropriate for everyone.  Certain events during your life are milestone events that should prompt you to either obtain insurance or have any existing insurances reviewed.  Such life events would include:

  • Buying a house and having a mortgage
  • Marrying or living with your partner
  • Having a child

Following is a brief description of the different forms of insurance and how they can be used to provide financial protection to you and your family:

1. Life Insurance

Life insurance provides financial protection for your partner and children in the event that you pass away prematurely.  Most life insurance policies will also include a terminal illness definition that allows you to access your life insurance in situations where you have been diagnosed with a terminal illness and the prognosis is that it is likely that you will pass away within a period of time defined within the policy (usually 12 months to 24 months depending on the insurer).  This terminal illness clause is important as it can give you and the family time to financially prepare for your death.

You should have life insurance if you have debts and if you have a family.  In general terms, the amount of cover should be at a minimum the amount of the debt.  The level of life insurance cover should cover debts, school fees and 10 years of your income replacement (after tax).  Ideally, you would also factor in an amount to ensure that your partner was able to maintain a comfortable lifestyle in retirement.

If you do not have a partner and/or your children are now adults then it is likely that you no longer need life insurance.

2. Total & Permanent Disability Insurance (TPD)

TPD insurance provides financial protection to you and your family in the event that you suffer an illness or injury that leaves you totally and permanently disabled and are unable to work.  TPD insurance may assist you and your family in covering medical and rehabilitation expenses together with ongoing day to day expenses.  Whether you are considered to be totally and permanently disabled will depend on the TPD definition that you are insured under.  There are three TPD definitions that you could be insured under and these are:

  1. Own Occupation Definition

Own occupation TPD refers to a TPD policy that covers your inability to work in your usual occupation or your field of employment.  Generally this means the job you are currently working in.  You can make a claim on your policy even if you can work in a different field.

  1. Any Occupation Definition

Any occupation TPD refers to a TPD policy that covers your inability to work in any job or role that is suited to your education, training and experience.

  1. Activities of Daily Living (ADL) Definition

ADL include the following activities:

i.        Bathing – the ability to shower and bathe

ii.       Dressing – the ability to put on and take off clothing

iii.      Toileting – the ability to get on and off and use the toilet or caring for a stoma or catheter

iv.       Mobility – the ability to get in and out of bed and a chair

v.        Feeding – the ability to get food from a plate into the mouth

To make a claim you need to be unable to perform at least three of the five ADL set out above. 

TPD insurance is one of the more important forms of insurance as a TPD event could impact anyone, anytime.  Without sounding morbid, the reality is that a TPD event is financially worse than a death because you will have ongoing medical and carers costs to deal with for a number of years being the remaining lifespan of the affected person.  As such, we believe everyone should have a certain amount of TPD cover.  This includes those in their twenties who are just starting out in the work force, those who are single, those who are have partners and families and those who are coming to the end of their working life who are not yet debt free or financially independent.

3. Critical Illness (Trauma) Insurance

Critical illness insurance gives you a level of financial protection in the event that you become critically ill or injured.  A lump sum payment gives you the ability to access medical treatment (either in Australia or overseas), cover rehabilitation expenses and potentially reduce your hours of work to focus on your recovery.  In the event that your diagnosis was terminal, the lump sum payment could then be used to assist in creating lasting memories with your loved ones and perhaps being able to fulfil some of your “bucket list” items.

The main critical illness events that are covered include head trauma, stroke, heart attack and cancer.  There are many others listed in the policy but these are the major recurring basis on which claims are made.

4. Income Protection Insurance

Income protection insurance is important in that it will typically provide you with an income replacement of between 75% and 60% of your salary in the event that you are ill or injured and the recovery period is greater than your specified waiting period.  If you or a partner were off work for an extended period of time and unable to financially support your current lifestyle and household expenses then you should be looking at income protection as a means of financially protecting yourself (and your family).

You may buy a car or a house and one of the first things that you will do is make sure that you insure the car or house.  You do this because the car and/or house is a significant asset.  However, the question is how do you continue to afford to cover mortgage and cover day to day living expenses if you are unable to work.  As an example, ignoring the time value of money, if you are 35 years age and you intend to retire at age 65, if you suffer a debilitating illness or injury and can no longer work again you are forgoing 30 years of paid employment.  Without income protection you may receive Centrelink benefits but these will give you a very basic existence.  If you were earning $80,000 and you were to receive an income payment of 60% of your salary to age 65 this would represent a total pre-tax payment to you of $1.440m (being $48,000 x 30 years).  A more extreme example is if you are earning $180,000 per annum.  A 60% benefit payment would give you $108,000 pre-tax for 30 years or a total pre-tax payment over that period of $3.24m.  

Can you and/or your family afford to completely lose your salary?  In most cases the answer is a definite no.

5. Structuring Insurance

In general, the structure of the policy ownership will be dependent on three factors.  The first is cash flow, the second is the purpose of the insurance and the third is tax efficiency.

To preserve cash flow you may wish to structure the insurance policies in a manner that will minimise your personal cash outflow.  Where this is a priority you would structure the policy such that it is owned by a superannuation fund.  A superannuation fund can own and pay the premiums on the following insurances:

  • Life insurance
  • TPD (any occupation definition)
  • TPD (Activities of Daily Living definition)
  • Income Protection

The second reason relates to the purpose of the insurance.  For example, if the insurance is put in place as a result of a buy/sell agreement and succession plan arrangement then you may have the policy owned by the individual or the entity.  Where the insurance is purely personal and you have a spouse/de facto/partner then using a superannuation fund to own the policy is an option because the proceeds from the policy could pass to the spouse/de facto/partner tax free.  Where the beneficiaries are likely to be adult children then it is likely that the ownership of the policy would be better in the name of the individual as opposed to a superannuation fund.

The third factor to consider is tax efficiency.  Life and TPD insurance premiums are only tax deductible to a superannuation fund.  Income protection insurance premiums are tax deductible to you if you own the policy in your name and will also be tax deductible to a superannuation fund if the Fund is the owner of the policy.  However, as the individual is likely to have a higher annual tax rate on the last dollar of income derived, it is more tax efficient to hold the policy personally and claim the deduction in your own name. 


Please contact us today if you would like to discuss your insurance needs or any other financial matter: contact our office.

Superannuation Update

February 21st, 2022 Posted by News, Superannuation, Superannuation Update No Comment yet

1. Contribution Rules

Currently, if you are between 67 and 74 years of age your ability to make superannuation contributions is subject to you being able to satisfy the work test.  The work test requires you to work, for reward, for 40 hours in a 30 day consecutive period.  

With effect from 1 July 2022 persons aged 67 to 74 will be able to make non-concessional superannuation contributions without having to meet the work test.  The ability to take advantage of these new rules will be dependent on your Total Super Balance (TSB).  That is, if the total value of your superannuation benefits exceed an amount of $1.7m then you will not be able to make non-concessional contributions to any superannuation fund.  The second constraint is the non-concessional superannuation contribution caps.  At present the annual non-concessional cap is $110,000.  However, subject to your Total Super Balance, you may be able to use the “Bring Forward” rule which allows you to make a contribution of between $110,001 and $330,000 in a single year.

This is a significant change to the superannuation contribution rules and will allow the following to happen for those aged between 67 and 74 (who would previously not have been able to meet the work test):

a. Non-Concessional Contributions

For those aged between 67 and 74, from the 1 July 2022 you will be able to make non-concessional contributions to your superannuation provided that you are under the Total Super Balance cap of $1.7m as at 30 June the previous tax year and you have not already fully utilised your annual non-concessional superannuation contribution cap for the year (unless you have unused bring forward contributions available).

This can be an important strategy for individuals and/or couples with savings or investments outside of superannuation and looking to minimise tax on income or looking to simplify their financial affairs by having the majority of their assets within a concessionally taxed environment.

b. Withdrawal and Re-Contribution Strategy

Your superannuation entitlements consist of one or more of the following components:

i.  Tax Free component – when passed out of super to a partner or children, this component retains its tax free nature

ii.  Taxable Component – the taxable component is broken down between a taxed element (being the amounts where the 15% contributions tax has already been paid) and an untaxed element (where tax has yet to be paid on this amount)

As mentioned above, on your passing the tax free component will be paid out to either a partner or your children tax free.  In contrast, the taxable component will only be paid out tax free if paid to your spouse/partner or to a person who is considered to be financially dependent on you (and there is evidence to support that dependency).  When the taxable component is paid to your children or grandchildren, they will be taxed on this amount at a rate of 15% if the amount has been classified as “Taxable – taxed element” or 30% if the amount has been classified as “Taxable – untaxed element”.

Many will have a large percentage of their superannuation entitlements classified as a Taxable – Taxed Element.  Where the superannuation ends up in the hands of your children then this taxed element will be taxed at 15% in their hands.  While we do not have a death tax in Australia, this could be considered to be a form of death tax.

You are able to look to minimise this taxable – taxed element through implementing a “Withdrawal and Re-Contribution Strategy”.  This strategy simply involves you withdrawing a lump sum from your superannuation fund and then making a contribution of the same or a similar amount back to the Fund.  Why does this “withdrawal and re-contribution strategy work?  It works because the lump sum withdrawal does not attract any tax because you are over 60 years of age, have satisfied a Condition of Release and no tax is payable on the taxable – taxed element withdrawn from the Fund.  When the amount is recontributed to the Fund, because you are not seeking to claim a tax deduction for the non-concessional the amount is classified as a tax free component within the Fund.  Hence, you have converted what was previously a taxable – taxed element amount to a tax free element.  

For example, let’s assume that you are 68 years of age, have no tax free components within your superannuation (i.e. 100% of your superannuation entitlements were taxable), your total superannuation balance is $500,000 and you withdraw $100,000.  You then recontribute that $100,000 to your Fund.  The benefits of doing this are as follows:

a. The $100,000 is withdrawn with no tax payable by you because you have satisfied a Condition of Release

b. The $100,000 is recontributed as a non-concessional contribution and no tax is payable by the Fund on receipt of this contribution

c. The breakdown of your superannuation benefits is now $400,000 taxable – taxed element and $100,000 tax free element

d. The tax payable by your children if you passed away and they were to receive your superannuation would be 15% on $400,000 instead of 15% on $500,000.  A tax saving for your children on $15,000 (being $100,000 x 15%)

Hence, this withdrawal and recontribution strategy is essentially an estate planning tool because the beneficiary of the strategy will ultimately not be you but your children.


2. Downsizer Contribution Rules

If you sell your home you may be able to make a contribution to your superannuation fund of up to $300,000 where you satisfy all of the eligibility criteria.

As a result of the Treasury Laws Amendment (Enhancing Superannuation Outcomes for Australians and Helping Australian Business Invest) Bill 2021 being passed by both Houses of Parliament and the formality of awaiting Royal Assent for the Bill to become law we note that with effect from 1 July 2022 the minimum eligibility age for making a downsizer contribution will fall from 65 years of age to 60 years of age.  It is important to note that it is your age at the time of making the Downsizer contribution rather than your age at the time of selling or settling the sale of your home.  

The eligibility rules regarding the making of a downsizer superannuation contribution are as follows:

a. From 1 July 2022 you are 60 years of age or older at the time you make a downsizer contribution (or 65 years of age or older if making the contribution on or before 30 June 2022)

b. Your home was owned by you or your spouse/partner for 10 years or more prior to the sale.  Note that the ownership period is calculated from the date of settlement of purchase to the date of settlement of sale (not contract dates)

c. Your home is in Australia (and is not a caravan, houseboat or other mobile home)

d. The proceeds from sale are either fully exempt or partially exempt from capital gains tax under the “Main Residence Exemption” or would be had the home not been acquired prior to the 20th September 1985.

e. You provide your superannuation fund with the Downsizer Contribution into Super form either before or at the time of making the downsizer contribution

f. You make your downsizer contribution with 90 days of receiving the proceeds of sale

g. You have not previously made a downsizer contribution to your super from the sale of another home or from the part sale of your home.

Where you are selling your property and you would be eligible to make a downsizer contribution you should consider making the full downsizer contribution as the money is received within the fund as a tax free component.  Where you have a taxable – taxed element component the strategy is to make the downsizer contribution and then withdraw a lump sum from your superannuation account that has a taxable – taxed element component.  As with the Withdrawal and Recontribution strategy suggested above, the use of the downsizer contribution to improve the tax free component of your superannuation and withdrawing the money to then cover the cost of the money needed to buy your next property allows you to improve the tax efficiency of passing money to the next generation directly from your superannuation.


3. Increasing the First Home Super Saver Scheme (FHSSS) Releasable Amount to $50,000

The FHSSS was initially introduced with effect from 1 July 2017.  Under the scheme a person can make a concessional or non-concessional superannuation contribution and then apply to the ATO for  release authority that allows you to withdraw up to a specified amount of your concessional and/or non-concessional contributions and use this as a contribution towards paying for your first home.  

Under the FHSSS an eligible person is able to withdraw a maximum of $15,000 per annum of the voluntary contributions (either concessional or non-concessional) made in any one financial year.  At present the maximum amount that can be released is $30,000.  However, from 1 July 2022 the maximum amount that can be released will be increased from $30,000 to $50,000.

This means that some planning is required to take advantage of the FHSSS.

With the new maximum withdrawal amount of $50,000 you will need at least 4 years of contributions to maximise the amount to be withdrawn (remembering that the maximum amount that can be withdrawn each year is $15,000). 

If you are looking to buy your first home or your children are looking to buy their first home you should consider whether the FHSSS would be worthwhile.  Given that interest rates are low at present and that any income derived from bank accounts or term deposits would be taxed in the name of an individual it can be tax efficient to make a superannuation contribution each year and then when you need to access the money, apply to the ATO for a release authority.

Example

Joe is 24 years of age and he earns $60,000 per annum gross.  Tax on $60,000 is $11,167 leaving Joe with an after tax salary/wage of $48,833.  If Joe was to make a $15,000 superannuation contribution to his super fund and claims a tax deduction for this he reduces his taxable income from $60,000 to $45,000.  His tax liability then reduces from $11,167 to $5,992 which is a tax saving of $5,175.  His superannuation fund will have an amount of tax to pay on the $15,000 contribution and this tax is $2,250 (being $15,000 x 15%).  Hence, the overall net tax savings is $2,925.

If Joe was to do this for four years then his personal tax savings would be $20,700.  To this Joe would then also be able to withdraw a maximum of $50,000 (being the $15,000 concessional contribution less tax paid of $2,250 multiplied by 4 years of contributions).  Hence, in 4 years Joe would have effectively saved $20,700 from tax savings and he would be able to withdraw $50,000 from super for a total of $70,700. 

Hence, this can be a useful strategy for people saving for their first home, for parents wanting to assist their children or grandchildren getting into the property market.


If you would like to discuss any areas raised in this newsletter please contact our office.

BW 2021 - 2022 Federal Budget Final

The 2021 – 2022 Federal Budget

May 12th, 2021 Posted by Businesses, Federal Budget, News, Superannuation No Comment yet

Individuals

The 2021 – 2022 Federal Budget was handed down last night and it has been described as a labour style Budget given the level of spending.  What does the Budget mean for you as an individual?  Below are the main items that will impact you from a taxation perspective:

a. Resident Individual Marginal Tax rates

The changes to marginal tax rates arose from prior year Budgets so the announcement last night was simply a reinforcement that the tax cuts announced in the 2019 and 2020 Budgets will remain and be implemented according to the time table previously announced.  The personal marginal tax rates for resident individuals are as follows:

For the years ending 30 June 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 are:

$0 – $18,200Nil
$18,201 – $45,000 Nil + 19% of the excess over $18,200
$45,001 – $120,000$5,092 + 32.5% of the excess over $45,000
$120,001 – 180,000$29,467 + 37% of the excess over $120,000
$180,001 & over$51,667 + 45% of the excess over $180,000

For the years ending 30 June 2025 and beyond the resident individual marginal tax rates are:

$0 – $18,200 Nil
$18,201 – $45,000Nil + 19% of the excess over $18,200
$45,001 – $200,000  $5,092 + 30% of the excess over $45,000
$200,001 & over $51,592 + 45% of the excess over $200,000

b. Non-Resident Marginal Tax Rates

The marginal tax rates for non-resident individuals for the period 1 July 2020 through to 30 June 2024 are:

$0 – $120,000  32.5%
$120,001 – 180,000$39,000 + 37% of the excess over $120,000
$180,001 & over $61,200 + 45% of the excess over $180,000

The marginal tax rates for non-resident individuals for the period 1 July 2024 and beyond are:

$0 – $200,000 30%
$200,001 and over $60,000 + 45% of the excess over $200,000

c. Low & Middle Income Tax Offset (LMITO)

The Low & Middle Income Tax Offset (LMITO) that was introduced for the 2020 tax year has been extended for an additional tax year and will now be with us until 30 June 2022.  

For those taxpayers with a taxable income of less than $37,000 the LMITO is capped at $255 and there are shading in provisions for those with taxable incomes  between $37,001 and $48,000.

Those taxpayers whose taxable income is between $48,001 to $90,000 the LMITO is capped at $1,080.  There are shading out provisions for those on income between $90,001 and $126,000.  Any taxpayer with a taxable income greater than $126,000 will not be entitled to the LMITO.

d. Low Income Tax Offset (LITO)

The Low Income Tax Offset (LITO) remains unchanged from what was announced in the 2020 Budget.  Eligibility to receive the LITO works as follows:

  • If your taxable income is $37,500 or lower, the LITO is $700
  • If your taxable income is between $37,501 and $45,000 the LITO is calculated using the formula $700 – ([Taxable Income – $37,500] x 5%)
  • If your taxable income is between $45,001 and $66,668 the LITO is calculated using the formula $325 – ([Taxable Income – $45,000] x 1.5%)
  • If your taxable income is greater than $66,668 you are not eligible to receive the LITO

e. Child Care Subsidies

With effect from 1 July 2022 (i.e. not next financial year but the following year) the child care subsidy available to families with more than one child aged 5 and under in child care will increase by 30% for the second and third child.  In addition, the Government has mandated to remove the $10,560 cap on the Child Care Subsidy.

f. Primary Residency Test for Individuals

The Government has proposed that the existing tax residency tests for individuals will be replaced with a primary test whereby a person who is physically in Australia for at least 183 days in any income year will be considered to be an Australian tax resident for that income tax year.  If an individual were to fail the 183 day test then there will be a secondary test that will be more objective and will be based on a combination of physical presence in Australia and other criteria.  Based on case law this secondary test will be based on the individual facts of that individual.

g. Employee Shares Schemes

Under the existing rules for employee share schemes (ESS) an employee who defers the taxing point on any employee shares when granted is taxed at a future point in time.  Termination of employment is an event that causing the taxing point on the employee shares to be incurred.  The Government has announced that they will remove termination of employment as a potential taxing point.  Under the new rules the taxing point can extend beyond termination of employment to the earliest of:

  • For shares – when they are no longer subject to a real risk of forfeiture and/or have no genuine sales restrictions
  • For rights/options – after the exercise of the options where the shares are no longer subject to a real risk of forfeiture and/or genuine sales restrictions

There will be a maximum deferral period of 15 years from the date the shares/options were granted.


Businesses

As we said in our 2020 Federal Budget newsletter last year, the Government missed an opportunity to assist the hospitality and entertainment sectors by not abolishing the Fringe Benefits Tax regime (FBT).  As FBT only accounts for approximately 1% of the Government’s revenue it would have been an opportunity to promote economic activity in that sector.  This Budget was also a missed opportunity for these sectors especially when you consider the number of small businesses that could be positively affected.  While businesses and employees may take advantage of the removal of the FBT regime, the solution may be to exempt meal and entertainment fringe benefits up to a limit based on a percentage of turnover/sales. 

There was not much in the Budget for small to medium sized businesses.

The following is a summary of what we believe to be the main announcements that will affect businesses:

a. Temporary Full Expensing of  Depreciable Equipment until 30 June 2023

The full expensing of depreciable equipment has been extended by 12 months such that it will now cease on the 30 June 2023 (rather than 30 June 2022).

Eligible businesses are able to deduct the full cost of eligible depreciating assets acquired after 6 October 2020 and first used or installed ready for use by 30 June 2023.

b. Temporary Loss Carry-Back Rules Extended to 30 June 2023

The Government announced that the temporary loss carry-back rules will be extended for a further 12 months such that the loss carry-back rules can be used up until the 2023 tax year.

Companies with an aggregated annual turnover of less than $5b can carry back losses incurred in an eligible tax year against profits derived in a previous tax year to generate a taxable refund.  Tax losses incurred by an eligible business in the 2020, 2021, 2022 and/or the 2023 tax year can be offset against previously taxed profits as far back as the 2019 tax year.

The loss carry-back provisions cannot be accessed if the utilisation of these rules would cause a company’s Franking Account to go into deficit.  If you choose not to utilise or are not in a position to utilise the carry-back loss provisions then the losses incurred will continue to be carried forward and available to be used subject to the normal provisions regarding the recoupment of prior year tax losses.

c. Superannuation Guarantee Charge

  • Under the current rules, if an employee does not earn at least $450 in a month, the employer is not required to make any superannuation contributions on that employee’s behalf.   Last night the Government announced that it will remove this minimum income threshold.  This means that employers will now have to pay the Superannuation Guarantee Charge (SGC) for all employees irrespective of the amount earned in a particular month.
  • There was no change to the previously legislated SGC rates.  This means that from the 1 July 2021 the SGC rate payable by employers will increase from 9.5% to 10%.  This rate will then continue to increase each year by 0.5% until it reaches 12% for the 2026 tax year.

Superannuation

At first glance there did not seem to be much in the budget in relation to superannuation.  However, there are some key changes announced that will assist clients and these are:

a. Repealing the Work Test for Voluntary Contributions

At present if a person aged 67 to 74 wishes to make a non-concessional contribution to superannuation they are unable to do so unless they satisfy the work test which requires that person to have worked, for reward, for a minimum of 40 hours in a 30 day consecutive period.  The Government announced in the Budget last night that they would remove the work test for those aged 67 to 74 so these people can continue to make non-concessional superannuation contributions.

Importantly, the existing contribution caps remain and you must ensure that any contributions are within the existing caps.  The non-concessional cap for 2021 is $100,000 per person and for the 2022 tax year and beyond this non-concessional cap will increase to $110,000.

b. Changes to Residency Rules

Presently if you are a member of a SMSF and you temporarily relocate overseas you have a two year window in which you can continue to manage your superannuation fund without breaching the residency rules.  After the two years has expired, if you wish to maintain the self managed superannuation fund (SMSF) you must appoint an attorney (having been appointed under a Power of Attorney) to take your place as the individual trustee or the director of the corporate trustee.

The Government announced in the Budget that this 2 year residency test will be extended to 5 years.  This is a welcome change and hopefully will be enacted shortly.

c. Reducing the Age for Downsizer Contributions

The Government introduced “Downsizer” contribution rules which allowed persons aged 65 or above to contribute up to $300,000 each to their superannuation from the proceeds of the sale of their main residence if they had owned their main residence for a period of 10 years or more.  In last night’s budget it was announced that the eligibility age will be reduced from 65 years of age to 60 years of age.

d. SMSF Legacy Pensions

Many years ago now the Government at the time removed the ability of SMSFs from commencing a variety of life time retirement income stream products that could be accessed by those in retail and industry funds.  For those who entered into such products prior to the changes they are most likely in their last 70s or older.  The attraction for using such products was usually related to the concessional Centrelink treatment that would enable them to qualify to receive an aged pension.

In the Budget last night it was announced that the Government will offer members of SMSFs with these legacy pension products a two year window to exit these pensions (and any associated reserves).  Members will be able to commute these pensions, transfer them back to accumulation phase and then commence an account based pension.  This will present an opportunity for members of SMSF with these products to re-assess their retirement pensions and their retirement strategies.

However, while this is an opportunity to restructure your pension.  Much thought must be given to the implications of commuting such legacy income streams as the Government stated that the social security and taxation treatment will not be grand-fathered.  Any commuted reserves will be taxed as an assessable contribution.

As with any re-assessment of retirement income stream strategies, the impact on your Transfer Balance cap must be considered prior to undertaking any changes to existing arrangements.

e. First Home Super Saver Scheme

The maximum releasable amount of voluntary concessional and non-concessional contributions under the First Home Super Saver Scheme will increase to $50,000 (up from $30,000).  Any contributions made from 1 July 2017 up to the existing limit will count towards the amount able to be released.


If you would like to discuss how the 2021 – 2022 Federal Budget may impact you please contact our office.

Federal Budget Individuals

The 2020 – 2021 Federal Budget – Individuals: What is in it for you?

October 7th, 2020 Posted by Businesses, Federal Budget No Comment yet

The October 2020 Budget was being built up by many as a budget for the ages.  In reality there was good news for individual taxpayers who will receive tax cuts and for welfare recipients who will receive two additional payments $250 (one in December 2020 and one in March 2021). 

Apart from these measures there was not much in the budget for individuals.  We have summarised the key points from the budget as they relate to individuals below.

Personal Tax Cuts

In the previous Budget the Federal Government promised to deliver individual tax cuts progressively over a number of years. In this year’s Budget the Government has proposed to bring forward those Stage 2 personal income tax cuts from 2022-23 to 2020-21. The new proposed individual tax brackets will be as follows and take effect from 1 July 2020:

Tax Bracket

$0 – $18,200

$18,201 – $45,000

$45,001 – $120,000

$120,001 – $180,000

$180,001 +

Rate of Tax Payable

0%

19%

32.5%

37%

45%

In addition, Stage 3 of the personal income tax cuts will now take effect fro, 1 July 2024 and will be as follows:

Tax Bracket

$0 – $18,200

$18,201 – $45,000

$45,001 – $200,000

$200,001 +

Rate of Tax Payable

0%

19%

30%

45%

Low Income Tax Offset

For a number of years the Low Income Tax Offset (LITO) has been set at a maximum of $445. If your taxable income was $37,000 or less then you were entitled to the full LITO of $445. The LITO reduced by $0.015 for every $1.00 of taxable income you earned over $37,000. The LITO cuts out fully if your taxable income was $66,667 or above.

The Budget proposes to increase the LITO from $445 to $700.  The phase out rates will alter such that the LITO will be nil for anyone earning more than $66,667.  That is, if your income is $37,000 or below you will receive the full new LITO of $700.  If your income is between $37,001 and $45,000 the LITO will reduce by an amount of $0.05 for every dollar of income above $37,000.  Beyond $45,000 of taxable income the LITO will continue to be phased out at the rate of $0.015 for every dollar above $45,000.  There is no entitlement to receive the LITO if your taxable income is greater than $66,667.

Low & Middle Income Tax Offset (LMITO)

The LMITO was introduced in the 2019 tax year and provided low and middle income earners with an additional tax offset ranging from a minimum of $255 if your taxable income was below $37,000 to a maximum tax offset of $1080 if your taxable income was between $48,001 and $90,000. The LMITO reduces by 0.03 for every $1.00 of taxable income that you earned over $90,000 and phased out to $Nil if your taxable income was above $126,000.

The Budget confirmed that the LMITO will remain in place for the 2021 tax year but 2021 will be its final year. The LMITO amounts will remain the same as 2020.

Taxable Income

$37,000 or less

Between $37,001 and $48,000

$Between $48,001 and $90,000

$Between $90,001 and $126,000

LMITO Available

$225

$225 + $0.075 per $1.00 above $37,000 up to a maximum of $1080

$1080

$1080 less $0.03 for every $1.00 above $90,000

Aged Pensioners & Other Welfare Recipients

Aged pensioners will receive two $250 payment from the Government. The first of these $250 payments will be paid in December 2020 and the second payment will be made in March 2021.

These two $250 payments will also be paid to those on disability support pensions, carer payments, recipients of Family Tax Benefit, carer allowance and certain Veterans’ affairs payments. The payments will also be made to holders of pensioner concession cards, Commonwealth Seniors Health Care cards and Veterans’ concession cards.


If you would like to discuss how the 2020 – 2021 Federal Budget may impact you please contact our office.

Federal Budget Businesses

The 2020 – 2021 Federal Budget – Businesses: What is in it for you?

October 7th, 2020 Posted by Businesses, Federal Budget No Comment yet

While the Government has invested a significant amount of money through JobKeeper to encourage and assist businesses to maintain its workforce and keep people employed, this Budget was a little disappointing for businesses.

The budget was a greater disappointment for small businesses than perhaps for medium to large business as they will most likely gain more benefits from the immediate asset write off and the temporary loss carry back provisions.

Thinking about the sectors that have been hardest hit by COVID-19 we think of tourism and hospitality. The abolition of Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) was an opportunity forgone. The abolition of FBT would have encouraged businesses to be able to:

  1. spend money entertaining clients and staff at restaurants, pubs, clubs, sporting/entertainment events.
  2. spend money on sending employees to conferences within Australia whether they be interstate or regional areas as this would have supported airlines, hotels, conference centres, local businesses such as cafes and restaurants.
  3. provide non-cash rewards for employees such as air travel, hotel accommodations, restaurant vouchers etc.

Based on the Government’s expected revenues for 2020/21, Fringe Benefits Tax accounts only 0.825% of the forecast revenue. Given that other parts of the Budget are trying to encourage businesses to spend on depreciable assets, why would we not encourage businesses support tourism and hospitality which employs a significant percentage of the workforce. The abolition of FBT would have been of greater assistance to small businesses across Australia. It would be interesting to see financial modelling of the costs and benefits of abolishing FBT.

Rather than continuing to focus on what the missed opportunity was, lets now focus on what the Budget is offering businesses.

Immediate write off of depreciable assets

On 12 March this year, the Government offered businesses the ability to an immediate write off of the cost depreciable assets acquired and installed ready for use between 12 March and 31 December 2020.

The budget has taken this measure much further in an effort to encourage businesses to invest in their future. The Government announced that businesses with a turnover of below $5.0b will now be able to fully expense any depreciable asset acquired after 7.30pm on 6 October and first used or installed ready for use by 30 June 2020.

The cost of improvements to existing eligible depreciable assets made during this period can also be fully expensed.

Importantly for small businesses (i.e. a business with an aggregated annual turnover of less than $10.0m) they will be able to claim a tax deduction for their simplified depreciation pool at the end of the income year while the full expensing of depreciable assets applies.  Further, the restriction preventing small businesses from re-entering the simplified depreciation regime for 5 years if they opt out will continue to be suspended for the time being.

Temporary loss carry back

In an attempt to assist business cash flow in the current COVID-19 environment the Government has re-introduced loss carry back rules.

Under the loss carry back rules it is proposed that companies with turnover up to $5.0b will be able to apply tax losses incurred in the 2019/20, 2020/21 and/or the 2021/22 tax years to offset tax paid in the 2018/19 or later tax years.

The tax refund will be available for eligible businesses when they lodge their 2020/21 and 2021/22 income tax returns.

The tax refund will be limited by requiring that the amount carried back is not more than the earlier taxed profits and that the carry back does not generate a franking account deficit for the company.

JobMaker Hiring Credit

A business that hires a worker between the ages of 16 and 35 years during the 12 months commencing 7th October will be eligible for either a $200 credit per week or a $100 credit per week provided that the new employee was receiving JobSeeker Payments, Youth Allowance (other) or Parenting Payment for at least 1 month of the previous 3 months when employed.

The $200 credit per week will be payable where the new employee is aged between 16 and 29 years of age. Where the new employee is aged between 30 and 35 years of age the employer will be entitled to receive a weekly credit of $100 for up to 12 months.

The disappointing thing with the JobMaker Hiring Credits is that it is forgetting about supporting those completing university or the like where they have worked and studied hard and saved the Government money by not being on JobSeeker, Youth Allowance or in receipt of Parenting Payments. We should be encouraging businesses to employ young people irrespective of whether they were receiving some form of Government assistance or not. Again, I think the Government has narrowed the focus unnecessarily.

Taxability of the Victorian Government COVID-19 Business Support Grants

As previously announced by the Government the Victorian Business Support grants for small and medium businesses will not be taxable.  They have been determined to be non-assessable, non-exempt income.  This means that they are not included in your business income tax return.  Importantly, this only applies to grants announced on or after 13 September and for payments made between 13 September and 30 June 2021.

Fringe Benefits Tax

As mentioned in our introduction the Government missed a golden opportunity to make this Budget about rebuilding small businesses by not abolishing FBT.  The exemption that has been introduced again is not really about small businesses but more focussed on medium to large businesses who have the financial resources to retrain or reskill employees that are redundant or soon to be redundant.

Currently if an employer provides training to a redundant or soon to be redundant employee and the training does not have a sufficient nexus or connection to the employee’s current employment then the cost of the retraining or reskilling is subject to FBT.  By making such reskilling and retraining programs exempt from FBT it is hoped that more employers will support the reskilling and retraining of redundant employees.

The Government also announced that it would give the Commissioner of Taxation the power to allow employers to rely on existing corporate records rather than employee declarations and the like to finalise their FBT returns.  It sounds positive but the problem is that businesses are at the mercy of the Commissioner of Taxation and his/her officers to determine whether our records are sufficient.  If anything, it creates uncertainty rather than reducing red tape.  It will simply make it easier for the Commissioner to turn around and say your records are inadequate and hit you with an amended assessment for your FBT return.  How is giving the Commissioner a discretion to determine what is and is not adequate record keeping going to save on record keeping? 

Research & Development Tax Incentive

For small companies (i.e. with an aggregated turnover of less than $20.0m) the refundable R&D tax offset will be set at 18.5% above the company’s tax rate and the cap on the annual cash refund of $4.0m will be scrapped.

For large companies (i.e. an aggregated turnover of $20.0m or more) the number of intensity tiers will reduce from 3 to 2.  The R&D premium ties the rate on the non-refundable R&D tax offset to a company’s incremental R&D intensity.  That is, the non-refundable R&D tax offset is tied to the percentage of R&D expenditure as a percentage against the company’s total expenses for the relevant tax year.  The marginal R&D premium will be the claimant’s company tax rate plus:

  • 8.5% above the company’s tax rate where the R&D expenditure is between 0% and 2% R&D intensity; and
  • 16.5% above the company’s tax rate where the R&D expenditure is above 2% R&D intensity

The Research & Development changes will not commence until 1 July 2021.

Expanding Access to Some Small Business Tax Concessions

By increasing the small business entity turnover threshold for certain concessions businesses with an aggregated annual turnover of $10.0m or more but less than $50.0m will have access to additional small business tax concessions in 3 phases:

  • From 1 July 2020 eligible businesses will be able to immediately deduct certain start-up expenses
  • From 1 July 2020 eligible businesses will be able to immediately deduct certain prepaid expenses
  • From 1 April 2021 eligible businesses will be exempt from FBT on car parking fringe benefits provided that the car parking fringe benefit is not being provided through a commercial car parking facility
  • From 1 April 2021 eligible businesses will be exempt from FBT on multiple work-related portable electronic devices (such as phones and laptops) provided to employees
  • From 1 July 2021 eligible businesses will be able to access the simplified trading stock rule
  • From 1 July 2021 eligible businesses will be able to remit PAYG instalments based on an adjusted notional tax basis
  • For income years commencing on 1 July 2021 eligible businesses will have a two year amendment period apply to income tax assessments (excluding entities that have significant international tax dealings or particularly complex affairs).

If you would like to discuss how the 2020 – 2021 Federal Budget may impact your business please contact our office.

Business Support Fund

Victorian Business Support Fund

September 15th, 2020 Posted by B&W Additions News, Individuals, Jobkeeper Payment, News, Pension, Retirees, Superannuation No Comment yet

Over the weekend the Victorian Government release details of another round of the Business Support Fund to assist ease the financial burden being felt by many businesses in Victoria that are being adversely impacted by the ongoing lock downs  The amount of financial support on offer is unlikely to ease much of the pain that small businesses are suffering and if you are a sole trader then this package is offering no assistance.  There is supposed to be further announcements setting out an assistance package to those sole traders so we will have to wait to see what form that assistance is likely to take.


Cash grants of between $10,000 and $20,000 depending on the business’ annual payroll.  If you are an eligible business you will receive one of the following amounts:

  • $10,000 if your annual payroll is less than $650,000
  • $15,000 if your annual payroll is between $650,000 and $3.0m
  • $20,000 if your annual payroll is between $3.0m and $10.0m

To be eligible for the above cash grants you must:

  • Operate a business located in Victoria;
  • Participate in the JobKeeper Payment scheme;
  • Employ people and be registered with WorkSafe;
  • Have had an annual payroll of less than $10.0m in the 2020 financial year;
  • Be registered for GST;
  • Hold an ABN; and 
  • Be registered with the responsible Federal or State regulator (waiting on clarification as to what this actually means)

Cash grants of up to $30,000 for licensed pubs, clubs, hotels, bars, restaurants and reception centres.  The level of the cash grant is subject to venue capacity and location.


The latest round of assistance also includes additional funding, tools and resources to assist businesses prepare for re-opening.  Under the business adaption the Victorian Government is allowing:

  • A $20.0m voucher program to assist sole traders and small businesses build their digital presence/capability
  • A $15.7m package to help Victorian exporters get their products to market and establish new trade channels
  • A $8.5m expansion to the “Click for Vic” campaign to encourage more Victorians to support local business

The Victorian Government is also offering some waivers and deferrals.  These include:

  • A deferral of payroll tax liability for the full 2020/21 financial year

[This should come with a warning that it is a deferral of payroll tax payable and not a waiver.  If your business is paying payroll tax and you are able to continue to fund the liability then we suggest that you do so as accepting a deferral can create it own cash flow problems down the track.  An increase in the payroll tax threshold from $650,000 to $1.5m would have been more beneficial for businesses as it would provide relief from a tax that is imposed on businesses employing people.  In an environment where unemployment is forecast to be greater than 10% you would think that they would put together a business support fund that encouraged businesses to employ people or at a minimum retain their current employees].

  • Bring forward the 50% Stamp Duty discount for commercial/industrial property for all of Regional Victoria.
  • Deferral of the planned increase in landfill levy for 6 months
  • 25% waiver for the Congestion Levy for this year (presumably they refer to financial year but not clear in the current release)
  • Liquor license fee to be waived for 2021
  • Waiving of the Vacant Residential Land Tax for vacancies in 2020

We will advise you of when the application process opens for the third round of cash grants.

In the meantime please do not hesitate to contact us on on 03 96291433 if you have any queries.


Victorian Business Support Fund

Extension of the JobKeeper Scheme

Extension of the JobKeeper Scheme

July 22nd, 2020 Posted by B&W Additions News, Individuals, Jobkeeper Payment, News, Pension, Retirees, Superannuation No Comment yet

The Government announced on 21 July 2020 that they will be extending the JobKeeper scheme for another six months. Payments dates for the JobKeeper scheme when originally announced were to 27th September 2020. 

Due to the continued deterioration of the economy and the community spread of COVID-19 the scheme will now run until 28 March 2021. We have outlined below some of the key points of the extended scheme as announced today.


Eligibility

To be eligible for the JobKeeper payments under the extended time frame you will need to have experienced an actual decline in turnover of:

  • 50 per cent for those with an aggregated turnover of more than $1 billion; 
  • 30 per cent for those with an aggregated turnover of $1 billion or less; or 
  • 15 per cent for Australian Charities and Not for profits Commission-registered charities 

The JobKeeper payment extension is open to both existing and new recipients as long as you meet the original eligibility requirements and the additional turnover tests during the extension period. 


Comparison Period

For JobKeeper extension dates commencing 28th September 2020 and ending 3rd January 2021 you will need to demonstrate that you have met the relevant continuing decline in turnover test in both of the following quarters:

  • June 2020 quarter v June 2019 quarter; and
  • September 2020 quarter v September 2019 quarter.

You will then need to re-assess your ongoing eligibility in January for the period commencing 4th January 2021 and ending 28th March 2021.  To be eligible for the continued JobKeeper payments you will need to demonstrate that you have met the relevant continuing decline in turnover test in all of the following quarters:

  • June 2020 quarter v June 2019 quarter; and
  • September 2020 quarter v September 2019 quarter; and
  • December 2020 quarter v December 2019 quarter.

Recipients will need to assess their eligibility in advance before finalising their Business Activity Statements in order to enrol in the extended JobKeeper scheme. To give employers time to evaluate, the Commission of Taxation will have the discretion to extend the time where employers are required to pay the JobKeeper top up in advance in order to be reimbursed by the Australian Tax Office.

The existing rules for eligible employees remain unchanged.


Payment rates

For JobKeeper extension dates commencing 28th September 2020 to 3rdJanuary 2021 the payment rate are as follows:

  • $1,200 per fortnight for all eligible employees who, in the four weeks before 1 March 2020, were working in the business or not-for-profit for 20 hours or more a week on average, and for eligible business participants who were actively engaged in the business for 20 hours or more per week on average in the month of February 2020
  • $750 per fortnight for other eligible employees and business participants.

For JobKeeper extension dates commencing 4th January 2021 to 28th March 2021 the payment rate are as follows:

  • $1,000 per fortnight for all eligible employees who, in the four weeks before 1 March 2020, were working in the business or not-for-profit for 20 hours or more a week on average and for business participants who were actively engaged in the business for 20 hours or more per week on average in the month of February 2020
  • $650 per fortnight for other eligible employees and business participants.

For further information, visit the Australian Government Treasury Website fact sheet

Should you have any queries regarding the JobKeeper Scheme, please do not hesitate to contact either our office on 03 96291433 to discuss.