If you have had tax withheld from and Australian income during the financial year then yes, you will need to lodge a return There will are other factors that contribute to your need to lodge a return, to find out if you need to lodge a return CLICK HERE, this will take you to the ATO decision tool.
Income
- Lump Sum and Termination Payment Summaries
- Government Payments i.e. Pensions, Newstart etc
- Superannuation Pensions or Lump Sums (if under 60)
- Interest Income (from banks etc)
- Dividend Statements & Annual Statements from Managed Funds
- Other Income
- Rental Properties
- Business
- Foreign Income
- Capital Gains
- Employee Share Schemes
Deductions
- Work Related Expenses:
- Motor Vehicle
- Travel
- Uniforms
- Self Education & Professional Development
- Union, Membership, Subscription and Registration Fees
- Tools and equipment
- Home Office
- Telephone and data
- Any other costs incurred earning income
- Donations
- Income Protection Insurance
Other Items
- Spouse details including taxable Income
- Private Health Insurance Tax Statements
The date for lodging a tax return is generally the 31st of October of the that financial year, however if you have been signed up with a tax agent prior to this date you may have until the extended concessional lodgment date 15th of May the following year (unless that date falls on a weekend then this may change by a day or two).
You will need to register for GST when you earn $75,000 or more during the financial year. You can do this yourself by contacting the ATO or give one of our Angels a call who will be more than happy to assist you with the registration.
Aw thanks, we are awesome! Abacus Taxation has a small team of qualified staff based in Springwood. We are a small office and we genuinely care about our clients and it shows in our reviews. With over 30 years of experience in the industry The Angels are here to help you with your taxation needs.
Generally, your refund will be processed within five to seven days of your lodgment being completed, however, it can take up to 28 days or longer if there is an issue with your profile or if the ATO wants to take a closer look at your lodgment.
You can track the progress of your refund via MyGov.
To claim deductions for work expenses, there are three golden rules you need to meet:
- You must have spent the money yourself and weren’t reimbursed
- The expenses must directly relate to earning your income
- You must have a record to prove it (usually a receipt)
The following link is super useful and will help you to work out if it’s a legitimate claim, it’s important to remember that just because your gardener neighbor can claim their awesome sunnies in their tax return that it doesn’t mean that you can claim them to use while punching numbers into that pesky spreadsheet, claims are relevant to the tasks that you are performing. CLICK HERE for a more details from the ATO.
If you use your vehicle for work-related duties, you may be able to claim it in your tax return. There are a couple of methods that you can use:
- Cents per Kilometre – you can claim up to a maximum of 5,000 business kilometres – to find out more click here
- Logbook method – Your claim is based on the work-related portion of your actual vehicle, for us to determine the percentage of business use it is a requirement that you keep a log book for 12 weeks. During the 12 weeks it will be a requirement that you track EVERY trip, be it personal or business related in your vehicle. For more information click here
