It's great to already hear from so many of you in relation to your 2016 Income Tax Returns. We note that due to so many amended ITR's for the 2015 year, we are not taking appointments until mid July. Preferably early August is a much better option, espeically if you are working in the Building & Construction Industry.
Most employer's do not have an obligation to lodge PAYG Summaries until 14 August of each year. People working in the Building industry may receive an ETP and it's this that is causing all the problems. It's much better to wait for the ATO's records to be updated and have the ITR correct from the start then recieve a payable amended assessment later.
4 June 2016
Most of you would have noticed that Macro Tax has gone through a substantial change over the past couple of years. There are still some kinks to iron out but we can see that the change may be creating a whole new level of confusion.
Some of you would have received outstanding debt letters recently from the ATO. The ATO does not send out Notices of Assessment for Companies and Super Funds. They are though, supposed to send out statements of account that show the amounts payable. Unfortunately, a lot of these have not been generated by the ATO which is where the confusion has occurred.
All Company and Super Fund income tax is due on 15 May of each financial year [with the exception of a few companies who are due earlier]. The ATO depend on you, the Tax Payer and us the Tax Agent, to remember this. I can assure you, we receive no remuneration from the ATO to be their debt collectors. We love them too.
If there is anyone who knows they are payable but do not have the details to pay their income tax, please contact us ASAP for a payment slip.
Hopefully, next year we will have another system in place to remind you in advance that the tax is due for payment.
3 June 2016
Foreign resident capital gains withholding
The ATO has issued further information for taxpayers who could potentially be exposed to the new foreign resident capital gains withholding provisions that apply to contracts entered into from 1 July 2016, including:
· The clearance certificate application form and instructions. This will enable vendors that are Australian tax residents to obtain confirmation that the foreign resident capital gains withholding does not need to be imposed on the sale of taxable Australian real property.
· A withholding tax rate variation application form and related instructions which can be used to reduce the withholding tax rate from the default rate of 10%. Each vendor will be required to obtain their own variation – joint owners cannot lodge a joint application.
Once the ATO has processed the applications and issued the relevant certification or variation, this needs to be provided to the purchaser on or before the day of settlement to ensure that either no withholding is required or that the rate is less than 10%. In addition, the ATO has issued a fact sheet for real estate agents that outlines the withholding payment obligations with a series of FAQs that will provide guidance to real estate agents whose clients may be impacted by these requirements.