If you have spare cash you may be wondering how best to use it. Those with a mortgage often prefer to use surplus cash to pay down their mortgage. With rising interest rates and greater economic uncertainty this can be a wise choice. However, can contributing spare cash to super give you a better outcome?...

Plenty of people run a business from home. If you do, there are important tax consequences attached to using part of your home as a place of “business”. And for these tax consequences (both good and bad) to arise the Tax Office (and Courts) have taken the view that the part of your home used...

It has been proposed that people who pay rent or have a mortgage be allowed to divert a quarter of their future super contributions into take-home pay for up to three years. Employers would keep paying the full 12%, but the super fund would pay 3% directly to members who opt in. Reaction to the...

A recent Federal Court decision once again outlined the importance of determining a person’s residency status for tax purposes – and moreover how difficult that may be. And that it may not just be a matter of having lived overseas for several years. In that case, the taxpayer lived in Australia for 6 years with...

Under the big tax changes announced in the May Budget, and now law, the generous 50% CGT discount will no longer apply from 1 July 2027 and will be replaced by the inflation-based “indexation” (except in limited circumstances). However, it will still be available for the capital gain on an asset that accrues up to...

After the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York in 2001, it was understood that intelligence and security authorities around the world dramatically increased their technological and detection capabilities. And, apparently, not long after, many revenue authorities around the world were said to similarly have sought better technological and detection capabilities....

Do You Need To Pay Superannuation? If you run a business, then the difference between engaging an employee and an independent contractor is a crucial matter – because if you engage a contractor there will be no obligation to pay annual leave or sick leave, and generally, no obligation to pay superannuation. However, crucially, many...

Everyone loves a work-related deduction. From the 2026-27 income year there is a standard deduction of up to $1,000 for work-related expenses, and it applies automatically. This will simplify things for many. However, if your claims exceed $1,000 you still need to substantiate every dollar. How does the standard deduction work? To be eligible for...

There has been a lot of talk in the media about the government’s new “widow tax” following the Budget brought down earlier in the year. By way of background the Budget saw the abolition of negative gearing for properties acquired after the Budget night (ie 12 May 2026). So, if you acquired a rental property...

Capital gains tax does not just apply to “big ticket” items such as real estate, farms and shareholdings. It also applies to a special class of assets known as “personal use assets”, and in particular, those personal use assets known as “collectables”. “Collectables” are specifically defined under the tax law to mean the following items that are “used or kept mainly for your personal...