After a taxpayer has held a life insurance policy for ten years or longer, the reversionary bonuses received on that policy become tax-free. Life insurance policies are issued by life insurance companies and friendly societies. A reversionary bonus is profit earned annually on traditional life contracts on top of the sum insured that is added…
Members of a self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF) looking to acquire property through the fund need to be aware of the risks involved in the strategy or risk substantial penalties. One of the considerations investors should be making if they are deciding to put a property in their SMSF is whether the strategy will improve retirement…
Australian taxpayers should be aware that some promoters claim to offer early access to super savings by transferring a person’s super into a self-managed super fund. These schemes are illegal and heavy penalties will apply to those who participate in such schemes. Generally, individuals cannot access their super until they retire or meet a condition…
Businesses with a GST turnover of less than $20 million who have not been asked by the ATO to report their GST on a monthly basis can report and pay their GST quarterly. Businesses who report and pay their GST quarterly have three reporting options: 1. Calculate and report GST quarterlyThis option allows businesses to…
Many small business owners who run a family business and are nearing retirement face the significant decision of whether to include their adult children in their self-managed super fund (SMSF) as part of their personal and business succession planning. Including children in a family SMSF can have a critical impact on family relationships and finances,…
With the end of the fringe benefits tax (FBT) year fast approaching, business owners need to be aware of the FBT and gross up rates when preparing for their FBT return. The FBT rate increased from 47 per cent to 49 per cent from 1 April 2015. The rate increase was due to the introduction…
A responsibility that does not immediately spring to mind when managing a self-managed super fund is working out what will happen if a member becomes incapacitated and unable to perform their trustee duties. Succession planning for an SMSF can become quite complicated if not managed on an ongoing basis. It not only requires having a…
It may be beneficial for trustees who buy and sell assets through their self-managed super fund to start a transition to retirement pension to escape the burden of capital gains tax. Capital gains are profits that an SMSF makes on the sale of an asset. Capital gains tax (CGT) is a tax on the profits…
Self-managed super funds (SMSFs) are an attractive option for those who want more control over their retirement savings. However, trustees who have run a fund for as long as SMSFs have been in existence (around 20 years) are likely to have accumulated a lot of paperwork, especially if they engaged in various super strategies throughout…
Federal Parliament recently passed legislation that will allow small businesses to change the legal structure of their enterprise without incurring a capital gains tax (CGT) liability. Instead, the CGT liability can be deferred until eventual disposal. The legislation, ‘Tax Laws Amendment (Small Business Restructure Roll-over) Bill 2016′, will apply from July 2016. It provides an…