Whilst tax refunds may be exciting, the idea of actually doing your tax return rarely excites.
Here are just a few things you should know at tax time.
Can I claim my study expenses?
Most expenses that you incur that directly relate to you earning your taxable income will be a tax deduction for you, but be sure that the expense is directly relatable to your actual and declared taxable income. If there is no direct correlation, you may find that it's not deductible. You cannot claim a deduction against future income (like if you were planning on changing careers, you cannot claim your study)
TIP: If your study is directly related to your actual income, you still cannot claim your tuition fees if you are using the Governments HECS-HELP scheme
Are donations a deduction?
They sure can be! Donations of over $2 are tax deductible, as long as the charity is a registered charity organisation. Don't get caught out with go fund me pages and other social media donation requests. For your donation to be a tax deductible expense in your tax return, the organisation must be registered as a charity organisation.
Do I have to declare my crypto trading if I made a loss?
Beware of not declaring your Crypto transactions. The ATO has set up agreements with the Australian data exchanges, which gives them, the very valuable ability, to match information with your personal tax returns. They know a lot more than you think they do. Whether you made a profit or a loss, when you sell a crypto you must report on the transactions. Read more...
There's also a difference between Crypto trading and Crypto Investing. Whilst both must be included in your tax return, the treatment of these profits and losses vary between a capital transaction and a trading transaction.
If you need help, get in early and book your tax appointment
What can I claim at tax time?
The ATO have designed a number of industry specific check sheets to help you claim as many deductions as you can, with specific focus on your particular industry. Check out our Industry help sheets, or if we don't have your industry here, you can check on the ATO website. These help sheets are a great way of helping you to remember what costs you may have incurred throughout the year.
Can I claim my car as a deduction?
Nothing about car and travel deductions is simple. The ATO have two methods of calculating your car expenses, however, just to confuse you, sometimes you cannot use a particular method. You cannot use the cents per kilometre method for a vehicle that is not considered a car for tax purposes. This means that you cannot use this method for vehicles over 1 tonne carrying capacity or motor cycles.
At MQ Accountants we ask you all the right questions to maximise your tax deductions, whilst still getting it right.
Get in early and book your Tax appointment here. We offer a fast and easy tax return service with minimal fuss.
This articles intention is to inform rather than advise and is based on legislation at the time. Each Taxpayer’s circumstances vary so we strongly recommend that you discuss this information with your Tax Agent, Accountant or Bas Agent before implementation. If you take, or do not take action as a result of reading this article, we accept no responsibility for any financial loss incurred. This is general advice only.