Love a good list
Let’s just take a moment to give thanks to the all important ‘to do list’.
Without the beautiful thing that is a list, the world would be in chaos.
Random food will land in your grocery trolley, jobs around the house will remain incomplete and the population would be overwhelmed with so much to do in so little time.
For some people, tax season sends them in to this type of chaos. Deductions, declarations, dividends…dang!
Keep calm! At Wall Business Services, we have easy to read to do lists, ready for you right HERE. This is what we do, we make numbers work.
Not sure about some of the stuff on the checklists? Let’s get into a couple of the main dot points in some detail.
What income stuff do I need to bring?
Even ‘basic’ tax returns still require some information to be provided, to ensure that all of your income is reported and to make sure any refund you are entitled to is paid to the bank account you choose.
Income paperwork and what they mean:
- Payment Summaries aka Group Certificate
- Your employers should provide this document to you before 16th July. This shows how much you were paid, how much tax was held on your behalf (PAYGW) and most other benefits or expenses provided through your employer.
- Bank Statements
- These show your bank account details for the most exciting part of your tax return – the refund – but also needs to show how much interest you earned for the year. The ATO has an agreement with banks to complete what is called data matching, this means that if you think that have a secret bank account earning interest on your hard working savings, the ATO already knows or will know, and will chase you for tax on this earned interest.
- Dividend Statements
- Your share-holdings may not quite be at Warren Buffett levels yet, but the income from dividends needs to be recorded in your tax return. The fantastic Franking Credits that accompany dividends from most Australian companies, goes towards any tax payable on this income, and can be used to offset tax payable on other income sources, or may even find their way back in to your pocket by way of a refund.
- Even if you do not receive the dividends in cash from – part of a dividend re-investment program – you are deemed to have received this income and as such, will need to report in your tax return.
- The ATO can do data matching on this income as well.
- Anything else that you have received money from
- If you have earned income or made money from any other sources, bring in the details and have a chat to determine if you need to include with your tax return.
- Not all income is required to be reported BUT as the ATO has Big Brother powers to complete data matching, ask us the question. Better to be sure, than checking over your shoulder for the ATO to come looking for you.
I don’t have any receipts, what can I claim?
In a word… none, nothing, nudda – well, that is actually three words.
Per the ATO, you may be able to claim a tax deduction if you incurred an expense in earning your income. The ATO allows a deduction of up to $300 where receipts do not need to be provided, however you need to be able to demonstrate what this amount is made up of.
For deductions above $300, you need to be able to show proof for ALL of these expenses. There are a couple of ways that you can do this.
- Receipts / Tax Invoices – a timeless classic, make sure that you take copies as some receipts fade. Use an app to keep your receipts in the one spot, we recommend Receipt Bank, give our office a call and we can help get you started on this one.
- Bank Statements – this may count as proof provided that the statement line clearly shows who the money has been paid to, but not recommended to be relied upon as your only source of proof.
- Direct Debit Agreements – if you have bought something that is required for work on a repayment arrangement, the contract may be proof of purchase.
- Diary of Expenses – there is a $200 limit to this type of proof. You may write down the details of your expenses, noting date, supplier, amount, and description of what was bought, include how this relates to your source of income.
In a Nutshell…
No more excuses, we have the checklist ready for you!
We have explained what you need and why so that you can be prepared this tax time.
Go through the checklist, cross off what you do not need, and tick what you have already sorted. Smooth sailing for you this tax time, and the satisfaction of completing a checklist.
– Karen Patterson
