What you can do between now and 30 June to make tax time a breeze

As the end of the Financial Year draws closer, we have the second part of our tax tips and which focuses on our individual taxpayers. So, what do you need to consider leading up to the end of the Financial Year?

Are you working from home?

Seems like more of us are taking work home and are using items such as Mobile phones, Computers, Laptops and other assets. Any items that are used for work related purposes under $300 you can claim an immediate deduction, anything $300 or more you can claim depreciation on over the effective life of the asset (don’t worry too much about the effective life as we have guides you can use to determine that).

If you are working from home and are using your study, you may be able to claim home office expenses. Please ensure you keep record of the hours you spend in the home office over a four week period as well as any other costs you incur (eg. telephone and internet expenses).

Do you have any Professional Memberships or Subscriptions?

Items such as Memberships (professional memberships not to your favourite AFL team), Union Fees, Annual Registrations are all tax deductible as long as they are paid for before 30 June 2018.

Have you borrowed money to invest in a rental property or a share portfolio?

You can pay the interest in this financial year for the year in advance and claim a tax deduction in this financial year.

Do you have Income Protection premiums due?

Premiums for income protection can be prepaid in advance for the next 12 months to receive the tax deduction in the current financial year.

Have you made (or are looking to make) a donation to a charity?

If you are feeling generous leading into the end of a financial year and are making a donation to a charity or non-profit organisation, you can claim a tax deduction as long as the charity has received your donation before 30 June.

Are you making additional contributions into super?

For the 2018 Financial Year, the pre-tax concessional contributions cap is $25,000.

If you’re a salary/wage earner the concessional contributions cap includes the following:

• Employer’s Superannuation Guarantee (SG) contributions (currently SG is at 9.5%)
• Any voluntary employer contributions including salary sacrifice amount
• Any personal deductible contributions you make.

If you’re claiming a tax deduction for a personal contribution this financial year, you will need to ensure that it is received by your super fund before 30 June 2018 (which is a Saturday this financial year).

Don’t break the bank to claim a tax deduction

Please also be mindful you don’t want to be breaking the bank just to pay for something prior to 30 June so you can claim a tax deduction.

The start of June is a great time of year to start planning and putting all these things together and will hopefully get you into a good habit to do this planning for years to come!

Disclaimer:

The following information is provided as an information service only and, therefore, does not constitute, and should not be relied upon as, financial product advice. None of the information provided takes into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs, and you will need to make your own decision about how to proceed. Alternatively, for financial product advice that takes account of your particular objectives, financial situation or needs, you should consider seeking financial advice from an Australian Financial Services licensee before making a financial decision, which we are able to provide you a referral should you wish to do so.