Search

When you are employed, it’s important you understand your rights in relation to tax and super. Some employers pay their workers cash-in-hand rather than into a bank account. There is nothing wrong with being paid in cash as long as your employer reports the payment as income. Some employers deliberately use cash transactions to avoid meeting their tax and employee responsibilities, which is a crime. It threatens the revenue our government uses…

Managing tax affairs is essential if a business is going to be successful. This includes reporting tax collected and paying the amount owed. A business uses a business activity statement (BAS) to report and pay its tax obligations, including GST. The format of the BAS is personalised according to the business situation and any options the business has previously selected. BAS includes information on the following: GST collected and paid out…

Under tax law, a person who carries on a business must keep records to explain all the business’s transactions and related activities. Generally, these records must be kept for 5 years. Businesses need to keep a record of all transactions so that they can: prepare business activity statements (BAS) prepare an annual tax return meet other tax obligations run a successful business. What types of records does a business need to keep? To…

Scenario Adele and Nalu have set up a business called Beachcrazi that sells surfboards, leisure wear and a range of skateboards. The business has been running for less than a year and is quite profitable. They attended a local business network meeting and heard from a speaker about the importance of keeping good records for tax and business purposes. Both Adele and Nalu love the selling and marketing side of the business but are not interested…

Now that you have explored the relationship between a country’s taxation system and living standards, consider the following ‘what if’ scenario: The Australian Government significantly cuts spending to pay down debt. Draw a consequence wheel on a large piece of paper. Identify one area of current government services that would be affected, for example, education, health or social security and welfare. Consider the possible effects on…

The table below shows government revenue and spending as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) for 4 countries in the Asia region. Rank these countries in order of revenue and spending, from lowest to highest. Country Government revenue as a % of GDP Government expenditure as a % of GDP Australia 35.84 36.66 India 19.77…

You may decide that your employer's 12% contributions may not be enough to build the lifestyle you want for retirement. By making extra contributions, you can boost the amount of super you have when you stop working. The key is to start as soon as possible to grow your super. Apart from their employer’s superannuation guarantee contributions, many Australians make additional contributions or have contributions made on their behalf to their super…

There are several ways you can boost your super. A tax-effective way is through salary sacrificing. Find out how boosting your super through salary sacrificing will affect you in the short and long-term.Paying less taxWhen you salary sacrifice, you will pay less tax. An example of the tax you save is shown below:Your annual incomeTax paid on $1,000 put into your pocketTax paid on $1,000 put into superTax saving$40,000$160$150$10$90,000$300$150$…