From 1 April 2016, changes to salary sacrificed meal entertainment and entertainment facility leasing benefits come into effect. A single grossed-up cap of $5,000 will apply to these benefits from this date. Many people in these sectors benefit from these concessions so it’s important to check the changes and the implications to you.  

From 1 January 2016, Family Tax Benefit A will be reduced for people outside of Australia. Families will only be able to receive FTB A for 6 weeks in a 12 month period while they are overseas.

Also, if you have a Higher Education Loan and live overseas for 6 months or more, from 1 January 2016 you will be required to make repayments of your HELP debt if your worldwide income exceeds the minimum repayment threshold at the same repayment rates as debtors in Australia.

Every so often it’s important to review what you’re spending money on and why. Debt is a big issue for most as we accumulate debt in different forms over time – home loans, investments, credit cards, etc. If this sounds like you, it’s almost guaranteed you are paying too much. It’s time to take stock and see what debt you have and if there is a way of getting a better deal.

Your Business

Many of the ‘dramatic’ changes that impact on mature business models - online retail vs traditional retailers, the shift from paper publishing to online publishing, the demise of packaged electronic products on shelves to download delivery, or for example, the impact of Uber on taxi services – were reasonably predictable. There were recognisable indicators for each of these changes well before they had a direct impact on Australian businesses. Online retailing existed decades before denting bricks and mortar retail sales in any recognisable way, and as soon as faster internet speeds enabled quicker downloads the packaging and B2B sale of most electronic products became unnecessary. Tech company Uber started in 2009, spreading exponentially around the world well before it launched in Australia in 2014. If anything, Uber proves that the foundation of any industry can be shaken dramatically in less than a few years. 

In many cases, these ‘disruptive’ businesses offered something to consumers not reliably fulfilled by the existing market - efficiency, access, range, and importantly, greater consumer control not just acceptance of what is on offer.

As business operators, it’s important to constantly assess the impact of trends on our current business and product range and work toward the ‘what ifs’. 

Trends also exist in Government policy and can have a positive or negative effect on your business.  At present, the Government is firmly focussed on boosting business productivity and investment. There are a wide range of incentives to stimulate spending and the entrepreneurial spirit:

• Crowd funding – funding is difficult for entrepreneurial start-up businesses in Australia. New frameworks are currently being developed to formalise crowd and other funding sources to encourage investment opportunities beyond bank finance.
• Employee share schemes (ESS) – new rules introduced last year bolster the tax benefits for employees of ESSs and provide special concessions for start-ups. Further changes should follow shortly.
• Accelerated depreciation – small business and primary producers can access a range of concessions that enable them to offset expenses in the same year as the expense – rather than depreciating the expense over time.
• Tax relief for restructures  - changes to be introduced this year should allow small business to change their business structure without the risk of triggering CGT and other income tax implications. So, it is a good time to check whether your structure is right for your long-term business plans.
  
  

Your Superannuation

There is almost no doubt that the current raft of concessions available to superannuation will change.  To lock in your access to the current concessions, you should focus on maximising the tax-free component of your superannuation.  If you haven’t already, come and see us to have a chat as there are different strategies that can be utilised depending on your situation. 

The ATO is looking closely at related party loans in SMSFs.  If your fund has borrowed money from a related party, for example a member of the fund, to acquire an asset and the terms of that loan are not at arm’s length or well documented, then you need to get the paperwork and the loan terms in order ASAP.  While the ATO have stated that they are not necessarily looking at arrangements before the 2014-15 income year (unless it comes up in audit), you can expect a much closer scrutiny from now on. 

The social security income test tightened on 1 January 2016 for superannuants.  If you receive defined benefit income from your superannuation, a larger portion of this income will now be taken into account when applying the relevant social security income tests - capping the proportion of income that can be excluded at 10%.  This affects aged care fees, income support payments, the Low Income Health Care Card, etc.

 The material and contents provided in this publication are informative in nature only.  It is not intended to be advice and you should not act specifically on the basis of this information alone.  If expert assistance is required, professional advice should be obtained.

 Contact us now to see how our accounting experts can help.