A large part of the COVID stimulus packages announced by the Government last year was intended to encourage businesses to invest in capital assets.  They did this by announcing the “temporary full expensing of depreciating assets” provisions on 6 October 2020 for businesses with aggregated turnover of less than $5 billion.  Prior to this, the instant asset write-off threshold had been increased to $150,000 for businesses with aggregated turnover of less than $50 million.

These changes have resulted in many businesses investing in assets throughout this financial year with the view to claiming a full tax deduction for the asset.  Alternatively, businesses may still be considering purchasing an asset prior to 30 June 2021 in order to claim the tax deduction.  There are some tricks and opportunities to these depreciable asset write off provisions that you should be aware of.

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Over the last 12 months there have been significant changes to South Australia’s land tax regime.  Below we provide an update to the changes and highlight some key deadlines.

Land held in discretionary trusts – Beneficiary Nominations – Due date extended to 30 June 2022

Under the new land tax rules, where land is held by a discretionary trust on or before 16 October 2019, the trustee has the option to nominate a designated beneficiary.  This option was only available up until 30 June 2021, however Treasurer Rob Lucas recently announced that the due date would be extended to 30 June 2022.

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What you need to know

There haven’t been many changes in superannuation over the last few years but it’s always good to make sure that you are across what is available to you with regards to your super.

Concessional superannuation contributions

The concessional superannuation cap for the year ended 30 June 2021 is $25,000.  This means that total tax deductible contributions which can go into your superfund cannot exceed this amount – this includes any amounts that have been contributed by your employer including salary sacrifice.  If you were to choose to “top up” any employer contributions, you can claim a deduction for the top up to $25,000.

As in prior years, the contribution must be received by your fund before the 30 June 2021 to claim a tax deduction for it in the 2021 year and you must notify your super fund of your intention of claiming a deduction.

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Top Tips

As always, here are a lot of things to consider before the end of the financial year.

Here are our top 5 bookkeeping tips to help make year-end run a smoothly as possible.

• Process and make superannuation payments for employees before 30^th June to ensure you get a tax deduction for the payment.
• Once you’ve run your last payroll for the financial year reconcile payroll liability accounts (wages payable, superannuation payable & PAYG withholding payable) and finalise your Single Touch Payroll reporting. You can also reconcile, prepare and lodge WorkCover, payroll tax & Taxable Payments Annual Report (if applicable).

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As we approach the end of the financial year it’s a good time to start thinking about what you could do to minimise your tax liability.

New items for the 2021 financial year

 The company tax rate for base rate entity companies has reduced to 26% for base rate entities (a drop from 27.5%). From 1 July 2021, the tax rate will drop to 25%.

• In last year’s budget, loss carry-back measures were introduced. This means eligible companies can claim a refundable tax offset using the new loss carry-back measures when they lodge their 2021 financial year tax returns.
• Where your business has claimed JobKeeper & Cash Flow Boost payments throughout the 2021 financial year, ensure that records are kept to prove eligibility.
• Temporary full expensing for asset purchases and instant asset write off: please refer to our detailed summary here.
• Carry-forward unused concessional contributions: individuals can claim an additional tax deduction if a superannuation contribution is made to use up unused concessional contributions from the 2019 and 2020 financial years. Please refer to our detailed summary here.

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