101 Ways to Save Money on Your Tax – Legally! 2014 – 2015

ISBN-13: 9780730310372 / Angielski / Miękka / 2014 / 336 str.

Adrian Raftery

Opis

As featured on The Project (Channel Ten), A Current Affair (Channel 9), ABC Radio and in Money Magazine.

Stop giving your money away You work hard for your money, and you work even harder to set and keep a budget that makes the most of it. But when tax time arrives, do you feel shorted on your return? Nearly everyone has to pay taxes, but the government is only entitled to so much of your money. You might be letting them keep hundreds or even thousands of dollars that rightfully belong to you. No matter what your accounting habits have been so far, you can still claim what's yours. 101 Ways to Save Money on Your Tax--Legally 2014 - 2015 is your ultimate guide to maximising your return. Author Adrian Raftery, a.k.a. Mr. Taxman, is Australia's leading personal taxation expert. In the book, Raftery provides the information you need to get back every single dollar you're entitled to, plus tips and tricks that help you get the most out of deductions related to:

• You, your family, and your property
• Education, employment, and small business
• Investment property, shares, and superannuation
• Special circumstances, including medical expenses and levies

The book also contains advice on related matters, including tax-effective investments, tax planning, and how to find a great accountant. All information has been updated to reflect tax law changes wrought by the May 2014 budget. If you're tired of paying too much tax and seeing too little return, 101 Ways to Save Money on Your Tax--Legally 2014 - 2015 is your comprehensive guide to putting things right, starting now.

Spis treści

About the author xi

How to use this book xiii

Introduction xvii

Part I You and your family 1

1 Marriage 2

2 Income splitting 5

3 Dependent spouse tax offset 7

4 Dependant (invalid and carer) tax offset 9

5 Children 10

6 Paid parental leave 13

7 Dad and partner pay 15

8 Child care 16

9 Low–income earners 18

10 Senior Australians 20

11 Other government benef its 23

12 Family breakdown 27

13 Death 29

14 Trusts 32

Part II Your employment 35

15 Car usage 37

16 Methods to claim car travel 40

17 Travel 42

18 Uniform 45

19 Home off ice 47

20 Other work–related deductions 50

21 Keeping those receipts 53

22 ATO hit lists 55

23 Redundancy 58

24 Working a second job 60

25 Salary sacrifice 63

26 Fringe benefits 65

27 Living–away–from–home allowance 69

Part III Your education 75

28 Claiming self–education expenses 76

29 The $250 threshold 79

30 Self–development courses 81

31 Higher Education Loan Program 84

32 Student Financial Supplement Scheme 88

33 Austudy and ABSTUDY 90

34 Other government assistance 93

35 Scholarships 96

36 School building funds 99

37 Education savings plans 102

Part IV Your investment property 105

38 Negative gearing 107

39 Interest 110

40 Depreciation 114

41 Low–value pooling 117

42 Repairs and maintenance 119

43 Travel to see your investment property 122

44 Borrowing expenses 124

45 Legal expenses 127

46 Other rental property deductions 128

47 Foreign investment properties 131

48 Capital gains tax 133

49 PAYG withholding variation 136

50 Property genuinely available for rent 139

Part V Your shares 141

51 Dividends 143

52 Franking credits 146

53 Dividend reinvestment plans 149

54 Lower income earners 150

55 Borrowing to buy shares 153

56 Other allowable deductions 156

57 Shares and capital gains tax 158

58 Realising capital losses 160

59 Inheriting share portfolios 162

60 Share traders versus share investors 164

61 Rights and options 167

62 Employee share schemes 169

63 Share portfolios within self managed superannuation funds 171

Part VI Your superannuation 175

64 Contribution limits 178

65 Compulsory employer contributions 182

66 Salary sacrifice 185

67 Super co–contribution 188

68 Transferring foreign super 190

69 Self managed superannuation funds 192

70 Buying property within SMSFs 196

71 Gearing through a super fund 198

72 Accessing your super 201

73 Transition to retirement 203

74 Allocated pensions 205

75 Death benefits 207

76 Lost or unclaimed super 209

Part VII Your business 213

77 Choosing the right business structure 215

78 Tax obligations 220

79 Record keeping 223

80 Deferring tax 226

81 Trading stock 229

82 Bad debts 231

83 Home–based businesses 233

84 Employing people 236

85 Tax concessions and offsets 239

86 Selling or closing down 242

87 Personal services income 244

88 Non–commercial losses 245

89 Franchising 247

Part VIII Miscellaneous 249

90 Overseas income 250

91 Getting a great accountant 253

92 Lodging your tax return 256

93 Amending returns and objecting to assessments 258

94 ATO data matching 261

95 Problems paying your tax 264

96 Medical expenses tax offset 266

97 Levies 269

98 Zone and overseas forces tax offsets 273

99 Tax–effective investments 276

100 Tax planning as a 365–day process 277

101 Just do it! 279

Glossary 281

Bibliography 299

Index 301

O autorze

ADRIAN RAFTERY has over 20 years experience in providing accounting services and financial advice to businesses and individuals. As a recognised tax expert, Adrian appears frequently on TV and contributes to magazines and newspapers. Visit www.mrtaxman.com.au.

Blurb

FOR ALL TAXPAYERS, WHETHER YOU:

• USE TAXPACK
• LODGE YOUR TAX ONLINE
• SEEK THE HELP OF A TAX PROFESSIONAL

Three things in life are certain: death, taxes, and a raft of tax changes when a new government comes into power. Find out about new tax changes and how to legally reduce your tax.

In this year s edition of 101 Ways to Save Money on Your Tax Legally! Adrian Raftery, also known as Mr Taxman, provides the latest update on tax changes and gives you proven tips to help you minimise your tax debt while maximising your return.

Completely updated for the 2014 2015 tax year, you ll find tax tips and insights that apply to:

• families
• employees
• students
• superannuation members
• business owners
• investors with interests in rental properties and share portfolios.

Everyone has to pay tax, but why should you pay more than you have to? Don t let the government take more than its fair share of your hard–earned dollars. Avoid the common mistakes that cost taxpayers every year, learn the important tips to save big, and get answers to the most frequently asked tax questions.