2009/2010 Financial Year Tax Tips & Tax Deductions Lodging Online Tax Return With ATO
Posted May 18th, 2010 and last modified June 27th, 2011
In a time of economic uncertainty, find ways to minimize the amount of taxes that you have to pay.
During this time of economic uncertainty it is necessary for most people to find ways to reduce their tax liability for the 2009/2010 financial year
By reducing the amount you spend on takes you can save more money for all of the things you need that are getting increasingly more expensive. It might surprise you to find out all of the ways you can reduce your taxable income just by examining which of your expenses are work related or how much you have really given to charity in the past year. With all of these things it is of the utmost importance to be completely honest and to keep documentation and receipts for your claims.
Work Expense Tax Tips
Did you know that you can claim several tax deductions for costs that are associated with doing your job? It’s true, in fact if the claim is less then $300 you do not even need receipts, although it is always a good idea to have them. The $300 limit does not include expenses related to cars, meal allowances, travel allowance expenses, or award transport payments.
Other expenses that can be claimed but are often overlooked are union fees, costs for seminars and conferences, formal education courses through professional organizations and workshops, and computers, software, or home office expenses. In addition you can make claims for items you need to purchase to protect you while you do your work. This can include sunscreen or sunglasses if you work outdoors or specialised tools and equipment. In some cases you may be able to claim trade journal subscriptions and magazines but they have to directly relate to your job.
The clothes that you wear to work can often be deducted from your taxes. These clothes are limited to work specific attire like uniforms, protective clothing, and other specialised attire. There is a list of accepted clothing for deductions at www.ato.gov.au, that you should check out before making a claim. In addition to the cost of the clothes you can also claim costs of dry cleaning and ironing your work attire. You may even be able to claim the cost of laundering the clothes yourself at a rate of $1 per load. Be aware that if you claim more then $100 in clothing expense you will need to provide receipts or diary entries.
Bank Fee Tax Tips
Sometimes you can even claim tax deductions on your bank fees as long as they are associated with earning money. An example would be if you need to withdraw your income or cash for your business and that transaction has a fee you can claim the fee. If you have monthly fees associated with a savings or cheque account that is used for your business to create income or to run the business you can deduct those fees.
By the same token though if the fees are just to simplify your accounting by allowing you to pay bills with the account then they can’t be deducted. Also if you work accounts are tied together with your mortgage, credit cards, or other personal accounts those fees are probably not deductible on your tax return.
Charitable Donation Tax Tips
A donation of as little as two dollars can be claimed on your tax return as long as the group you donated to has the status of a deductible gift recipient. It is easy to find out if your charity has this status by looking them up at www.abr.business.gov.au. Not all charitable donations can be claimed. Usually if you are getting something in return for your donation like a raffle ticket, candy, or tickets to a fundraising event they are ineligible for tax deductions.
Tax Tip Contacts
If you need assistance regarding expenses you can claim on your tax return visit the ATO website at www.ato.gov.au/individuals. There is no cost for doing the return yourself and you should get a refund within two weeks. If you are not comfortable doing your own return there are tax agents available for hire. Their rate is usually $100 for a simple tax lodgement, a fee you can claim on you return next year.
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