Ausccounting
中文

Chartered Accountants · Registered Tax Practice · Eastwood, Sydney

Numbers that stand up
to the ATO.

Ausccounting is a Sydney accounting practice for individuals, property investors and small business — led by qualified accountants who take responsibility for every return we sign — in English, Mandarin and Cantonese.

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16% → 15%FY 2026–27 tax cut now law
CA + CPA
Dual-qualified chartered accountants
中·粤·EN
English, Mandarin & Cantonese service
ABN 80 696 187 943
Australian registered practice, GST registered
Eastwood
In the heart of Sydney's north

What we do

Four things, done properly.

We would rather do fewer things to a professional standard than everything at a discount. Every engagement is handled by a qualified accountant — not passed to a data-entry queue.

01

Individual tax returns

For employees, families and new arrivals who want it done right.

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02

Tax for property investors

Rental schedules the ATO reads carefully — prepared by people who know that.

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03

Sole traders & side businesses

For contractors, gig workers and side hustles that got serious.

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04

Companies, trusts & bookkeeping

The full back office for small business — kept clean all year, not rescued in June.

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How we work

The standard we hold ourselves to.

01

A qualified accountant signs off on everything

Software is a tool; responsibility isn't. Every return that leaves this practice is reviewed by a CA/CPA-qualified accountant who answers for it — a duty no app or AI can carry for you.

02

Truly trilingual, not just translated

Chinese documents read as source material, not as an obstacle. Bank statements, contracts and correspondence in Chinese are handled natively — and your position is explained back to you in whichever language you actually think in.

03

Right first, aggressive never

We claim everything you are entitled to and nothing you are not. That is not caution for its own sake — with ATO data-matching now covering banks, platforms and property, it is simply the only strategy that works long-term.

04

Plain answers, up-front fees

You will always know what something costs before we start, and what a result means without a translator for the jargon. If we would not pay for a service ourselves, we do not sell it.

Free tools

Check the numbers yourself.

Built on current FY 2026–27 rates, updated when the law changes. Use them freely — and if the result raises a question, that is exactly what a consultation is for.

Income tax calculator

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The 1 July 2026 tax cut is now in effect: the 16% rate dropped to 15%. Enter your taxable income to see your tax, your take-home pay, and what the cut saves you this year.

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Investment property calculator

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See the before- and after-tax weekly cost (or income) of holding a rental property. This is the conversation every landlord should have before June — not after.

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Insights

What changed on 1 July — in plain language.

29 September 2026

I receive a retirement pension from China and now live in Australia — do I have to declare it on my tax return?

Usually yes. Under the Australia–China tax treaty, a pension for past employment or a payment from China's social security system, paid to an Australian tax resident, is taxable only in Australia — so it goes on your return at the foreign pensions section, converted to Australian dollars. The main exception is a pension paid by the Chinese government for government service, which the treaty generally leaves to China unless you are also an Australian citizen.

27 September 2026

Can my business still charge a card surcharge after 1 October 2026 — and what does it mean for GST?

No, for most card payments. From 1 October 2026 eftpos, Mastercard and Visa ban card surcharges, and American Express, UnionPay and PayPal (from 5 October) have followed. Weekend, public holiday and service fees are not caught. For GST nothing new is created — the ATO already treats a surcharge as part of the price — but your till, invoices and BAS need to catch up on the day.

26 September 2026

I've already lodged my tax return and found a mistake — how do I fix it?

You don't lodge a second return. You request an amendment — online through myGov is fastest, at about 20 days — but only once the original has been processed. Individuals generally have two years from their notice of assessment to do it, and if the fix means more tax, getting in before the ATO asks is what keeps any penalty small.

25 September 2026

Our family trust paid someone outside the family group — what is family trust distribution tax, and can the interest still be cut?

Once a trust has made a family trust election, anything it distributes outside the specified person's family group is taxed at 47% — payable by the trustee, not the recipient, and with no time limit on the ATO finding it. The tax itself can't be waived. The interest can: until 31 December 2026 the ATO says it may remit up to 80% of it for groups that find and pay the liability before it comes looking.

24 September 2026

I earned under $18,200 — do I still need to lodge a tax return?

Usually not — but the ATO's own rule has two conditions, not one: income under the tax-free threshold and no tax withheld from it. Miss the second and you are leaving your own money with the ATO. And if you genuinely don't need to lodge, the ATO still expects to hear that from you, by 31 October.

23 September 2026

My tax agent lodged late — is the penalty mine or theirs?

There is a rule that takes a failure to lodge penalty off you when your agent is the reason it was late. It is called safe harbour, it is real, and it turns on two things decided long before the penalty notice arrives: whether the person you used is registered, and whether you can prove what you handed over and when. With 31 October coming, this is the part worth getting right at the start rather than arguing about at the end.

21 September 2026

I’m moving overseas for good — do I have to sell my Australian shares before I go?

You don’t have to sell them, but for tax purposes you may be treated as though you did. When you stop being an Australian resident for tax purposes, you are taken to have disposed of your assets that aren’t taxable Australian property at their market value on that day — shares, ETFs and crypto included, the investment property excluded. There is a choice that switches this off, and it is not a free one. Here is how the rule works and what the choice actually costs.

20 September 2026

We’re selling the family home — can we each put $300,000 into super?

The ATO refreshed its downsizer contribution data on 15 September 2026: 19,700 people paid $5.236 billion into super this way during 2025–26, and New South Wales accounts for close to a third of everyone who has used the scheme since 2018–19. The eligibility list is shorter than most people expect, and one condition people assume is on it isn’t. But it is a once-only scheme with a paperwork step that cannot be repaired after the money has moved.

19 September 2026

I live overseas and own Australian assets — what changes on 1 October 2026?

The Act carrying the foreign resident capital gains tax changes received Royal Assent on 15 September 2026, and the ATO confirmed the next day that the changes take effect from 1 October 2026. If you own an Australian apartment in your own name, almost nothing about your position moves. If you hold Australian land inside a company or a trust, one of the four changes matters a great deal: the test that decides whether your shares or units are taxable here now looks back a full year instead of at a single moment.

18 September 2026

I haven't lodged for a few years — can the ATO actually take me to court?

Yes, and it did so more often last year than the year before. On 17 September 2026 the ATO said successful non-lodgment prosecutions rose more than 80% between 2024–25 and 2025–26 — more than 350 individuals and entities prosecuted over two years, more than 305 convicted, and over $2.7 million in court-imposed fines. Prosecution sits at the end of a ladder that starts with a penalty and a letter, and what moves a case up that ladder is not the size of the debt.

17 September 2026

Do I have to pay super on my employees' annual leave loading?

Usually yes. The ATO's default is that annual leave loading counts towards super, and the only way out is an exception you have to prove in writing — the award, the agreement, or a documented policy showing the loading is there because the employee lost the chance to work overtime. Since 1 July 2026 that decision is made on every pay run rather than once a quarter, and the ruling that would settle the argument is sitting on hold pending a court appeal.

16 September 2026

How much interest does the ATO charge on an unpaid tax bill from 1 October 2026?

11.51% a year, up from 11.43% — the ATO published the October to December rate on 4 September. On its own that is a small move. What makes it worth reading is the company it keeps: it is the highest quarterly general interest charge since early 2012, it compounds daily, and since 1 July 2025 it can no longer be claimed as a deduction. That last change is what turned an ATO debt from one of the cheaper ways to be late into one of the more expensive ones.

15 September 2026

I moved to Australia partway through last year — do I still get the full $18,200 tax-free threshold?

No. The $18,200 belongs to someone who was an Australian resident for tax purposes for a full income year. Arrive partway through and the threshold is rebuilt out of two pieces: a flat $13,464, plus up to $4,736 apportioned across the months you were here, counting the month you arrived. This piece works through the calculation, explains why tax residency has very little to do with which visa you hold, and covers the two assumptions that turn a first tax return into an unexpected bill.

14 September 2026

I sell on eBay and Amazon on the side — does the ATO get my sales figures?

It does, and it has been collecting them since 2008. Under the online selling data-matching program the ATO takes account and sales data from eBay Australia and New Zealand and Amazon Commercial Services for every financial year from 2018–19 to 2025–26, wherever a seller's annual trading activity reaches $12,000 or more — roughly 20,000 to 30,000 account records a year. This piece sets out what is in that record, why the $12,000 is not a tax-free allowance, and where the line between a clear-out and a business actually sits.

13 September 2026

We're ordering an EV through the business — is the FBT exemption still there? The draft law went out for consultation on 11 September

Treasury opened consultation on the exposure draft legislation for the electric car FBT changes on 11 September 2026, closing 28 September. The announced shape is a taper, not a cut-off: the full discount runs to the end of March 2027, then cars costing $75,000 or less keep a 100% discount while dearer ones below the luxury car tax threshold drop to 25%. This piece sets out what the exemption gives you today, what is proposed, and the two things about it that are most often misread — starting with the fact that an exempt car benefit is still a reportable one.

12 September 2026

I bought a car through the business — how would the ATO even know?

The ATO published the protocol for the next five years of its motor vehicle registries data-matching program on 4 August 2026. It takes records from all eight state and territory registries wherever a vehicle is transferred or newly registered for $10,000 or more, and expects data on roughly 2.5 million individuals a year. This piece sets out what is actually in that record — it is a great deal more than the price — which taxes it is checked against, and the two assumptions about it that are worth retiring.

11 September 2026

I only pay family through payroll — is my STP finalisation due 30 September?

30 September is a real STP deadline, but it is not everybody's. With 20 or more employees, or a mix of closely held payees and arm's length staff, the finalisation declaration for the closely held payees is due 30 September. A small employer with only closely held payees runs on a different date entirely — the payee's own tax return due date. This piece sets out the three dates, the three quarterly reporting options, the income type flag that makes them work, and what follows when a reasonable estimate turns out to be too low.

10 September 2026

Can the ATO tell a credit bureau how much tax my business owes?

It can, and the criteria are published: an ABN, at least $100,000 overdue by more than 90 days, and no effective engagement with the ATO. Before anything is reported you get a written notice of intent and 28 days. This piece sets out the four criteria in full, what "effectively engaging" actually means, what gets reported and when it comes off, and the one thing the ATO says is not an exceptional circumstance.

9 September 2026

My staff salary sacrifice their laptops and course fees — does that still work from 2027?

On 7 September the ATO told employers that from 1 April 2027 two long-standing ways of making a salary-sacrificed work expense cost nothing in FBT are switched off: the otherwise deductible rule stops applying to packaged work-related expense payments, and portable devices, software, protective clothing, briefcases and tools of trade stop being exempt when they come through a salary packaging arrangement. One restriction is lifted at the same time. Here is what changed, what survives, and what is worth checking before April 2027.

8 September 2026

The trust distributed to a family member who never gave us their tax file number — what happens now?

Family trusts are closely held trusts, and the rule attached to them is blunt: if a beneficiary has not quoted their TFN before they become entitled to trust income, the trustee has to withhold at the top rate — the ATO's own worked example uses 47%. The quarterly TFN report disappeared on 1 July 2026, but the withholding did not, and the reports that follow it fall due on 30 September, 14 October and 28 October. Here is how the rule works, who is genuinely outside it, and why a withheld amount is not money lost.

7 September 2026

I run a café — do I really have to check the GST on every single stock invoice?

There is an ATO-authorised method that lets restaurants, cafés and catering businesses estimate the GST credits on their stock purchases from a four-week sample, instead of classifying every delivery docket. The determination it currently sits in sunsets on 1 October 2026, and a draft replacement with the same substantive effect is out. Here is who can use it, how the sample works, and the conditions that catch people who adopt it without telling the ATO.

6 September 2026

We pay an overseas company for the software our business runs on — does part of that money have to stay in Australia?

On 4 September 2026 the ATO finalised its view on when a payment to an overseas software supplier is a royalty — Taxation Ruling TR 2026/2 — and released a draft compliance guideline, PCG 2026/D4, open for comment until 2 October. The ruling applies to arrangements both before and after the day it was issued. Here is who has to withhold and at what rate, the payments the ATO has put in its lowest-risk zone, and the point at which an ordinary reseller arrangement stops being ordinary.

5 September 2026

My subcontractor has an ABN and sends me an invoice — do I have to pay him super, and on how much of it?

On 2 September 2026 the ATO withdrew the 1996 determination that told employers how to work out the labour part of a contractor's invoice, and replaced it with a draft written for the payday super rules — SGD 2026/D1, open for comment until 2 October and proposed to apply to payments made on or after 1 July 2026. Here is who it catches, what has to come out of the invoice before you work out the 12 per cent, and the two mistakes that cost employers the most.

4 September 2026

The draft law on the 30% trust tax is out — is there now a way to keep my family trust out of it?

Treasury released the exposure draft legislation on 3 September 2026, and consultation closes on 18 September. The draft carries something the Budget announcement and the July consultation paper did not: a discretionary trust can be exempt from the minimum tax if it elects to make fixed distributions to pre-nominated beneficiaries — no restructure, and on the Treasurer's own statement no state or territory stamp duty expected. Here is what was actually released, what that election costs, and why the ATO still records the measure as not yet law.

3 September 2026

My income comes from NDIS and Child Care Subsidy payments — does the ATO already have those figures?

It does. Under the Government Payments Program the ATO collects payment data directly from the agencies that pay service providers — the NDIA, the Department of Education, Health, Veterans' Affairs and others — under a coercive information-gathering power, covering the 2023–24 to 2025–26 financial years and around 60,000 providers a year. The last year in that range is the return most providers are lodging right now. Here is what the file contains, the four things it is checked against, where the income belongs on the return, and why GST-free does not mean untaxed.

2 September 2026

I've always claimed $300 of work expenses without receipts — can I still do that in 2026–27?

No. The substantiation exception that let you claim $300 of work expenses without written evidence has been repealed from 1 July 2026, along with the $150 laundry one. What replaced it is worth more — up to $1,000, applied automatically — but it works in the opposite direction to the old rule: every work-related expense you claim reduces it dollar for dollar. On 26 August the ATO published its first draft ruling on how it operates, and the arithmetic it sets out changes what most employees should do with their receipts this year.

1 September 2026

I was on Parental Leave Pay last year — when does the super the government promised actually turn up?

The first Paid Parental Leave Superannuation Contributions started going out from July 2026, for parents who received Parental Leave Pay for a child born or adopted on or after 1 July 2025. The ATO pays it — not your employer — as a lump sum after the financial year ends, at the 12% super guarantee rate plus an interest component. Here is when it lands, why it uses this year’s contributions cap rather than last year’s, and the detail that decides whether it reaches the right fund at all.

31 August 2026

The ATO is asking about a rental property I sold years ago — how does it know, and can I still fix it?

The ATO's copy of that sale came from the state revenue office and the land titles authority, under a data-matching program it has run since 2005 and a legislative reporting regime covering every transfer since 1 July 2017 — contract date, settlement date, price, ownership share. Here is why the year on its record and the year on your return can genuinely differ, what the two-year amendment limit does and does not protect, and the specific amount that coming forward before an examination is announced is worth.

30 August 2026

The business runs through a family trust — will it be taxed at 30% from 1 July 2028?

Announced in the Budget on 12 May 2026: a 30% minimum tax on discretionary trusts, paid by the trustee, from 1 July 2028. Treasury's consultation paper came out on 8 July 2026 and submissions closed at the end of that month; as at 30 August 2026 the ATO still records the measure as not yet law, with no bill listed against it. There is one word in the design that decides who actually pays more — and one date that explains why doing something about it this year is premature.

29 August 2026

I spend months at a time overseas — does the ATO know exactly when I come and go?

Yes, and last week the arrangement was renewed for another three years. A gazette notice published in the week starting 24 August 2026 extends the ATO's passenger movements data-matching program through to 2028–29: arrival dates, departure dates, passport details and visa status for around 115,000 individuals a year, drawn daily from the Home Affairs database that has held every movement in and out of Australia since June 1981. What that data is used for — and the one thing the ATO says it is explicitly not used for — is worth knowing before it ever turns up in a letter.

28 August 2026

My business is down on last year — can I lower my PAYG instalments without being charged interest?

The instalment notice is worked out from your last assessment, so a year that has gone backwards still gets billed on last year's profit. You can vary it down, but if the varied amount lands below 85% of the Commissioner's benchmark, general interest charge can follow. From 1 July 2027 there is meant to be a better route — an ATO-approved calculation running inside your accounting software, with a safe harbour attached. The draft guideline setting out that safe harbour closes for comment today.

27 August 2026

Our investment property is in both our names — if one of us dies, does it lose its negative gearing exemption?

The negative gearing grandfathering most owners are relying on hangs on a single moment: 7:30pm AEST on 12 May 2026. But tax law treats a surviving joint tenant as acquiring the deceased's share on the day of death — a date that, for most couples, falls after that moment, quietly stripping half the property of its exception. That gap was closed by amendments which received Royal Assent yesterday as Act No. 71 of 2026. Here is what is now covered, including the case getting no attention at all: the home you later rent out.

26 August 2026

Most of my tax return filled in by itself — does that mean it's complete?

Pre-fill is finalised for most people by the end of July, so by late August the screen looks finished. That is not the same thing as a finished return. On the ATO's own availability lists this month, 5 of the 50 largest financial institutions still aren't supplying interest data and 4 of the 49 largest companies aren't supplying dividend data — and ATO interest for the 2026 income year isn't pre-filling at all yet. Here is what to check before you press lodge.

25 August 2026

My company owes the ATO more than it can pay — can they come after me personally?

In 2024–25 the ATO issued more than 84,000 director penalty notices to directors of about 64,000 companies, a 136% jump on the year before, and the Tax Ombudsman has a review of how it uses them scheduled to begin in September 2026. Three of the amounts a company owes can be recovered from its directors personally — and which escape routes stay open is decided long before the notice arrives, by whether the amount was reported on time.

24 August 2026

My income from overseas is in another currency — which exchange rate do I use on my tax return?

The ATO published its rates for the financial year ended 30 June 2026 on 13 July, and added the first monthly averages for 2026–27 on 14 August. Which row you read them from changes the figure you declare: on ¥120,000 of rent, two rates printed on the same ATO page are about A$598 apart. Here is the rule that decides which one you may use, when an average is allowed and when it is not, and the two conversion mistakes that cost the most.

23 August 2026

I've changed jobs and moved house a few times — is my old super still out there?

The ATO's super statistics for 30 June 2026 put lost and unclaimed super at just over $21.2 billion across just under 7.5 million accounts, up from $18.9 billion a year earlier. Most of it is not lost in any dramatic sense — a large share is sitting with the ATO waiting for someone to nominate a fund. Here is what the two piles inside that number actually are, how an account ends up in either, and the two checks worth doing before you press consolidate.

22 August 2026

Free tokens turned up in my wallet — do I owe tax on them? The ATO has published its first draft ruling on airdrops

On 19 August 2026 the Commissioner signed two draft rulings on crypto: TR 2026/D1 on airdrops, and TD 2026/D2 on wrapping and unwrapping. Between them they answer the two questions people ask most and get wrong most — whether tokens you never paid for are income the moment they land, and whether swapping ETH for WETH is a taxable event when nothing ever left your wallet. Both are proposed to apply to years you have already lodged.

21 August 2026

Will I have to do a course before I can set up an SMSF? What was actually announced on 19 August

On 19 August 2026 Treasury published the implementation detail for the Government's superannuation consumer protection measure. Seven of the items land on self-managed super funds: mandatory trustee education before registration, a uniquely identifiable bank account, a written investment strategy upfront, a power for the ATO to stop rollovers into a new SMSF, and the first supervisory levy rise since 2013. None of it is law, and no start date has been published. Here is each item, the two misreadings already circulating, and what has not changed.

20 August 2026

Parliament passed the small business tax bill on 19 August — is the $20,000 write-off permanent now?

For two months the honest answer to 'can I rely on the $20,000 instant asset write-off this financial year?' was 'that is the announcement, not the law'. On 19 August 2026 the Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Reform No. 2) Bill 2026 passed both Houses, carrying the permanent $20,000 write-off and the return of company loss carry back. Here is what changed, the one step still outstanding, and the three tests that decide whether the write-off works for you — none of which this bill touched.

19 August 2026

I already own an established investment property — can I still negatively gear it after 1 July 2027?

Negative gearing for residential property is being limited to new builds from 1 July 2027, and it is already law. The instinct is to sell before the date. For most existing owners that would be the wrong move: whether the rule touches you at all is decided by one moment that has already passed — 7:30pm AEST on 12 May 2026. Here is which of the three groups your property falls into, what 'no negative gearing' actually means for the loss, and why the definition of a new build is still being drafted this week.

18 August 2026

I paid the June quarter super late — do I still have to lodge an SGC statement?

The money reached the fund a few days after 28 July, everyone has been paid, and it feels like the matter closed itself. It didn't. For the quarter ending 30 June 2026 a late payment triggers a separate obligation with its own form and its own due date — 28 August — and this is the one quarter where paying it late afterwards does not fix it.

17 August 2026

The ATO has moved my BAS from quarterly to monthly — why, and can I change it back?

Nothing about the business changed, but the reporting cycle did, and the first statement is due on the 21st instead of late October. This is a decision the ATO makes deliberately, on grounds it publishes, for a minimum of twelve months — and there is a review process attached to it that most people find out about after the letter has already been filed away.

16 August 2026

If I use a tax agent, do I really get until 15 May to lodge?

The extension is real, but it is not automatic and it is not one date. Whether you land on 31 October 2026, 31 March 2027 or 15 May 2027 was decided by two things that were already fixed on 30 June: whether any earlier return of yours was still unlodged, and how big your last tax bill was.

15 August 2026

I bought an established investment property — is a depreciation schedule still worth paying for?

One half of what these reports used to deliver was switched off in 2017: the decline in value of second-hand fixtures and appliances. The other half — a flat deduction on the building itself, for up to 40 years — was left untouched, and it is the half that owners of older properties most often never claim.

14 August 2026

My company is making a loss this year — can it get back the tax it paid in the last two years?

The usual answer is that a loss gets carried forward and waits for future profits. Companies now have a second option: apply this year's loss against tax already paid in the previous two years and take a refund. It passed both Houses on 19 August 2026 and received Royal Assent on 26 August 2026 as Act No. 71 of 2026 — so it is law, and it reaches income years commencing on or after 1 July 2026.

13 August 2026

The ATO sent me a Division 293 notice — why is there an extra 15% tax on my super?

The notice arrives weeks after the refund because it can't be worked out until your super fund reports as well. The part that catches people out is the income test: a negatively geared rental loss is added straight back before the $250,000 threshold is applied, so it does nothing here.

12 August 2026

I'm on a temporary visa and can't use Medicare — do I still pay the 2% levy?

There is a full exemption, and plenty of people on temporary visas qualify for it. But the exemption is gated on a document from Services Australia that takes up to 8 weeks to arrive, and the ATO now receives that data daily. On 2024–25 returns it checked the claims of more than 250,000 people who held one — and reviewed 21,800 returns.

11 August 2026

My side business made a loss — can I take it off my salary?

The software drops the loss onto your return, taxable income falls, and the estimated refund climbs. For a lot of people that number is wrong. The non-commercial loss rules are a series of gates you have to pass in order, and the one that catches the most people is a $250,000 line worked out before the loss, not after — an error the ATO currently lists among its focus areas for small business.

10 August 2026

I just lodged my tax return — why is the ATO now asking me to prepay next year's tax?

The assessment came through, and a few weeks later a letter appears saying you have entered PAYG instalments, with the first payment due 28 October. It is not a second tax bill and it is not a penalty for anything. It is the ATO moving you onto the same pay-as-you-go footing an employee is already on — and the expensive mistakes are all made in the first quarter, before anyone realises the instalment can be adjusted.

9 August 2026

My parents sent money from overseas for the deposit — do I have to pay tax on it?

A genuine gift from family is not income in Australia, and there is no line on the return where it would go. The difficulty is never the tax treatment — it is proving, sometimes years later, that the money was what you say it was. The ATO has published exactly what it expects to see, and almost all of it has to be collected on the day the money moves rather than after a letter arrives.

8 August 2026

I work from home most of the week — can I claim part of my rent or mortgage interest?

The desk is in your house, and the most expensive thing about that house is the rent or the mortgage. So it feels like some of it belongs in the work-from-home claim. The ATO has flagged this month that people are putting exactly those amounts in. For most employees the answer is a clean no — and for the small number who genuinely qualify, saying yes quietly costs part of the tax-free status of their own home.

7 August 2026

I sold an apartment back in China — do I have to declare it on my Australian tax return?

The property is overseas, the buyer is overseas, the tax was paid overseas, and the money never touched an Australian bank account. None of that is what decides the answer. Two questions about you settle most of it: what kind of resident you are for tax purposes, and what the place was worth on the day you became one. The second question is the one that quietly saves people the most — and the one almost nobody has the paperwork for.

6 August 2026

I took money out of my own company — do I have to pay it back, and at what interest rate? For 2026–27 it's 8.77%

Most owners of a small company move money between the company account and their own without ever thinking of it as borrowing. Division 7A does. For the income year ending 30 June 2027 the benchmark interest rate — the minimum rate a shareholder loan has to carry to stay outside the deemed dividend rules — is 8.77%, up from 8.37%. Here is what that number is used for, the one date that decides everything, and why repaying it all on 30 June and taking it out again in July does not fix it.

5 August 2026

I paid subcontractors last year — do I have to lodge a TPAR by 28 August?

It isn't a tax return, there is no money attached to it, and a lot of business owners have never heard of it — which is exactly why the ATO treats a late one differently from a late BAS. Here is which businesses are caught (including the 10% test that surprises people who don't think they're in the industry), what goes in and what stays out, and why owing nothing is not the protection it usually is.

4 August 2026

My property manager sent the annual statement — can I just copy those numbers into my tax return?

It arrives as one tidy page: rent in at the top, fees and repairs down the middle, a net figure at the bottom that matches your bank account to the cent. In late July 2026 the ATO reminded rental owners that this document is a starting point, not a tax classification — and that the owner, not the agent, is responsible for what ends up in the return. Three lines rarely survive the translation: the income figure, the word "repairs", and anything filed under "sundry".

3 August 2026

I redrew from my investment loan to pay for something personal — can I still claim all the interest?

Same loan, same tenant, same lender, and one interest figure on the annual statement. But the moment redrawn money pays for something private, part of that interest stops being deductible — and the split follows the loan for the rest of its life. Here is how the ATO works it out, why paying the private part back doesn't fix it, and the difference between a redraw and an offset account that catches people out.

1 August 2026

Can my SMSF still borrow to buy a residential investment property? From 10 August the answer changes

A self-managed super fund borrowing to buy a rental has been a standard plan for well over a decade. From 10 August 2026, a new limited recourse borrowing arrangement used to buy real property can only be used to acquire business real property. Here is what actually changes, the three situations it does not touch, and why the date your contract was exchanged now matters more than your settlement date.

31 July 2026

I'm buying a car through the business — how much of it can I actually claim? The cap for 2026–27 is $69,883

The dealer says put it through the business. What almost nobody is told is that the deduction stops at a fixed dollar figure, and the cost above that figure is not deferred or pooled — it never becomes a deduction at all. Here is the 2026–27 car limit, the one measurement on the compliance plate that decides whether the cap applies to your vehicle, and why the instant asset write-off doesn't rescue a car.

30 July 2026

I'm a subcontractor — why has my income started appearing in my tax return by itself?

New this tax time: the payments builders, cleaning companies, courier firms and government agencies report about you are now pre-filled into your individual return. It sounds like the work has been done for you. What it actually changes is when you should lodge, what the figures mean, and what happens when you overwrite one. Here is what the ATO sends through, why 28 August is the date that matters more than 1 July, and the income that will never appear no matter how long you wait.

29 July 2026

I fixed the place up before the first tenant moved in — can I claim those repairs this year?

You bought a tired house, spent real money making it rentable, and now the invoices are sitting in front of you at tax time. The instinct is to treat the lot as repairs. The ATO splits the same spending three ways, and the test has nothing to do with how the work looked — it turns on when the damage happened and whether the thing you touched is part of the building. Here is how the split works, why an itemised invoice is worth asking for on the day, and the deduction most new landlords assume they have and don't.

28 July 2026

My June quarter BAS was due 28 July — what actually happens if I lodge or pay it late?

28 July is the original due date for the April–June quarter activity statement, and for a lot of small businesses it lands in the same week the quarterly super went out. The useful thing to understand is that it is two obligations wearing one date — lodging and paying — enforced in completely different ways. Here is what each one costs when it slips, who already has until 11 or 25 August without asking for it, and why lodging on time still matters when the money isn't there.

27 July 2026

I lodged weeks ago and my refund still hasn't arrived — or came back smaller than the estimate. What happened?

Late July is when the questions start: the estimate on screen said one number, the bank account says another, or nothing has landed at all. Most of the time the explanation is not a mistake in your return. It is the ATO balancing your refund against something you owe — sometimes a debt that was deliberately kept out of your account balance and that the ATO has no legal power to waive. Here is what each status means, why phoning does not help, and what a zero balance in myGov does not prove.

26 July 2026

I've started paying super every payday — do I still have to pay the June quarter by 28 July?

July 2026 is the one month employers have to run both super systems at once. Payday Super started on 1 July, but the April–June quarter is still governed by the old quarterly rules and has to be in employees' accounts by 28 July. There is also a rule about how the ATO applies your payments during the changeover that quietly reorders where your money lands — and this final quarter has no late payment offset to fall back on.

25 July 2026

I saw a tax hack on TikTok that promises a bigger refund — can I actually use it?

Every July the group chats, TikTok, Instagram and even AI chatbots fill up with tax 'hacks' promising a bigger refund — claim your pet, your whole electricity bill, your weekend drives. The ATO has issued a specific warning for tax time 2026: advice from finfluencers, AI and well-meaning friends is often simply wrong, and whoever gave it to you, you remain liable for every figure on your return. Here are the ATO's three focus areas, the three-part test that decides whether a deduction is real, and where the honest shortcuts actually are.

24 July 2026

I've moved overseas — if I sell my old Australian home now, is the gain still exempt from capital gains tax?

You bought a home in Australia, lived in it, then moved overseas and became a foreign resident for tax purposes. The instinct is that it was your home, so the gain is exempt. Since 1 July 2020 that is no longer true: sell your main residence while you are a foreign resident and the exemption is gone entirely — not even a partial credit for the years you actually lived there. What decides it is your tax residency on the day you sign the contract, not the settlement date. Here's the one narrow exception, the 15% held back from the sale price, and why the order has to be residency first, sale second.

23 July 2026

I bought my investment property years ago — if I sell after 1 July 2027, how is the gain taxed?

The 50% capital gains tax discount is being replaced from 1 July 2027 by cost base indexation and a 30% minimum tax rate, and the measure is now law. The instinct is to sell before the date. The transitional rules are built specifically so that you don't have to: an asset you already own gets split in two, with the old rules on the gain up to 1 July 2027 and the new ones after. Here's how the split works, what the ATO will let you use to value your property at that date, and the one thing worth doing now.

22 July 2026

We own the investment property together — can the higher earner claim the whole rental loss?

Two names on the title, two very different incomes, and a negatively geared property. It seems sensible to put the loss where it saves the most tax — especially when the mortgage comes out of one person's account. The ATO's rule is settled and it isn't the answer most owners are hoping for: rent and deductions follow legal ownership on the title, not who pays the loan. Here's how the split actually works, the gross-versus-net rent error the ATO keeps finding, and why co-owned properties are being cross-checked this year.

21 July 2026

My super is over $3 million — will I be taxed more now? The new Division 296 rules just became law

You spent decades building a self-managed super fund — the business sold into it, a commercial property, a parcel of shares — and the balance now sits above $3 million. Last year's headlines were alarming, especially the part about being taxed on gains you hadn't actually made. Here's what genuinely became law: from 1 July 2026, earnings on the slice of your balance above $3 million carry an extra 15% tax. This explains how it works, why the feared 'tax on unrealised gains' was dropped, and the two things people are getting wrong about when it bites.

20 July 2026

I don't have private hospital cover — do I have to pay the Medicare levy surcharge, and how much?

The Medicare levy surcharge is an extra 1% to 1.5% charged on top of the 2% Medicare levy, and it applies to higher earners who don't hold appropriate private patient hospital cover. Two things catch people out: the income the ATO tests is broader than the figure on your payslip, and a policy you already pay for may not be the kind of cover that counts. Here are the 2025–26 and 2026–27 thresholds, what 'appropriate cover' actually means, and the rental-loss trap that quietly pushes people over the line.

19 July 2026

I'm selling my property — what's this 'clearance certificate', and why would 15% be withheld without it?

When you sell any Australian property, the buyer is now legally required to withhold 15% of the price and send it to the ATO — unless you hand over a clearance certificate proving you're an Australian resident for tax purposes. It applies to every sale, at any price, not just to foreigners, and the certificate can take up to 28 days to come through. Here's how it works, the assumption that quietly costs sellers a chunk of their settlement, and how a seller who has moved overseas gets the money back.

18 July 2026

I got a distribution from my family trust — do I have to lodge a separate schedule now?

Plenty of Chinese family businesses — a restaurant, an import company, a professional practice — run through a family or discretionary trust, and each year around 30 June the trust decides who gets what share of the profit. If a slice landed with you, there is now a trust income schedule that has to be lodged with your return. Here is who it applies to, the 'entitled, not paid' rule that catches people out, and what changes from 1 July 2026.

17 July 2026

My income is low — do I still have to pay the 2% Medicare levy? The 2025–26 thresholds just went up

The Medicare levy is 2% of your taxable income — but not everyone pays it. As a single, if you earned $28,011 or less in 2025–26 you pay nothing, and the thresholds were lifted at the 2026–27 Budget. Here is exactly where the lines fall.

16 July 2026

I run a small business and bought a new oven before 30 June — can I write the whole thing off this year?

You run a café, a small trades business or a shop, and somewhere in June you finally replaced the thing that had been limping along — a $9,000 oven, a $14,000 set of tools, a couple of laptops for the office. You've heard about the 'instant asset write-off' and you're hoping the whole cost comes straight off this year's tax, not dribbled out over a decade. For most small businesses that hope is well founded — but three details decide whether it actually works, and one line about 'it's permanent now' has just caught up with itself — the bill carrying it passed Parliament on 19 August 2026.

15 July 2026

My employer takes HECS out of every pay — how is my repayment actually worked out now?

You finished study a few years ago, your employer withholds a bit extra each pay for your HELP loan, and you assumed that was the whole story. This year it isn't. From your 2025–26 return, HECS-HELP repayments are worked out under a brand-new marginal system — you only repay on income above the threshold, not on your whole salary — and a 20% cut has already been applied to most balances. Here is how the new sums work, why crossing a threshold no longer stings, and the belief about employer withholding that still catches people out.

14 July 2026

I drive rideshare and deliver food on the side — do I have to declare it, and does the platform tell the ATO?

You do a few weekend shifts on Uber or DiDi, or you're out on the bike most weeknights for Uber Eats and Menulog. The money lands in your bank in dribs and drabs, it feels like a side thing, and part of you wonders whether it really counts as income the ATO cares about. It does — and since the platforms now report your earnings straight to the ATO, the gap between what you declare and what they already know is the exact thing that triggers a review. Here's what's assessable, the GST rule that catches rideshare drivers from the very first dollar, and how to get the return right.

13 July 2026

I still have income overseas — do I have to declare it in Australia?

You moved to Australia but never fully closed the door back home: an apartment still being rented out, a savings account quietly earning interest, a small dividend from a family company. The money stays offshore, so at tax time it feels like it belongs to another country's tax office. Here is why an Australian tax resident has to declare worldwide income regardless, what the ATO can already see through global data-sharing, and the offset that stops you being taxed twice.

12 July 2026

Can I claim the interest the ATO charges on my tax debt? Not anymore — from 1 July 2025

If you run a business, freelance under an ABN, or hold an investment property, there's a fair chance you've carried a tax debt at some point — a bill paid late, or a payment plan with the ATO. The interest on it used to be deductible: annoying, but at least claimable. From 1 July 2025 that's gone. The interest is still charged; it just isn't deductible anymore. Here's which charges are affected, why the date that matters is when the interest is 'incurred' rather than when you pay, and what it now actually costs.

11 July 2026

How much can I claim for working from home? It's 70 cents an hour — but only if your records hold up

You spent half the year at the kitchen table on Teams calls, so there must be a deduction in it. There is — the ATO's fixed rate is 70 cents for every hour you worked from home. But the number people get wrong isn't the rate, it's the hours: the ATO no longer accepts an estimate or a four-week 'representative' diary, and two honest mistakes can quietly wipe out the claim.

10 July 2026

Do I have to pay my staff's super every payday now? From 1 July 2026, yes

For years, your employees' super was a quarterly job — set it aside, send it off four times a year, done as long as it landed by the due date. From 1 July 2026 that rhythm is gone: super now moves with every pay run and has to reach the fund within seven business days. Here is what 'payday super' actually requires, the deadline most employers will misjudge, and the one part that quietly got better.

9 July 2026

I got a text saying the ATO owes me a refund — is it real?

It arrives mid-morning: a text from 'ATO' or 'myGov', a refund waiting, just tap the link. It is tax time, you are expecting money back, and for half a second it looks like the news you were hoping for. That half-second is exactly what the message is built on — and there is one test that settles almost every one of them.

8 July 2026

How much can I claim for using my car for work? The rate just went up to 91 cents

If you drive your own car for work, the simplest way to claim is a flat rate per kilometre — and from 1 July 2026 that rate rose to 91 cents. But two different figures are in play at tax time, the rate quietly covers more than people realise, and the trip most people assume they can claim usually can't be.

7 July 2026

I traded crypto and shares but never cashed out to my bank — do I still have to report it?

The money is still sitting in the exchange or the broking app, so it feels like nothing has happened yet. That instinct is the most expensive misunderstanding at tax time — and this year the ATO says more than a million people will get a crypto prompt on their return. Here is what actually counts as a taxable event, and the 12-month rule that works in your favour.

6 July 2026

Can I put more into super to lower my tax? From 1 July 2026 the cap went up to $32,500

Adding to super is one of the few tax levers most people still have — and from 1 July 2026 the amount you can contribute at the concessional rate rose from $30,000 to $32,500. Here is what that means, the number people forget to subtract, and the rule that lets some catch up on years they missed.

5 July 2026

I rent out my holiday home sometimes — can I still claim the interest and rates?

From the 2026–27 year the ATO applies one question to every mixed-use property before your ownership costs are deductible: is it used primarily to produce income? Under the finalised ruling TR 2026/1, listing a holiday home now and then is no longer enough on its own.

4 July 2026

What is the ATO watching this tax time? The three focus areas for your 2026 return

Every July the ATO names the short list of things it will look at hardest. For 2026 it is three: work-related expenses, rental income, and record-keeping. Here is what the ATO is actually checking in each — and how to stay off the list.

3 July 2026

Can you lodge your tax return now? Why the ATO says wait a few weeks

Tax time opened on 1 July and the myGov 'lodge' button is live — but the ATO's own advice this year is: don't lodge yet. Here is why early July is the wrong time to file, and the one signal to wait for.

1 July 2026

The 2026–27 tax cut is now live: what 16% → 15% actually means for you

From 1 July 2026 the tax rate on income between $18,201 and $45,000 dropped from 16% to 15%. Here is what it is worth, who benefits, and what to check on your next payslip.

1 July 2026

The new $1,000 instant work deduction: who should use it — and who shouldn't

From 1 July 2026 you can claim a $1,000 standard deduction for work-related expenses with no receipts. It is genuinely convenient — and for many people, genuinely the wrong choice.

Common questions

Asked constantly. Answered honestly.

Can you work with documents in Chinese?+

Yes — natively, not through a translator. Chinese bank statements, income certificates, property contracts and correspondence are part of our normal workflow, and we explain your Australian tax position back to you in Mandarin, Cantonese or English, whichever you prefer.

I have income or assets overseas. Do I really need to declare them?+

If you are an Australian tax resident, generally yes — Australia taxes residents on worldwide income, and information now flows to the ATO automatically under the Common Reporting Standard (CRS). The good news: declaring correctly usually costs far less than people fear, because foreign tax you have already paid is typically credited. The expensive path is not declaring and being contacted first.

How much do you charge?+

It depends on complexity, and we will quote you a fixed fee up-front before any work starts. What we do not do is advertise a teaser price and add surprises later. Ongoing business clients pay a fixed monthly fee so costs are predictable.

Why use an accountant instead of tax software or AI?+

Use software for simple returns — honestly. You engage an accountant when the answers depend on judgment: property, business, overseas income, structures. A registered practice also carries something no software does: professional responsibility for the position taken on your return, and someone to stand with you if the ATO asks questions.

What should I bring to a first appointment?+

Your ID, last year's return if you have one, income statements, and whatever records you have — even messy ones. Landlords: loan statements and the agent's annual summary. Business owners: software access or bank statements. We will tell you exactly what is missing rather than expecting you to know.

Can you fix past years' returns?+

Usually, yes. Returns can be amended within the amendment period, and where something serious was missed, a voluntary disclosure before the ATO contacts you can substantially reduce penalties. The sooner it is looked at, the more options you have.

The best time to talk to an accountant is before the deadline.

July conversations are cheap. June conversations are expensive. Book a consultation and know where you stand.

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