Tax updates: ATO penalties, super guarantee rate & car FBT

Tax lodgement dates

21 Nov

25 Nov

Final date for lodgement and payment of October 2011 monthly activity statements.

Final date for electronic lodgement and payment of Quarter 1 (July - September 2011) activity statements (based on your eligibility for this later due date).

28 Nov

Final date for lodgement and payment for superannuation contributions if required super contributions were not made by 28 October for the September 2011 quarter. The SGC is not tax deductible.

1 Dec

Due date for income tax payment for companies and superannuation funds that were taxable medium to large business clients in the immediate year prior.

Due date for income tax payment for companies and superannuation funds that were required to lodge by 31 October 2011.

Due date for payment of income tax for superannuation funds where one or more prior-year income tax returns are outstanding as at 30 June 2011 (lodgment of return was due 31 October 2011).

21 Dec

Final date for lodgement and payment for November 2011 monthly activity statements.

Claiming back general interest and penalty charges from the ATO

In our more recent newsletters we have addressed the aggressive push, particularly towards small businesses, by the Australian Tax Office to collect debt. The ATO have been ruthless in this push and has been issuing unforeseen garnishee notices and chasing businesses directly.

In addition to this many businesses have been charged significant general interest by the ATO as well as late lodgement penalties pending the compliance history of the taxpayer or entity.

Azure Group has been working hard to address this issue by remaining proactive with clients and assisting them where necessary to put in place payment arrangements.

We have also successfully, through our own internal campaign and initiative had some of these charges and penalties for clients remitted back from the ATO, where the charges imposed were unreasonable due to the circumstances of the client.

We would recommend discussing with us the potential opportunity to recover GIC and penalties which has been paid in last six months.

The ATO will only go back as far as 24 months to remit charges imposed. However, if you are in urgent need for assistance in this regard please contact either of Sydney or Gold Coast offices and speak with your primary advisor.

Super guarantee rate

A new bill was introduced into Parliament on 2 November 2011 to increase the Superannuation Guarantee "charge percentage" (rate) for a quarter from 9% to 12%, phasing in from 1 July 2013. Increments are proposed as follows:

The Bill also proposes to increase the SG age limit from 70 to 75, with an additional announcement that there will be no age limit for superannuation guarantee contributions from 1 July 2013. If changes go through, from 1 July 2013, employers will be required to make SG contributions for employees regardless of age.

Car fringe benefits rules

The Government has introduced a bill to amend the fringe benefits tax (FBT) legislation and reform the statutory formula method for determining the taxable value of car fringe benefits (Tax Laws Amendment [2011 Measures No. 5] Bill 2011).

The current statutory rates will be replaced with a single rate of 20% regardless of kilometres travelled. The change applies to car benefits after 10 May 2011. Exceptions may include where an employee, employer or their associate has committed to the acquisition of the car prior to 10 May 2011 that will be the subject of a car benefit.

If you would like more information on the transitional rules and FBT impact relevant to your business please contact our Emma Kerdic in our Sydney Office on +61 2 9238 1188.