2020 Federal Budget –  Key take-aways for individuals & businesses

 

INDIVIDUALS

PERSONAL INCOME TAX CUTS

Date of effect

1 July 2020

 

	Tax thresholds
Tax rate	Current	From 1 July 2020	From 1 July 2024
0%	$0 – $18,200	$0 – $18,200	$0 – $18,200
19%	$18,201 – $37,000	$18,201 – $45,000	$18,201 – $45,000
30%	N/A	N/A	$45,001 – $200,000
32.5%	$37,001 – $90,000	$45,001 – $120,000	N/A
37%	$90,001 – $180,000	$120,001 – $180,000	-N/A
45%	>$180,000	>$180,000	>$200,000
Low Income Tax Offset (LITO)	Up to $445	Up to $700	Up to $700

Bringing forward the personal income tax plan will:

• Increase the top threshold of the 19% tax bracket to $45,000 (from $37,000)
• Increase the top threshold of the 32.5% tax bracket to $120,000 (from $90,000)
• Increase the low-income tax offset from $445 to $700

In addition, the LMITO (low and middle-income tax offset), which provides a reduction in tax of up to

$1,080 for individuals with a taxable income of up to $126,000, will be retained for 2020-21.

https://budget.gov.au/ – Use this link to calculate your tax savings. Just enter your taxable income in the calculator.

What do these additional savings mean for you? Could you maybe contribute to super to build wealth for retirement, Could you pay off any liabilities/ debt or maybe simply have a splurge during Christmas! ?

$250 ECONOMIC SUPPORT PAYMENTS

 

Date of effect

November 2020 and early 2021

Two additional economic support payments of $250 each will be made to eligible recipients of the following payments and health care cardholders:

• Age Pension
• Disability Support Pension
• Carer Payment
• Family Tax Benefit, including Double Orphan Pension (not in receipt of a primary income support payment)
• Carer Allowance (not in receipt of a primary income support payment)
• Pensioner Concession Card (PCC) holders (not in receipt of a primary income support payment)
• Commonwealth Seniors Health Cardholders
• Eligible Veterans’ Affairs payment recipients and concession cardholders.

The payments are exempt from taxation and will not count as income support for the purposes of any income support payment.

CAPITAL GAINS TAX REMOVED FROM ‘GRANNY FLATS’

 

Granny Flats for Family

Date of effect

1 July 2021 subject to the passage of the legislation

At present, if a client enters into a formal granny flat arrangement with a relative, such as an elderly parent, there is a risk of capital gains tax (CGT) applying.

For example, where the arrangement involves the granting of a lifetime right to live with the client in exchange for payment, the granting of that right will trigger CGT implications. Further, the main residence exemption will not apply to exempt that gain, nor will the 50% CGT discount apply to reduce it. In addition, the arrangement may affect the client’s ability to claim the main residence exemption when the home is eventually sold.

Announced pre Budget, this measure provides a targeted CGT exemption for granny flats under certain conditions. Under the arrangement, CGT will not apply to the creation, variation or termination of a formal written granny flat arrangement providing accommodation for older Australians or people with disabilities.

The exemption only applies to family arrangements or other personal ties and will not apply to commercial rental arrangements.

10,000 ADDITIONAL PLACES IN FIRST HOME LOAN DEPOSIT SCHEME

 

Date of effect

6 October 2020

Announced pre Budget, from 6 October 2020 until 30 June 2021, an additional 10,000 places will be available for first home buyers under the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme to support the purchase of a new home or a newly built home. The scheme enables first home buyers to purchase a home with a deposit of as little as 5% without mortgage insurance. There are currently 27 participating lenders across Australia offering places under the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme.
This is great news if you are a First Home Buyer. We saw clients save an additional $7,000 to $10,000 in Loan Mortgage Insurance alone (estimates only). Coupled with stamp duty savings and other benefits, buyers could potentially save over $35,000. It is important that buyers have a minimum of 5% of genuine savings. Call us NOW on 03 9548 1699 to speak to our amazing loans team.

YOUR SUPERANNUATION

 

Date of effect From 1 July 2021

Superannuation accounts ‘stapled’ to an individual

This reform will ensure individuals continue to use their existing superannuation fund when they change jobs. The fund will be “stapled” to the individual to prevent the duplication of superannuation fund accounts when changing employers.

FROM 1 JULY 2021:

• If an employee does not nominate an account at the time they start a new job, employers will pay their superannuation contributions to their existing fund.
• Employers will obtain information about the employee’s existing superannuation fund from the ATO.
• The employer will do this by logging onto ATO online services and entering the employee’s details. Once an account has been selected, the employer will pay superannuation contributions into the employee’s account.
• If an employee does not have an existing superannuation account and does not make a decision regarding a fund, the employer will pay the employee’s superannuation into their nominated default superannuation fund.

The Government expects that future enhancements will enable payroll software developers to build systems to simplify the process of selecting a superannuation product for both employees and employers through automated provision of information to employers
We are passionate about your savings for retirement. We have seen so many hard working Australians have sub-standard growth in their retirement pool due to a drain of funds through fees and charges of multiple superannuation accounts. We encourage you to call us NOW on 03 9548 1699 if you have more than ONE superannuation fund. Please do seek advice before any consolidation as there are irreversible consequences of consolidation, such as potential loss of life insurances. We look forward to the changes in the budget as they are likely to leave Australians with more in retirement.

EARLY RELEASE OF SUPERANNUATION

Date of effect

23 March 2020

From 20 April 2020 the Government is allowing individuals affected by the Coronavirus to access up to $10,000 of their superannuation in 2019-20 and a further $10,000 in 2020-21. This is in 2 tranches ($10k up to 30 June 2020 and $10k 1 July 2020 to 31 December 2020)

• Eligibility: Australian and New Zealand citizens and permanent residents. To apply for early release you must satisfy any one or more of the following requirements:
• you are unemployed; or • you are eligible to receive a job seeker payment, youth allowance for jobseekers, parenting payment (which includes the single and partnered payments), special benefit or farm household allowance; or
• on or after 1 January 2020: you were made redundant; or your working hours were reduced by 20 per cent or more; or if you are a sole trader — your business was suspended or there was a reduction in your turnover of 20 per cent or more.

Temporary visa holders To apply for early release you must satisfy any one or more of the following requirements: Student visa holders (Subclasses 500, 570-576): • you have held your student visa for 12 months or more; and • you are unable to meet your immediate living expenses.

Temporary skilled work visa holders (Subclasses 457 and 482) • on or after 1 January 2020, you had your working hours reduced to zero by your employer; and • you are still employed by that employer. All other temporary visa holders (including Working Holiday Maker visa holders and other working visas) • you are unable to meet your immediate living expenses.

• Temporary 50% reduction to minimum pension drawdowns for account-based pensions and market linked pensions for 2019/20 and 2020/21.

Although not ideal, this temporary allowance for early release of super can help many put food on the table.

BUSINESS & EMPLOYERS

 

$200 WEEKLY CREDIT FOR BUSINESSES TO TAKE ON YOUNG WORKERS

JobMaker Hiring Credit

Date of effect From 7 October 2020 for 12 months

The JobMaker Hiring Credit will be available to eligible employers over 12 months from 7 October 2020 for each additional new job they create for an eligible employee.

ELIGIBLE EMPLOYERS WILL RECEIVE:

• $200 per week if they hire an eligible employee aged 16 to 29 years or
• $100 per week if they hire an eligible employee aged 30 to 35 years.

The JobMaker Hiring Credit will be paid quarterly in arrears. It will be available for up to 12 months from

the date of employment of the eligible employee with a maximum amount of $10,400 per additional new position created.

Employers will need to demonstrate that the new employee will increase overall employee headcount and payroll.

To be eligible, the employee will need to have worked for a minimum of 20 hours per week, averaged over a quarter, and received the JobSeeker Payment, Youth Allowance (other) or Parenting Payment for at least one month out of the three months prior to when they are hired.

Perfect time to go get the extra help you need from our very talented young Australians.

BUSINESSES BIG AND SMALL CAN NOW WRITE OFF ANY CAPITAL PURCHASES, AT ANY COST

IMMEDIATE DEDUCTIONS FOR INVESTMENT IN CAPITAL ASSETS

No upper limit of the value of capital purchases

Date of effect Acquisition of eligible capital assets from 7:30 pm AEDT on 6 October 2020 and first used or installed by 30 June 2022

The Government is really keen for business to invest. This measure enables businesses with an aggregated turnover of less than $5 billion to fully expense the cost of new depreciable assets and the cost of improvements to existing eligible assets in the first year of use. This means that an asset’s cost will be fully deductible upfront rather than being claimed over the asset’s life.

While many businesses were already eligible for an instant asset write-off for asset purchases of up to $150,000, this measure does not cap the asset’s cost, and eligibility for the higher instant asset write-off has been significantly broadened and extended (the existing $150,000 instant asset write-off applies to businesses with turnover less than $500 million and will not apply to purchases after 31 December 2020).

SECOND-HAND ASSETS

For businesses with an aggregated turnover under $50 million, full expensing also applies to second-hand assets.

TAX LOSS CARRY-BACK FOR BUSINESSES

ABILITY FOR COMPANIES TO CARRY-BACK LOSSES INCLUDING CURRENT YEAR LOSSES

Date of effect Losses from 2019-20, 2020-21 or 2021-22 income years

Companies with an aggregated turnover of less than $5 billion will be able to carry back losses from 2019-20, 2020-21 and 2021-22 income years to offset previously taxed profits in 2018-19, 2019-20 and 2020-21 income years.

Under this measure tax losses can be applied against taxed profits in a previous year, generating a refundable tax offset in the year in which the loss is made. The amount carried back can be no more than the earlier taxed profits, limiting the refund by the company’s tax liabilities in the profit years. Further, the carryback cannot generate a franking account deficit meaning that the refund is further limited by the company’s franking account balance.

The tax refund will be available on the election by eligible businesses when they lodge their 2020-21 and 2021-22 tax returns.

Currently, companies are required to carry losses forward to offset profits in future years. Under the proposed amendments, companies that do not elect to carry back losses can still carry losses forward as normal.

This measure will interact with the Government’s announcement to allow full expensing of investments in capital assets. The new investment will generate significant tax losses in some cases which can then be carried back to generate cash refunds for eligible companies.

Note that loss carry-back rules were introduced some years ago by the Gillard government. The rules were repealed and were only operational in the 2012-13 year.

https://www.ato.gov.au/General/New-legislation/In-detail/Direct-taxes/Income-tax-for-businesses/Loss-carry-back/ – ATO on Loss carryback

Many struggling businesses may find that this is just the difference that helps them to stay afloat. Speak to us to see if you can benefit.

 

100,000 NEW APPRENTICESHIPS

 

Date of effect 5 October 2020

Announced pre Budget, from 5 October 2020 a business (or Group Training Organisation) that takes on a new Australian apprentice will be eligible for a 50% wage subsidy, regardless of geographic location, occupation, industry or business size. The scheme will be available until the 100,000 cap has been reached.

Under the subsidy, employers will be eligible for up to 50% of the wages of a new or recommencing apprentice or trainee for the period up to 30 September 2021. The maximum subsidy is $7,000 per quarter.

The subsidy is paid in arrears and is available for wages paid from 5 October 2020 to 30 September 2021.

ELIGIBLE BUSINESSES ARE THOSE THAT:

• Engage an Australian Apprentice between 5 October 2020 and 30 September 2021, and
• The Australian Apprentice or trainee is undertaking a Certificate II or higher qualification and has a training contract that is formally approved by the state training authority.

https://docs.employment.gov.au/system/files/doc/other/boosting_apprentices_and_trainees_fact_sheet_final.pdf – Fact Sheet

Book your appointment with your preferred time and our friendly team will get in touch with you to confirm.