Election announcements include:- - Tax cuts for individuals earning less than $180,000. Tax cuts for individuals earning more than $180,000 will be deferred.
- Increases in low income tax offset (over 6 years).
- Introduce a 50% education tax refund for those families eligible for Family Tax Benefit Part A.
- Eligibility to the Family Tax Benefit Part B only to families with taxable income less than $250,000.
- Increase the childcare tax rebate to 50% and pay it quarterly.
- Refundable tax offset of 10% to approved desalination, water recycling and major storm water capture projects.
- Introduce a First Home Saver Account, which would allow first home savers to be eligible for a low tax rate of 15% on the first $5,000 of income they save each year.
- Abolish the role of the Inspector General of Taxation.
- Ensure that non-compulsory SGC is based on pre-salary sacrifice salary and wages
- Halve HECS fees for new maths and science students, while they are studying.
- Consider expanding the Super Co-Contribution Scheme
- Introduce a National Rental Affordability Scheme offering institutional investors annual tax incentives to construct homes and rent them below market rents
- Introduce a "BAS Easy" option for small businesses
Of concern is that Labor will reverse the 2007 changes made to family trusts that relaxed some of the strict definitional restrictions (unintended consequences) e.g. a former spouse and lineal descendents. Also of concern is whether Labor will allow some of the previous government's proposed tax changes such as amendments to Small Business Entity Test, which quite reasonably allowed some expanded concessions on sale of a small business (incl. active assets and $2m aggregated turnover of affiliates). No doubt there will be many more changes.
24th-January-2008 | 