It may be a surprise to some that the gender pay gap still exists. Many of us assume that gender inequality has been overcome in Australia. That might be true in some respects, but unfortunately not where income is concerned. The fact is, on average, women still earn 15.3% less than men – a gap […]
Bracket Creep Means Australians Pay Billions More in Taxes
(Updated June 2015) Bracket creep, also referred to as a “tax trap”, will see Australian workers move into higher tax brackets as a result of wages rising in line with inflation—and reap the Government an extra $25 billion over the next four years—according to new research conducted by the National Centre for Social and Economic […]
Generation Y: The first generation to be poorer than their parents?
Parents from every place, in every era, share something important: We all want our children’s lives to be better, happier and more prosperous than anyone’s before. Could the opposite become reality for Australians? Baby Boomers may well be the first generation seen as wealthier than their children. That’s one of the conclusions drawn from a […]
Tax loopholes: Corporations pay less tax than Aussie workers
Should businesses shoulder a fair share of taxes compared with hard-working Australian people? We might see this question discussed more in coming years. Using an international shell-game to move earnings away from the tax man, corporations legally avoid taxes in countries like Australia, even though they earn billions here. Similar tax breaks are simply not […]
Is Your Tax Refund Affected by the New Private Health Rebate Changes?
A very common question from taxpayers this year: What’s the ‘private health insurance liability’ on my tax return?” In short, the private health insurance liability is an amount you have to pay back at tax time if you over-claimed the private health rebate during the year. This stems from the Government’s 2012 changes to the […]
How much super do I need for a comfortable retirement?
Everyone has different ideas of how their retirement might ‘look’. How much super will be enough depends on many things, starting with what a ‘comfortable’ retirement looks like to you. You might want to travel. You may want to dine out every week at a fancy new restaurant. You might just want to help your […]
Sorry! An Embarrassing Mistake
This week at Etax we’ve been very excited about the release of our new 2014 tax return. It includes a lot of hidden, technical wizardry that makes the tax return more transparent and easier for Australians. Ten high-skilled software developers have worked hard for a year to build it and we’re proud that an independent […]
Introducing the Etax.com.au 2014 tax return
The 2014 Tax season is less than two weeks away and we’ve got some big news to share with you… The Etax.com.au 2014 tax return is improved, better than ever and it’s ready now. At Etax we live by our motto “making tax easy”. After a huge upgrade for 2014, we hope you’ll agree that […]
ATO to investigate 10 million taxpayer financial records
The latest ATO welfare and tax crackdown will see the financial records of over 10 million Australian taxpayers go under the microscope in the coming months. What is the ATO looking for? Here are a few highlights in the latest ATO crackdown: Credit Cards: The ATO has requested taxpayers’ credit card records from 10 major banks, […]
ATO Collecting Your Financial Information to catch Tax Cheats in 2013
Did you know that the ATO can access information from YOUR employer, bank, super fund, credit card, insurance funds, government departments and more? They have powerful ways to check that the information you’ve declared on your tax return is correct and catch out those tax cheats who incorrectly claim more than they’re entitled to. In […]
Bankers Call for Tax Cuts for Parents
With the government’s October tax forum fast approaching, industry body, the Australian Bankers Association (ABA) has called for increased tax cuts for parents and the simplification of complex taxes at both a State and Federal level. Help and Tax Cuts for Parents In the ABA’s eyes, the biggest concerns everyday Australians are currently faced with is […]
Government Ends Discounts for Early HELP Debt Repayment
Important Note: The Federal Government has now legislated this change and ended the discounts for early HELP debt repayments. For a full overview on all things HELP related, we’d suggest viewing our article on how to repay your help debt. Planning to reduce your HELP debt early with extra payments? And are you going to […]
The 2013 Budget and Personal Tax Implications:
How will the budget affect you? On 14 May 2013, Treasurer Wayne Swan delivered his sixth annual budget. With a raft of reforms, spending cuts and tax changes, working out how the budget may affect you is a challenge. Our accountants have spent the past week digesting this year’s budget and its implications for individual […]
HELP Repayment Scheme to Stay… For Now
Important Note: The Federal Government has legislated this change and ended the HELP repayment scheme. For a full overview on all things HELP related, we’d suggest viewing our article on how to repay your help debt. Back in August 2013 the Federal Government announced they would end the discount for early HELP debt repayments. Good […]
Tax Information for People Affected by Natural Disasters
If you were affected by a flood or fire in 2013, the ATO can give you helpful extensions and concessions. This post provides basic information about preparing your individual tax return in 2013 if you’ve been affected by a natural disaster. We’ve broken things down into some key topics. If there’s something you’d like to […]
