Tips on minimising your tax for a larger refund

Contribute

The government will match your voluntary super contributions of up to $1000 should you earn less than $61, 290 a year. Here’s the thing- while direct deposits on a weekly basis are the most painless way of taking charge of that offer, you can still contribute a lump sum and maximise your super. Even if it’s not a huge amount, put together a little bit of cash and contribute it. Your retirement will thank you.

Know Your Refunds

What refunds are you eligible for? For example, the education refund introduced in 2008 could make all the difference if you have school-aged children. Research what falls under the criteria for refunds- things like laptops, internet connection, textbooks. You’re eligible for $750 for primary school children and $1500 for high school kids. It’s certainly worthwhile checking what has changed in the year since you last did tax. Another example is that education expenses for tertiary students on Centrelink can now also be addressed, as evidenced by the backpay recently sent out by the ATO, so check out where you stand on new refunds as well.

Delay

If you’re going to owe money at tax time, registered tax agents such as ourselves can help legitimately delay paying the tax- as it is essentially an interest-free loan should you have necessary expenditure. You can delay your tax until May the following year. This could allow you to also slowly set aside the required money and not have to take away from your savings schemes in the process. We would suggest the reverse is also true, if you’re getting a refund, go for gold and get it as soon as possible.

Negative Gearing

If you own a rental property, you are eligible to claim a 2.5% deduction for building costs or structural improvements to the property. Also, if you haven’t claimed the building allowance previously, you can claim it on this tax return.

Tax Return

Lots of people prefer the tangible nature of pen and paper but the ATO’s E-Tax is a pretty super little program. It will enable you to feed in all your data- super, interest on bank accounts, Centrelink payments and has an extensive help section that makes the whole process much more simple. There’s a side menu if you know exactly what you need, or you can go through the whole thing step by step. It also tells you immediately what your tax will be or how much you can expect from a refund, and can be lodged online.