Additional ATO support during COVID-19
The ATO is providing additional support to taxpayers having difficulty meeting their tax and Superannuation Guarantee charge obligations for employees because of COVID-19.
Superannuation Guarantee obligations for September 2021 quarter
Under the Superannuation Guarantee (SG) scheme, employers are required to make quarterly contributions on behalf of their employees, and the due date for the September 2021 quarter is 28 October 2021.
ATO support for employers with expansion of Single Touch Payroll (STP)
As part of the expansion of Single Touch Payroll (known as STP Phase 2), from 1 January 2022, employers will need to report additional payroll information in their STP reports. The ATO will support employers with the move to STP Phase 2 reporting.
Extra superannuation step when hiring new employees
Employers may soon need to do something extra when a new employee starts to work for them.
Taxable Payments Annual Reports due 28 August
2021 Taxable Payments Annual Reports (TPARs) are due to be lodged for businesses who have paid contractors to provide the following services: building and construction cleaning courier, delivery or road freight information technology (‘IT’) security, surveillance or investigation
The ‘gigs up’ with a new sharing economy reporting regime
Treasury has released draft legislation introducing the long-awaited third party reporting regime (proposed to apply from 1 July 2022). The new regime will initially require ride-sharing and short term accommodation online platform operators to report transactions they facilitate directly to the ATO.
Changes to Single Touch Payroll (STP) Reporting
Employers should have already been reporting through Single Touch Payroll (‘STP’) unless they only have closely held payees, or they are covered by a deferral or exemption. From 1 July 2021, there have been changes to STP reporting for small employers with closely held payees and quarterly reporting for micro employers.
ATO sights on work-related expenses
The ATO is alerting taxpayers that its sights are set on work-related expenses like car and travel claims that are predicted to decrease in this year’s tax returns.
Superannuation requirements for business owners
The super guarantee rate will rise from 9.5% to 10% on 1 July 2021, so businesses with employees will need to ensure their payroll and accounting systems are updated to incorporate the increase to the super rate.
Cryptocurrency under the spotlight this tax time
The ATO is concerned that many taxpayers believe their cryptocurrency gains are tax-free, or only taxable when the holdings are cashed back into Australian dollars.