If you are an income earner in Geraldton, and you want to have the peace of mind knowing that your tax returns Geraldton is lodged properly, and done in a way that works to your favour – using the professional help of tax accountants like Melissa Simpson is a wise choice.
Melissa is the current CEO and owner of ITP Western Australia (WA) Regional – a tax accounting firm that helps Australian small businesses, families, and individuals with their tax returns. Australian owned and operated, ITP WA Regional has 6 offices in the WA region – and has maintained its reputation as a trusted income tax professional firm.
How A Tax Accountant’s Services Can Make Your Life Easier
When you have a tax accountant to work with you, alongside a secure online system to use whenever and wherever you like – you never have to worry about your tax returns ever again. Melissa and ITP WA Regional can make this all possible for you.
Whether you want to get your tax returns Geraldton sorted out from your home or your office – they can help you throughout the whole process of electronic lodgement. You only need to follow these simple steps:
1. Provide all relevant information
Before Melissa Simpson and the highly trained tax accountants at ITP WA Regional can take over, they would need you to provide all the relevant information about yourself. These include your: contact details, family, employment, other details about your income, and all the possible deductions you want to include in your tax return.
2. Let them do the tax return preparation
Once you have provided all the financial documents and contact information that you think could help in maximising your tax refund, they will move on to preparing your tax return. If there are any items that need clarification, they will discuss these with you so you can get the strongest tax benefits.
3. Get your tax return lodge electronically
They will advise you of the outcome of the preparation. But before they go ahead and lodge your tax returns Geraldton electronically, you would have to review and sign the paperwork first.
4. Receive your tax refund
Upon signing your completed tax return and after the ATO processes it, you can expect to receive your tax refund in as early as 10 working days.
5. Pay fully tax deductible fees
Melissa Simpson and the tax accountants at ITP WA Regional makes sure that their fees are competitive. If a refund is available, you would even be pleased to know that they offer the ‘Fee From Refund’ service which requires no upfront costs from you. Their fees start at $125.
Melissa and ITP WA Regional provides unlimited year-round tax advice and support to all their clients. This is to take the burden out of tax for you, and to make sure that you get a maximised refund and pay minimised tax.
Tax time 2014 is fast approaching, and it’s the time of the year when you should start thinking about your tax returns Geraldton again. If this is your first time to lodge your tax return, the help of tax accountants is at hand to make sure that you get things right. But it would be good to get a glimpse of what tax return is all about so you would have an idea of what you should be discussing with the tax accountant you use.
A tax return is the report of your income that you need to present to the Australian Taxation Office. Your tax return will determine whether or not you have paid the right amount of tax. For some, this can be an opportunity to get a refund, especially if their employers have deducted more tax than what is needed.
In case you choose to prepare and lodge your tax return, you should know that you only have from 1st July to 31st October 2014 to lodge. Also, you need to prepare all the financial documents you have, which include: payment summaries from your employer, receipts for charity donations, bank statements, government payment summaries. Once you have these ready, you can begin completing the lodging process.
What are the ways to complete tax returns Geraldton?
1. E-Tax
E-tax is ATO’s free lodgement service that lets you lodge your tax return online easily. It is secure, convenient, and fast – so much so that you can receive your refund in your bank in 12 business days or even less.
From 1st July, you can start downloading e-tax for free. You can only use e-tax once you have verified your identity, though. You can do this by using payment summaries from your employer (or Centrelink) or details from bank statements. If you have some questions about e-tax, you can contact representatives from the ATO, or you can consult with tax accountants.
2. By paper
If you do not want to use e-tax, you may also lodge your tax returns Geraldton by paper. You must be aware that there are a lot of downsides that come along with lodging by paper. This includes the longer time you would have to wait to get it processed – normally within 42 days after the Australian Taxation Office receives your lodged tax return by mail.
3. Using short tax return
If you’re lucky enough to have a simple and straightforward tax affair, you would pleased to know that you can use the Short Tax Return to lodge your tax returns. All you need to do is call the ATO office to learn more. But if you are still unsure about how to sort things out, or you still have questions that need some clarifications, it would be good to consult with tax accountants first.
After you have lodged your tax returns Exmouth and you have some questions about your assessment, you can always contact the Australian Taxation office or let your tax accountant do the questioning for you.
Whether you have lodged your tax return online, through mail, or with the help of your family, friends or a tax accountant – it’s normal for taxpayers like you to sometimes disagree with the decision ATO has made about your tax affairs.
The first thing you should do is to contact the ATO if you disagree with their assessment. This is the easier and faster way to sort out disagreements and misunderstandings. Here are the three options you can use:
1.1. Auto Call-Back
You can use the auto call-back service, where you will be asked to leave your name and contact number for them to call you back. They will call you back once you reach the top of the queue. The best part about this is that once you pick up the phone, you will be asked to confirm if you are available to take the call, before you will be transferred to a customer service representative.
1.2. 24 Hour Self-Help Services
You can use this service 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This is a convenient and fast way if you want to know a few basic things about lodging tax returns Exmouth or perhaps need to learn more about how the tax return online service works. Here, you might glean some insights about the ATO’s assessment of your tax affairs. It is important, though, that you speak in your natural speaking voice – as this kind of service uses a speech recognition system.
1.3. Enquiries
The ATO provides two phone numbers to cater both an individual’s enquiries and a business’ enquiries. You can use these numbers to call and clarify things about your assessment – but it is more advisable to those who have questions or queries about what ATO has decided particularly on their tax debts, though.
2. Write to them.
The ATO website has forms available on their website. Use these tax return online enquiry forms to save you time. The ATO will ask you to fill in the information required to process your request. Some of the information you would have to provide when you fill in the forms include: your TFN, birth date, address, bank account details, amongst others.
3. Visit them.
If none of the two above options seem suitable to your tax returns Exmouth assessment queries, you can always personally visit them in their shopfront locations around Australia.
Ask them to correct the assessment if you think there has been a mistake, and if the ATO agrees that it is a mistake – you then have the right to ask the ATO to make necessary changes.
If you are planning your tax returns Broome as early as now, good on you. But if upon preparing your tax returns Australia you encounter some difficulties especially when it comes to crunching numbers, you might want to consider using the professional help of tax accountants.
There are a lot of advantages when you have a tax accountant by your side. This is especially true when you prepare and lodge your tax returns. There might be some deductions you are entitled to claim that you are not aware of, and your tax accountant can definitely sort these things out for you.
When paying taxes, here are some tax deductible expenses you need to know:
Travel expenses
When your work involves travelling from one place to another, perhaps to meet up with clients or to deliver some work-related items – you would be pleased to know that you can claim such vehicle and travel expenses. You just need to make sure that these expenses are directly related with your work. The expenses incurred when travelling from home to work are considered private travel, and cannot be claimed in your tax returns Broome.
Dry-Cleaning, Laundry, And Clothing Expenses
The uniform or the clothing you use for work can also be tax deductible when you buy and get them cleaned. These kinds of clothing include unique distinctive uniforms, protective clothing, occupation-specific clothing, amongst others.
Donations And Gifts
If you know some organisations that have the status of Deductive Gift Recipients (DGRs), you can make donations and provide gifts which can considered as tax deductibles from your tax returns Australia.
Home Office Expenses
If you run your business from home, there are expenses that are tax deductible including occupancy expenses, running expenses, and motor vehicle expenses. You might want to consult registered tax accountants about this matter so you can make sure that you are on the right track.
Self-Education Expenses
If you receive a taxable bonded scholarship or if your study is work-related, you can claim a deduction for self-education expenses on your tax returns Broome. There are some situations where you would have to reduce your claim amount by $250 though.
Dividend, Interest, And Other Investment Income Deductions
If you can show that you have incurred expenses earning dividend, interest, and other investment income, you can also claim a deduction in your tax returns Australia.
Equipment, Tools, And Other Assets
Here’s another good news, if you purchase tools, equipment, and other assets to help improve your business and increase your income – you can also claim some or all of the cost as deductions.
Here’s a rule of thumb: if you spend money to earn income, more often than not, you will be able to claim it immediately, or over time. Tax accountants very well know how to make sure you get the most out of your tax returns, so it would be good to discuss things with them first.
Filing tax returns is not merely about sorting out our payables to the government; it is also a process that can treat us to perks, if we meet certain conditions. Offsets, among others, may be in store for us, if we can determine and argue for our eligibility. In Australia, the following are some of the most common requirements that can get us a write-off from our taxes.
Benefit recipients. Australians who receive allowances from the government, or have no taxable income, are saved from the duty of doling out taxes.
Taxpayers with dependents. If you have your spouse, children, siblings, parents, or other people listed as your dependents, you get offsets.
Private health insurance. Paying monthly premiums to a health insurance policy? A percentage of them may be deducted from your total taxables.
Medical expenses. While an offset of this kind hinges on your family’s status and your adjusted taxable income, the net amount you spend on medical bills may be deducted from your tax returns.
Low income earners. Working part-time or getting a low pay is almost a guarantee to get an offset. In most cases, this kind of write-off does not even have to be contested, the government works it out itself.
There are other types of tax offsets that you can take advantage of, if you are aware of them. This is why it is worth your time to educate yourself about the nuances of filing tax returns. Information plays a critical role in harnessing the full success of the process, as well as equipping yourself for optimal advantages.
On the other hand, if you want to ensure that you will gain the best possible results from dealing with your tax returns in Geraldton and other parts of Western Australia, you can choose to delegate it to a professional like Melissa Simpson. A tax preparer or accountant is well-versed in understanding taxes, which makes sure that you will get to enjoy the rewards accorded to you by your specific life situation. In addition, Melissa Simpson and other such professionals can add to your arsenal of taxation knowledge so that you will be well-placed to do the process yourself, should you wish to, in the future.
There are many trusted taxation experts that you can turn to. To verify that you will only be doing yourself a favour, vet the technical competence and experience of your candidate. Also schedule an initial talk with him or her to have a better understanding of his or her work ethics.
It’s that time of the year again, the tax season is almost here. Though, it’s still a few more months away, it would be good to look into your tax returns Geraldton as early as now. This way, you don’t need to stress yourself out and spend lots of time preparing and lodging your tax returns Australia.
Do you need to lodge your tax return this financial year?
But before you go ahead and file your tax return, you first need to know if you really do need to lodge a tax return for financial year 2013-2014. Here’s a list of things you need to be aware of and understand:
1. If you were an Australian resident during the financial year 2013-2014, and you paid under the PAYG (Pay-As-You-Go) instalment or withholding system, you need to file a tax return.
2. You also need to file a tax return if you had tax withheld from payments made to you.
3. If you made less than $18,200 in a year, you don’t need to file your tax return. This is because you are subject to 0% tax rate if you have reach this tax-free threshold.
4. However, if you are eligible for the pensioners and seniors tax offset, you might still need to file your tax returns Geraldton.
There are other levels of income that apply to different people in other situations, in which you don’t need to lodge. Income and offsets are not the only reasons why you need to lodge your tax returns Australia.
The list is too long to discuss them all here. If you’d like to learn more, you can see the full list on the Australian Taxation Office website. Alternatively, you can consult with a registered tax accountant so you can find out how you can make the most of your tax affairs.
There are currently four different ways you can prepare and lodge your tax return. Finding the best method would all depend on how complex or simple your tax affairs are. Here are the ways to choose from:
1. Phone lodgement
This is a fast and convenient way of lodging your tax returns Geraldton as you only need to spend more or less 12 minutes to do it. The good news is that it’s available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
2. Tax packs
If your tax affairs are complex and you are not expecting to receive any tax refunds, the tax packs from the ATO office is a good option. This is a printed version of the tax returns Australia forms which you need to fill in and complete.
3. E-tax
This is an online tax facility provided by the Australian Taxation Office for taxpayers who have straightforward deductions – and for those who want to lodge their tax returns within the comfort of their own homes or even office.
4. Tax accountants
When you find a credible, reputable, and trustworthy tax accountant – you don’t need to spend your precious hours or days preparing and lodging your tax returns. You can leave it all to them, and you can have the peace of mind knowing that it’s done to your advantage, accurately, and on time.
As a home-based business owner, do you know what deductions you are eligible to claim? How do you make sure you are getting the maximum tax returns Geraldton due to you?
There are many rewards you can yield when you run your business from home. Aside from the facts that you can experience positive shift in your work-life balance; and have improved motivation by being your own boss – the financial rewards are one of the most note-worthy things. This particularly includes your eligibility to claim certain tax deductions.
Whether you are looking to lodge your tax return online or offline, it pays to know what you can claim as deductions on your tax. Some of the general deductible expenses applicable to home-based businesses include:
1. Occupancy expenses
If you have expenses such as house insurance premiums, council rates, mortgage interest, and rental payments – you can include them in your tax returns Geraldton as tax deductions. These kinds of expenses do not necessarily need to be related to your home-based business – for as long as they are related to owning, renting or using a home.
Before you can claim occupancy expenses as tax deductions as you lodge your tax return online or offline, your home-based workspace need to pass the ‘interest deductibility test’ first. Passing this test means the place must be identified clearly as a business place. One example is that you must have a sign at the front of your house. Also, your home-based workplace must be unsuitable for domestic or private purposes, and must be used by your clients regularly.
2. Running expenses
When you use the facilities within your home for your business activities, it is expected for your home expenses to increase. These expenses normally include cleaning costs, phone bills, gas, and electricity. You don’t need to worry about these increased costs though, as you can get them deducted on your next tax returns Geraldton. You need to make sure that these are not general house expenses that you want to claim.
When you lodge your tax return online or offline, there are various calculating methods you could use. The first method is to find the percentage of the floor space that is for business use compared with the entire home. Use this percentage when you calculate the cost of utilities that have been used for your home business.
The second way of doing things is to compare the before-and-after costs upon setting up your business at home. Use the difference as the costs used for business. Make sure that you support this claim by providing the reasonable information and details.
These are only two of the tax deductible expenses you could use to get maximised refund and minimised tax. The other things you need to look into include motor vehicle expenses and documentation of all your receipts and tax invoices.
This is where a proactive accountant comes in most handy. A proactive accountant will not only do the number crunching, but will also provide you that much needed advise to find other deductible areas in your business.
The end of the financial year is fast approaching. Don’t wait for the last minute before you begin your tax planning. Though it’s still a few months away, now is definitely the best time to take steps to maximise your tax refund and reduce the tax bill from your tax returns Kununurra.
For your business:
1. Structure
It is always a good idea to review your business structure – whether you operate as a partnership or sole trader – or in a company or trust. This is to check if your current business structure is still appropriate for your current situation.
2. Companies and trusts
You would be pleased to know that companies and trusts can minimise tax payments by distributing funds to recipients on lower tax brackets. It would be good to ask tax accountants to review your options.
3. Pay super early
When you pay superannuation guarantee for your staff in June (instead of waiting for the due until July), you can include claim them as tax deductions on your tax returns Kununurra this financial year.
4. Bad debts
If you are not going to get paid, might as well write these off as a bad debt before 30 June. This way, you can claim them as tax deduction on your tax returns Australia, as well.
5. Immediate write offs
If you have assets that cost less than $6,500 – you can write them off immediately. What’s more is that this can be applied to the purchase of assets for the business. It would be good to check with tax accountants as to whether you are eligible or not.
6. Stationery
When you stock up stationery and other consumables before 30 June, it can help you offset profits.
7. Trading stock
If you have damaged, lost, or obsolete stock – you can reduce the taxable income on your tax returns Kununurra when you write them off.
Things To Consider:
If you’re caught up scrambling through financial documents and records whenever you try to keep track of your potential tax deductions on your tax returns Australia – you might want to consider changing the way you keep your records.
It would be good to scan receipts and electronically store them. Also, it is advisable to use a separate bank accounts for your personal and business related expenses. This way, maximising your tax refund and minimising your tax bill become easier.
Of course, when you use the professional services of tax accountants, you can have the peace of mind knowing that things go smoothly. Contact a tax accountant in your local area and begin tax planning today.
If you are experiencing serious financial hardship, and you are expecting a tax refund from your tax returns Karratha – you can liaise with the Australian Taxation Office to get your tax returns or tax refund prioritised. Once the ATO confirms that you are qualified for hardship processing, you can expect to get your tax refunds delivered within five (5) working days.
NOTE: If you have external liabilities with other departments including Child Support or Department of Human Services (Centrelink) – the turnaround times of your hardship processing may be affected. Also, if you have multiple returns to be processed, the hardship processing turnaround times may be longer. It would be good to seek the advice of tax accountants on this matter.
What’s more is that the assistance of a tax accountant may come in handy especially if you are looking to claim hardship so you can pay the debt you owe to any of the mentioned external agencies.
All About Serious Financial Hardship
Serious Financial Hardship #1: For Individuals
If you are left unable to provide for yourself, your family and other dependents – you are considered to be in serious hardship. These are the critical circumstances in which you need tax refund from your tax returns Karratha urgently. The basic necessities that get affected by such hardship include:
- Food
- Accommodation
- Clothing
- Medical Treatment
- Education, amongst others.
Some of the factors that commonly contribute to serious financial hardship include:
- Impacts of natural disaster
- Serious illnesses
- Financial misfortune
- Family tragedy, amongst others.
Serious Financial Hardship #2: For Businesses
Businesses can also be affected by serious financial hardships, in which you urgently need to receive the refund from your tax returns so you can continue with your business. The difficulties commonly associated with serious business financial hardship include:
- Period of review limitations
- Disconnection of an essential service
- Business closure
- Repossession of the vehicle you use to run your business
- Facing imminent legal action for not paying debts
- Settlements
- Court orders, amongst others.
If your current circumstances are not related to any of the above, you may not be qualified to take advantage of the serious financial hardship priority processing. However, it would be good to consult tax accountants about your financial activities and find out whether or not you can prioritise the processing of your tax returns Karratha.
How To Check The Progress Of Your Tax Returns
The ATO provides a service that allows you to check the status of the tax return you have lodged. This service provides information about individual tax returns only – which means partnerships, trusts, or companies are not included.
There are three easy ways for you to check the progress of your tax returns:
1. Use your secure login to conduct a complete search on the ATO website.
2. Use your tax file number (TFN) to do a quick search on the ATO website.
3. Use the ATO’s self-help phone service to find out the updates.
If none of the three options worked to your advantage, you might want to consider some help from tax accountants in your local area.
There are people who can get away with doing tax returns Exmouth themselves, whilst there are others who need professional help from tax accountants.
When it comes to preparing your tax return online or offline, it is important to be equipped with the right knowledge to make sure you’re on the right track – and more importantly, you don’t get in trouble with the Australian Taxation Office.
If you have a simple tax affair, you might want to consider using the ATO’s online service – E-Tax. However, if you have complex financial activities and tax affairs – hiring a tax accountant might be a wiser choice.
To figure out whether or not you should do your taxes by yourself or you should use the professional services of a tax accountant – here are some questions to ask yourself:
1. Are you prepared to give your tax returns Exmouth your time?
An average taxpayer spends around 22 hours every financial year preparing to lodge their tax return. Though filing tax return online can save you a lot of time, you still need to spend your precious hours organising all the financial documents and materials. And that assumes you have a simple tax return and your number of tax deductions are limited. It also assumes that you are confident about your knowledge about taxes and what you records you exactly need.
2. Are you prepared to pay for the services of tax accountants?
Getting a tax accountant to do your taxes can cost from a few dollars to several thousand dollars – depending on how simple or complicated your tax returns Exmouth is. You can make your payments upfront, or you can have it deducted from your refund – if you allow your tax accountant to collect it on your behalf.
The good news about hiring a tax accountant to sort out your tax return online or offline is that you can claim the fee as a tax deduction on your tax return, as well. This is because the tax preparation fees can be claimed under the miscellaneous deductions.
3. Are you prepared to deal with the complex Australian tax codes?
You should know that the Australian tax codes are so complex that most Australian taxpayers choose to use the professional services of tax accountants to sort taxes out on their behalf. There have been a lot of changes in the tax law for the past few years – and keeping up-to-date with all these changes can be taxing.
If you are confident that you can comply with ATO’s tax codes and make sure that your tax return is done with maximised tax refund and minimised tax bill – then you can go ahead and deal with it by yourself. Otherwise, it might be a good idea to ask assistance from a reliable tax accountant in your local area.
When preparing and lodging your tax return, it all comes down to the time and skills you have in your hands. If you don’t have these two elements, you should let someone effectively and efficiently handle your tax return on your behalf.