Work travel claims for your business

Do you sometimes take work trips for your business – perhaps to conferences, trade shows or to visit interstate or overseas clients? When a trip is clearly for business purposes only, the rules for deducting your expenses are reason …

Commonwealth Seniors Health Card – are you eligible?

We're all aware that for a person to be eligible for the age pension, their assets and income need to be below the relevant thresholds and of course they need to reach the required age. …

Why it pays to get life insurance in your 30s

For many young Australians insurance is one of those things that is pretty low on the to-do list — something for their future self to worry about. But what they may not realise is that life insurance is not just for oldies, but r …

Maximising your super contributions

Getting money into super has become a great deal harder in recent years, with various layers of caps complicating one's ability to contribute. Adding complexity to the issue, there have been new caps in some areas and reduced caps i …

Navigating changes to super: The 10 per cent rule.

Superannuation is usually talked about as having three tax benefits. It is a tax-effective way of receiving income because contributions are taxed at 15 per cent. The fund's earnings are only taxed at a maximum rate of 15 per cent. …

Getting your personal super deductions right.

Recent changes to the law mean many more Australians can now claim deductions for their personal superannuation contributions. But while the eligibility requirements have been lowered, the process for claiming deductions is not stra …

Super changes to help women

In a raft of initiatives aimed at improving economic outcomes for women, particularly in the superannuation space, the government has proposed changes, including extending the ability to access early release of superannuation for wo …

Aussies not worried about the share market

Fewer than one-in-10 Australians view share market volatility as a major monetary worry heading into 2019, according to a new report. Despite a mixed year across the markets – headlined by rising international tensions, a cooling pr …

Pensioner or Seniors Concession Card?

Depending on where you reside in Australia, there is a wide variety of cards and concessions on offer to people over the age of 60 or 65. But working out what card is right for you can cause a degree of confusion - do I automatic …

Does your SMSF have a sole purpose?

The sole purpose test is one the fundamental requirements for Self-Managed Super Funds (SMSFs) to obtain tax concessions. It requires that the SMSF be maintained for the sole purpose of providing retirement benefits to its members – …