Are we throwing the baby out with the bath water?

Legislation was recently enacted that will make drastic changes to the way our Superannuation System will operate from 1 July 2017.

As we commence a new year, it may feel like the changes to the Asset Test for the Aged Pension have just been drawn up, however, these were announced in the 2015 Federal Budget.

You may be asking yourself, “what does this really mean for me – and what are my options?”

Every year, the ATO collects new data from financial institutions and matches this data with its own information, which is sourced from income tax returns, activity statements and other tax records.

Career analyst Dan Pink examines the puzzle of motivation, starting with a fact that social scientists know but most managers don’t: Traditional rewards aren’t always as effective as we think. Listen for illuminating stories — and maybe, a way forward.

From 1 July 2017 the ATO will be allowed to disclose information about any business with an ABN to credit reporting agencies if the business has tax debt over $10,000 and is at least 90 days overdue.

After a person dies, and the usual arrangements are completed, there will come a time when other matters, such as tax and superannuation issues, must be looked after. The person who takes on the responsibility for administering a deceased estate is commonly referred to as the executor, but could also be known as an administrator or a legal personal representative.

The small business capital gains tax concessions are extremely valuable. For small business owners who need to dispose of assets that have risen in value during the time they have owned them, accessing these concessions can mean greatly reducing any consequent tax liability, even to zero.

Below is a list of tips from the Australian Taxation Office that should help rental property owners avoid what it has found are the 10 most common tax errors made by rental property investors. The ATO says that avoiding these tax mistakes will save many taxpayers both time and money.

Why do so many companies make bad decisions, even with access to unprecedented amounts of data? With stories from Nokia to Netflix to the oracles of ancient Greece, Tricia Wang demystifies big data and identifies its pitfalls, suggesting that we focus instead on “thick data” – precious, unquantifiable insights from actual people – to make the right business decisions and thrive in the unknown.

One overarching fundamental that SMSF trustees should ideally keep in mind is the sole purpose test – that is, every decision made and action taken is required to be seen as being undertaken for the sole purpose of providing retirement benefits for the fund’s members.