Insights
Our Blog
Keeping you up to date on new and changing legislation — complex tax matters put into plain, concise language.
Short, plain-English guides on the topics our clients ask about most. Each one is general information only — a starting point for understanding a subject, not a complete treatment of it, and not advice tailored to your circumstances. For advice specific to your situation, please speak with one of our partners.
20 guides, all free to read. Each is available in English and Chinese.
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Home-based business expenses
Based on the ATO publication Small business: Home-based business expenses (NAT 75196-05.2026). Running vs occupancy expenses, the 70c-per-hour fixed rate, floor area and actual cost methods, the place-of-business test, what changes for a company or trust, the CGT cost, and the records to keep — with a fixed-rate estimator and a self-check.
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Establishing a Self-Managed Superannuation Fund
How an SMSF is established, the compliance obligations it carries, and the taxation treatment that applies, with interactive tax tables.
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NDIS / SDA property: tax for investors
Tax on Specialist Disability Accommodation held as an investment: both income streams, Division 43 and the front-loaded Division 40 fit-out, the second-hand rule that removes the plant claim entirely, when GST is actually recoverable and when a head lease will not get you there, CGT and the 2026 Budget new-build choice, the negative gearing carve-out, structure and land tax.
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GST on motor vehicles
Claiming the GST on a business vehicle: the one-eleventh rule, the car limit that caps the credit at $6,353 for 2026-27, the one-tonne test that decides whether a ute or van is capped at all, why electric cars get no GST concession, luxury car tax, running costs, and why cents per kilometre gives you no credit.
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PSI vs PSB: personal services income explained
When income from your own skill and effort is taxed as yours vs as a business: the difference between personal services income and a personal services business, the results test and the 80% rule, an interactive self-check, and two worked examples.
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Federal Budget 2026-27: what it means for you
A plain-English summary of the 12 May 2026 Budget — the rebuilt CGT regime, negative gearing and discretionary trust changes, new offsets and small-business concessions — with a tax-cut calculator and the key start dates. Most measures are announcements only, not yet law.
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SMSF investing in US equities
A practical tax & compliance checklist: the W-8BEN-E form, the 15% vs 30% withholding rate, the foreign income tax offset (and the pension-phase trap), US estate tax, and the annual return.
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Retail vs wholesale investors: rights & risks
Which category your investment falls into under the Corporations Act, the very different risk and protection each carries, and how you qualify as a wholesale client.
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Payday Super: what employers need to know
From 1 July 2026, super must be paid every payday — the quarterly system ends and clearing houses can no longer be used. What is changing, how to get ready, and the ATO flyer to download.
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Trust distributions & end-of-year compliance
The 30 June distribution-resolution deadline, beneficiary TFNs, the closely-held-trust TFN report, and what happens if they are missed — with an interactive checklist.
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Pay As You Go (PAYG) instalments
Pre-paying tax on investment and business income: how PAYG instalments work, how you are entered, the two ways to pay, varying them, and a worked example.
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Car fringe benefits tax: a guide for employers
When a car fringe benefit applies, the statutory formula vs operating cost methods (with a worked example), and the electric-car FBT exemption.
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Motor vehicle expenses for small business
Claiming car costs: cents per kilometre vs logbook, actual costs for companies and trusts, depreciation, records to keep, and the FBT and Division 7A traps.
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Division 7A (part 1): taking money from your company
How loans, payments and forgiven debts from a private company to its shareholders can become an unfranked deemed dividend — the two ways to avoid it, plus an interactive complying-loan repayment calculator.
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Concessional GST on commercial accommodation
When long-term accommodation (28+ days) qualifies for the 50% GST concession or input-taxed treatment, which premises qualify and the 70% test — with an interactive concession calculator.
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Estate planning: passing on assets tax-effectively
The CGT cost-base traps on the home, investment property and shares, the superannuation death-benefits tax and the withdrawal-and-re-contribution strategy, and testamentary discretionary trusts — with an interactive income-splitting calculator.
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Related-party property development: getting the structure right
When you own the land personally and a related company manages the build: who can claim the GST, the agency vs head-contract models, Division 7A and the margin scheme — with an interactive GST-recovery calculator.
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The super re-contribution strategy
Withdrawing and re-contributing super to turn the taxable component into tax-free — cutting the death-benefit tax for adult children. With an interactive tax-saving calculator, an SMSF readiness checklist, and the ATO materials behind it (TR 2010/1, ATO ID 2015/23).
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Tax & GST essentials for medical professionals
Practice structures, the personal services income (PSI) rules and the four personal-services-business tests, service entities, and which medical services are GST-free — with an interactive PSI self-check.
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Spouse super contributions & the $540 tax offset
After-tax contributions into a low-income spouse’s super: how the $540 offset works, how to claim it at item T3, spouse contributions vs contribution splitting, the caps and total-super-balance rules — with an interactive offset calculator.
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