After another year spent working from home, and petrol prices at an all-time high, it’s no secret that more people than ever are looking to get the most out of their tax return.
Vince Aiello from A Grade Tax in Penrith and ProYou in Parramatta said that it’s essential to be prepared when it comes to knowing what you want to claim, to make the process as quick and easy as possible.
“If you’re seeing your accountant, you’d obviously want to have all of that information, especially because your accountant wants to get your tax return done then and there,” he said.
“And, to maximise your refund, you want to have as much information as possible, so all of your deductions on hand, on file, so your accountant can work out the best deduction for you.”
When it comes to what you can claim this year, working from home will again be a major factor for many. But, after two years spent out of the office, Mr Aiello said that it’s important to be conscious of what you’re claiming.
“Obviously we’ve had COVID for the past two years now, so there’s going to be a lot of people that are working from home. We’ve just got to be mindful of what we can claim as a work from home expense,” Mr Aiello said.
“Obviously we can look at your Internet costs at home, your telephone usage, the electricity cost is going to be up, so you do want to have all of those in place. I know that the ATO is going to be cracking down on that, so we don’t want to over-claim all of those working from home expenses, so you do want to be a bit reasonable.”
Increased petrol prices will also be a consideration for those who travel for work.
“If you’re using your car for work purposes, often petrol prices are higher now, so that might impact your tax return,” Mr Aiello said.
One of Mr Aiello’s top tips for this year is to take advantage of your super.
“If you put money yourself into your super fund, you can claim that as a personal super contribution deduction,” he said.
“Obviously, it goes to your super fund, so you can’t touch it until you retire, but if you’re looking to get a good deduction, that’s probably something that I’d suggest.”
Mr Aiello also recommends looking into new arrangements to ‘carry forward’ unused concessional contributions for individuals with a large capital gain this year.
As for when you should be aiming to get your tax done, those certain to get a refund should be getting in early, within the first few weeks of July.
But, for everyone else, the due date isn’t until the end of October, though this is extended to May with a tax agent.
Troy Dodds is Parra News' Managing Editor and Breaking News Reporter. He has more than 20 years experience as a journalist, working with some of Australia’s leading media organisations. In 2023, he was named Editor of the Year at the Mumbrella Publish Awards.