Working from home tax deductions: COVID-19

It’s hard to see the good in COVID-19. One of the few upsides is that you may be able to claim some tax back for the expenses incurred from running your make-shift home office.

With lockdowns forcing many more people to work from home, the ATO has introduced a new shortcut method for claiming work-related tax deductions. The temporary shortcut method was initially applied from 1 March to 30 June 2020, however it can now be applied until 30 June 2022.

Under this method, you can claim 80 cents per hour for your additional running expenses that you have incurred. This covers a whole range of expenses:

  • Electricity and gas expenses associated with heating, cooling, and lighting.
  • Cleaning expenses, phone costs, and internet.
  • Home office furniture, stationery, computers consumables, laptops, printers and tablets.

 

The shortcut method is simple. All you need to do is calculate the total number of hours you’ve worked from home due to COVID-19 and multiply those hours by $0.80. The final amount is your tax-deductible expense claim for the financial year.

If you decide to sell your home, you may also need to consider any impact that making a working-from-home claim could have on your main residence capital gains tax exemption later.

What you can’t claim

If you’re working from home because of the COVID-19 lockdown, you generally can’t claim:

  • Occupancy expenses such as mortgage interest, rent, insurance and rates.
  • Coffee, tea, milk, and other general household items.
  • Costs related to children and their education.
  • Time spent not working.

Records required

You’re not required to keep receipts or calculate the specific costs of items you may have bought during this period, but you will need to keep records of the number of hours you’ve worked. This could include your Outlook calendar, a timesheet or diary.

Note: when you complete your tax return, you’ll also need to include the reference ‘COVID-hourly rate’ if it is lodged through myGov or your tax agent.

Multiple people working in your home

If there are multiple people working from a single home, they can each claim 80 cents per hour for additional running expenses that they each incur. This includes both members of a couple living together.

More details are available from the ATO.

Case study example

Ben is a full-time employee who started working from home because of the COVID-19 lockdown and needed to buy a new laptop, desk, chair and printer.

Working from home means he’s also spent extra money on gas, electricity, phone and Wi-Fi internet.

Under the shortcut method, Ben can now claim a deduction at the rate of 80 cents per hour for the expenses he incurred as long as he has timesheet style evidence to prove how many hours he’s worked.

Other methods for claiming work expenses

You can still make a claim for working from home under the existing methods, where you calculate all or part of your actual running expenses.

Fixed-rate method

This is known as the 52 cents per work hour method for claiming items such as heating, cooling, lighting, cleaning, and a decline in value of office furniture. The method is available if you have a dedicated work area in your home.

Separately under this method, you can claim the work-related portion of actual phone and internet expenses, stationery and a decline in the value of a computer, laptop or similar device. But you’ll need to keep records of the expenses and be clear about what the personal versus deductible work-related portion of usage is.

Actual cost method

With this method you can claim the reasonable actual work-related portion of all your running expenses.

Unlike the new shortcut method, you’ll need to keep records of all your expenses along with the number of hours you’ve worked from home.

Case study example

Anna is a full-time employee who’s been working from home as a result of the COVID-19 and decided to buy a new laptop and desk chair, and dedicated a spare room at home for work. She also wants to claim some additional gas, electricity, phone and internet costs due to working from home.

Under the fixed-rate method, she can claim the desk chair, gas and electricity under the 52 cents per hour rate. She would then need to work out the decline in value of the laptop, and calculate the work-related portion of the laptop, phone and internet.

Which method?

As you can see from the examples above, there are now three ways of claiming working-from-home expenses. To simplify the terminology, there’s the 52 cents fixed-rate approach, the fixed cost method and the shortcut 80 cents approach.

Which method best suits you—and results in the maximum tax deduction—may depend on variables like how long you’re working at home, the amount of your expenses, and the quality of your record keeping and whether you have a dedicated work space at home.

It may be worth discussing this issue with your tax agent to make sure you get maximum tax benefit with minimal admin workload.

 

Important information and disclaimer

This article has been prepared by NULIS Nominees (Australia) Limited ABN 80 008 515 633 AFSL 236465 (NULIS) as trustee of the MLC Super Fund ABN 70 732 426 024. The information in this article is current as at November 2021 and may be subject to change. This information may constitute general advice. The information in this article is factual in nature and does not take into account personal objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions based on this information. You should not rely on this article to determine your personal tax obligations. Please consult a registered tax agent for this purpose. Opinions constitute our judgement at the time of issue. In some cases information has been provided to us by third parties and while that information is believed to be accurate and reliable, its accuracy is not guaranteed in any way. Subject to terms implied by law and which cannot be excluded, NULIS does not accept responsibility for any loss or liability incurred by you in respect of any error, omission or misrepresentation in the information in this communication. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. The value of an investment may rise or fall with the changes in the market.

Source: MLC https://www.mlc.com.au/personal/blog/2020/07/working_from_hometa

How to build wealth in your 30s

Key takeaways
  • Investing with a long-term plan means you’re less likely to be affected by short-term market fluctuations
  • Keeping track of your expenses versus income can help identify possible savings to pay off debt
  • Adding more to your super on a regular basis offers tax benefits in addition to improving your retirement.

To all the thirty-somethings out there, now’s your time to shine! These are the years that will shape the rest of your life.

If you’re looking for a bright future—that’s not held back by financial worry—here’s four simple tips to start building wealth now so you can chill later.

1. Consider long-term investing 

Having time on your side—one of the great benefits of being in your 30s—can mean a great deal in the investing world.

Why? If you invest with a long-term plan, you’re less likely to be affected by short-term volatility.

With growth assets like shares and property, your chance of a negative return gets lower the longer you invest. In your 30s you’re in a better position to use that pattern to your advantage – to take on more risk to generate higher returns, if you choose to.

Shares

Generally speaking, shares outperform many other investments over the long term.1

There’s also the benefit of dividends. If you invest in companies that pay dividends, you’ll benefit from part of the company’s profits paid to shareholders (generally twice a year). That can be handy income – or reinvested to keep growing your capital.

Property

Owning an investment property may be another way to generate a good income stream – with tenants paying you rent. This income may also help to pay off your mortgage so you can capitalise on another investment later in life.

Like shares, Australian residential property has delivered strong long-term returns.2 While less volatile than shares, it’s important to note property values do change depending on supply and demand in the market.

2.  Seek help from a professional 

If you value the experience of experts in other aspects of your life, don’t discount it when it comes to managing your life savings.

A financial adviser is not just someone who helps with investments. Their job is to help you with every aspect of your financial life—savings, insurance, tax, debt—while keeping you on track to achieve your goals.

More importantly, they can answer questions like:

  • How can I pay off my mortgage faster and reduce my debt?
  • What strategies can I use to build my wealth?
  • What age can I stop working and retire?

If your to-do list is endless and you never quite have time to tackle your personal finances, a financial adviser may help to set you on the right track.

3. Gain control of your debt

Debt management is a crucial skill when it comes to managing money, saving and planning for the future.

Whether it’s a credit card, personal loan or a mortgage you’re paying off, setting priorities and keeping track of your expenses/income to identify potential savings may help to pay off debts sooner. And the sooner you pay off your debts, the more money you can invest for a better lifestyle in future.

Set priorities

If you have more than one outstanding debt, consider working out how much you can repay on each, based on the minimum repayment owing.

Alternatively, if you’re able to repay more than the minimum, look at prioritising your debts. You’ll need to think about the type of debt you have—an investment loan or personal debt—and how much is owing. If you only have personal debt, you could prioritise repaying debts with the highest interest rate first, given these will be costing you the most.

Keep track of expenses and income

Having a clear picture about what you earn versus what you spend can highlight areas where you could save more. Whatever income you’re able to save can then be allocated towards your debt.

There are budget planners and phone apps you can use to track your spending. Alternatively, you can simply download your bank statements and keep a record of your receipts.

4. Add more to your super

Super is one way to generate wealth over the long-term due to compounding returns. Compound returns is the way your balance increases if you give your investment time for the growth you got this year to grow again next year – and the year after that and the year after that.

In your 30s you’ve got time to get compound returns on your side. One way to maximise this benefit is to contribute more into your super on a regular basis. You can do this using your before or after-tax income and there may be tax benefits that come with this too.

For example, if you contribute some of your after-tax income or savings into super, you may be eligible to claim a tax deduction.

Be mindful of contribution caps though. They limit the amount of super contributions you’re able to make each year if you want to avoid paying tax at your marginal tax rate rather than the concessional rate of
15%.

 

If you have questions and would like your financial situation to be evaluated, please email us on ds@bluerocke.com with your contacts, for an exploratory meeting, at our cost, not yours.

Article Source: https://www.mlc.com.au/personal/blog/2020/12/how_to_build_wealth_in_your_30s

6 financial moves to make in your 50s and 60s

Key takeaways:

  • Once you understand the type of lifestyle you want in retirement, you can start implementing a plan
  • Adding more to your super on a regular basis can help to increase your retirement savings
  • An estate plan is important to ensure your wealth is passed on to who and how you want.

Once you hit your 50s and 60s, retirement is no longer something happening far off into the future. In fact, it’s at your doorstep.

Now is the time to really figure out where you stand financially, reassess your long-term goals, and focus on planning your future.

Here are six smart financial moves that may make the next few decades the best years of your life.

1. Decide on your retirement lifestyle

With a clear idea of the type of retirement lifestyle you’re after, you can start implementing a plan to turn your retirement dreams into reality.

Some things to consider are:

  • How often you would like to travel – and the types of holidays you’d like to take Your travel plans might have gone out the window for now, but that doesn’t stop you planning for the future
  • Whether a sea change or tree change is part of your plan?
  • Downsizing – or upsizing. What are your accommodation plans in the future?
  • Do you want to provide financial assistance to your family?
  • In your later years, what options would you like to have in relation to help and support at home, or perhaps in a retirement village or aged care facility?

2. Seek help from a professional

If you value the experience of experts in other aspects of your life, don’t discount it when it comes to managing your life savings.

A financial adviser is not just someone who helps with investments. Their job is to help you with every aspect of your financial life—savings, insurance, tax, debt—while keeping you on track to achieve your goals.

More importantly, they can answer questions like:

  • What age can I stop working and retire?
  • What strategies can I use to build my wealth?
  • How can I ensure my wealth is transferred to my children?

If your to-do list is endless and you never quite have time to tackle your personal finances, a financial adviser may help to set you on the right track.

3. Increase your retirement savings

One way to ensure you can enjoy your desired retirement lifestyle is to add more into your super on a regular basis.

You can do this using your before or after-tax income. If you make a personal contribution, you may be eligible to claim a tax deduction too. This means you’ll reduce your taxable income and potentially pay less tax, while adding to your super balance. It’s a win-win!

Be mindful of contribution caps though. They limit the amount of super contributions you’re able to make each year if you want to avoid paying tax at your marginal tax rate rather than the concessional rate of 15%.

4. Pay off your debt

The lower your expenses in retirement, the longer your savings will last.

So, if you have significant debt, you should also have a plan to proactively clear that debt, such as mortgage repayments or personal loans. This will strengthen your financial position when you retire.

Speaking to a financial adviser can help determine the best way to reduce your debt as you move into retirement, while also making sure your saving towards retirement is on track.

5. Diversify your investment portfolio

At this stage in your life, you don’t want your investments to be derailed by external market factors which are out of your control.

Investing your money across multiple different asset classes—shares, property, bonds, cash—will help to lower your investment risk. This strategy—diversification—works because different investment types perform well at different times so if one area of your portfolio falls, another may be rising. Having a variety of investments helps balance out your overall risk.

You may also want to consider speaking to a financial adviser as they can review your investments to assess where you currently stand and determine if your investment portfolio needs adjusting.

6. Set up an estate plan or a will

An estate plan is a collection of legal documents that outlines how you want your assets distributed when you die. Crucially, it also includes how you want your health and financial decisions handled (and by who) if you’re unable to make them yourself.

Most estate plans have a will which names an executor to manage the distribution of your assets as you intend. A solicitor (or the Public Trustee) can help you with this.

In essence, having an estate plan in place can help you feel more confident about the future, knowing your loved ones will be taken care of, and that the legacy you leave behind is the one you want – we recommend you speak with a financial adviser. You can also visit the retirement section on our website, which includes a range of tools and resources to help kick-start your retirement.

Important information and disclaimer

This article has been prepared by NULIS Nominees (Australia) Limited ABN 80 008 515 633 AFSL 236465 (NULIS) as trustee of the MLC Super Fund ABN 70 732 426 024. The information in this article is current as at April 2021 and may be subject to change. This information may constitute general advice. The information in this article is factual in nature and does not take into account personal objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions based on this information. You should not rely on this article to determine your personal tax obligations. Please consult a registered tax agent for this purpose. Opinions constitute our judgement at the time of issue. In some cases information has been provided to us by third parties and while that information is believed to be accurate and reliable, its accuracy is not guaranteed in any way. Subject to terms implied by law and which cannot be excluded, NULIS does not accept responsibility for any loss or liability incurred by you in respect of any error, omission or misrepresentation in the information in this communication. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. The value of an investment may rise or fall with the changes in the market

Source: MLC https://www.mlc.com.au/personal/blog/2020/12/6_financial_moves_to_make_in_your_50s_and_60s