Budget 2008-09

HECS-HELP benefit for early childhood education teachers

The HECS-HELP benefit for early childhood teachers aims to encourage early childhood education teachers to take up employment in rural and regional areas, Indigenous Australian communities and areas of high socio-economic disadvantage. The Tax Office have produced a list of eligible work location postcodes. The benefit is one of  a ...

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HECS-HELP benefit for maths and science graduates

The HECS-HELP benefit aims to encourage maths and science graduates to take up employment in specified occupations, including teaching of those subjects in primary and secondary schools. The benefit is one of  a number of initiatives the Australian Government announced in the 2008 Budget to implement its ‘education revolution’ policy. ...

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Parents should ‘keep their receipts’ for education expenses in light of the proposed commencement of the Education Tax Refund from 1 July 2008. Under the ETR, eligible families will be able to claim: ? a 50 per cent refundable tax offset every year for up to $750 for each child ...

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From 1 July 2008, families who receive FTB Part A with children in primary or secondary school will be able to claim a refundable tax offset for eligible education expenses. The offset will be claimed through the individual tax return for the relevant income year. Eligible expenses would appear to ...

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From 1 July 2008, the Child Care Tax Rebate (CCTR) will increase from 30% to 50%. Currently this payment is made annually through Centrelink to cover out-of-pocket childcare expenses. The maximum value of the claim will increase from $4,354 per child to $7,500 per child per year. The payment frequency of the ...

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From 1 July 2008, the Baby Bonus will increase from $4,258 to $5,000. There have been some other changes too. From 1 January 2009, eligibility for the bonus will be limit to families with income of $75,000 or less in the six months after the birth of the child (effectively, ...

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A few other budget changes and initiatives include: Restricted eligibility for the Entrepreneur’s tax offset. Changes to fringe benefits regarding the current exemptions. Depreciation period changed for in-house software. Definition of a family changed with regards to family trusts. Expanding the definition of income for government support. No deductions allowed ...

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The First Home Saver Accounts (FHSA) will operate from 1 October 2008. There have been some changes since the original proposal was first released. I’ll be writing in more detail on the FHSA soon (there’s a lot to cover). Basically, eligible taxpayers make deposits into the accounts and the Government will partly ...

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From 1 July 2008, an income threshold of $150,000 will apply when determining a taypayer’s eligibility for claiming certain tax offsets. These include Dependent Spouse, Housekeeper, Child Housekeeper, Invalid Relative and Parent/Parent-in-law tax offsets. Currently these offsets are not income tested. By July 2009, the Government has said they will ...

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The amount of income a senior Australian eligible for the Senior Australian Tax Offset (SATO) can earn before they incur a tax liability will increase to the following: 2008-09: Singles $28,867     Couples (each) $24,680 2009-10: Singles $29,867     Couples (each) $25,680 2010-2011: Singles $30,685     Couples (each) $26,680 The Medicare Levy low-income ...

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From 1 July 2008 the Low Income Tax Offset (LITO) will increase from $750 to a generous $1,200. This means a taxpayer will be able to earn $14,000 before they pay tax. From 1 July 2009, it will go up even further to $1,350 and from 1 July 2010 will reach ...

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