30 May Tax time 2022: ATO focus areas
Tax time 2022 is fast approaching, and this financial year, the ATO will again be focusing on a few key areas to ensure Australians are doing the right thing and paying the right amount of tax.
Like last year, the ATO recommends that people wait until the end of July to lodge their tax returns, rather than rushing to lodge at the beginning of July. This is because much of the pre-fill information will become available later in the month, making it easier to ensure all income and deductions are reported correctly the first time. People who lodge early often forget to include information about interest from banks, dividend income and payments from government agencies and private health insurers.
While the ATO receives and matches information on rental income, foreign sourced income and capital gains, not all of that information will be pre-filled for individuals, so it’s important to ensure you include it all as well.
Some of the traditional areas the ATO is focusing on this year include record-keeping, work-related expenses and rental property income and deductions, as well as capital gains from property and shares.
Any deductions you claim must be backed by evidence – people who deliberately attempt to increase their refunds by falsifying records or don’t have evidence to substantiate their claims will be subject to “firm action”.
For people who are working from home or in hybrid working arrangements and claim related expenses, the ATO will be expecting to see a corresponding reduction in other expenses you claim, such as car, clothing, parking and tolls expenses.
With the intense flooding earlier this year, some rental property owners may have received insurance payouts. These, along with other income received such as retained bonds or short-term rental arrangement income, need to be reported.
Lastly, the ATO’s keeping a close eye on people selling property, shares and cryptocurrency, including non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Any capital gains need to be included in your tax return so you pay the right tax on them. But if you’ve recently sold out of cryptocurrency assets you may have a capital loss, which can’t be offset against other income such as salary and wages, only against other capital gains.