Changes to the exemption rules for foreign employment income

From 1 July 2009, income earned by Australian residents who are engaged in foreign services for a continuous period of 91 days or more will no longer be exempt from income tax, unless those foreign services are related to certain development projects, and charitable or government activities.

Foreign earnings that are subject to income tax will need to be included in your employee’s income tax return as assessable income and be subjected to 'pay as you go' (PAYG) withholding requirements. The tax withheld should be calculated as the amount that would normally be withheld in Australia under the relevant PAYG withholding tax table minus the equivalent Australian dollar amount of tax already paid to the foreign country

ABN

In recent, I received 2 enquiry phone calls from 2 different clients in these 2 days.
They are both retired and have some investment income: dividend, interest and residential property rental income.
They both consider buying another property for investment. Since they cannot pay 100% from their capital, or they want some tax benefit on interest, they approached the bank or the broker.
They were told to apply for ABN and then their loan will be approved.

As I told them that they don’t have business and they are not eligible to apply for ABN. The broker or bank officer wanted to get their loan applications approved via “low doc” rather than “full doc” as they do not have enough taxable income to pass the serviceability test. I explained to them that they are liable to ATO and the bank if they made false declaration on applying ABN and the loan.

Home Seeking - Day 1

“I believe most people like me experienced excitement and joy when looking for a property for the first time in their lives. However it may become the most painful thing, after months of searching and inspecting, when we have to make decision on committing in this investment, probably the most expensive decision / investment we ever make in our lives.

Looking for a property that suits our needs, budget and timeframe is not easy at all. There are so many different types of properties that we can choose from, such as apartment, duplex, semi detached, townhouse, villa and house etc; different locations and price ranges.

When I decided to look for my first property in Sydney I searched and browsed on the web and went to open inspections almost every weekend. I was lucky enough to have found my dream home quickly. However after I committed to it I found that it’s actually over my budget. I started to realize that I would be a lot more organized if I had sought professional advice and worked out a plan before my house hunting and commitment. (to be continued)”

Quote

Buying a home will probably be the most expensive investment you ever do in your lives. So it’s important to understand the buying process and be well informed about the property market

First Aid Kit

Recalling a discussion last week about safety issue, first aid box is a must in office. You don’t know when you will need it sometimes when emergency does happen.
But by what size you should get?
As follow:
1-10 employees: First Aid Box Kit C
10-100 employees: First Aid Box Kit B
100-200 employees: First Aid Box Kit A


For Additional information, can go to St. John NSW website:

https://secure.stjohn.org.au/nswshop/product-list.asp?pc=2