Reforms to the charity and not-for-profit (NFP) sector

Posted on October 10, 2011 by stephen

The Assistant Treasurer,  Bill Shorten, has announced that the Australian Government will “shortly release a discussion paper that seeks to elicit the diversity of community views” as part of the reforms to the charity and not-for-profit (NFP) sector announced in the 2011–12 Federal Budget. Under the proposed changes, NFP entities will be required to pay income tax on profits from their unrelated commercial activities that are not directed back to their altruistic purpose. Mr Shorten said he expected the proposed reforms would not cause detriment to the vast majority of commercial activities conducted by NFPs.

Mr Shorten’s spoke to the Australian Charity Law Association Annual Conference on 23 Sept 2011 outlining the development of the proposals . His full speech can be found here

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Standard tax deduction – draft legislation

Posted on October 7, 2011 by stephen

The Australian Government has released for comment exposure draft
legislation and explanatory material regarding the Federal Budget
2010–11 proposal to provide individual taxpayers with a standard tax deduction.
The draft legislation proposes a standard deduction of $500 for
2012–13, rising to $1000 from 2013–14. The deduction would replace
work-related expenses and the cost of managing tax affairs for those
taxpayers whose claims for these expenses are less than the standard
deduction. Taxpayers whose claims for these expenses exceed the standard
deduction would still be able to claim those deductions.

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Relief for Self Managed Superannuation Fund Auditors

Posted on October 6, 2011 by stephen

Approximately 11,500 self managed superannuation fund (SMSF) auditors will benefit from proposed changes to the period in which auditors must provide their audit report to SMSF trustees.

The Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation, Bill Shorten, recently released draft Regulations that extend the audit period when the audit report cannot be provided on time due to certain circumstances beyond the auditor’s control.

“The proposed changes will ensure SMSF auditors are not penalised unfairly when external factors cause delays in the completion of the audit report,” Mr Shorten said.

Currently, SMSF auditors are required to provide SMSF trustees with their audit report no later than the day before the SMSF trustees are required to lodge their annual return. They can be penalised for not providing the audit report within this period, regardless of the
reasons for the delay.

The draft Regulations create certainty for SMSF auditors by extending the period when SMSF trustees do not appoint the auditor on time or do not provide them with information needed to complete the audit.

“The draft Regulations respond to concerns raised by the accounting profession and provide fairer outcomes for SMSF auditors,” Minister Shorten said.

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