Taxpayers are responsible for safely storing a written backup copy of their tax record in case the original electronic form becomes inaccessible or unreadable.
Where the tax records are accidently lost or destroyed from a burglary or fire, the ATO will allow a taxpayer to claim a deduction for certain expenses. The conditions are:
– The taxpayer has a complete copy of a lost or destroyed document.
– The ATO is satisfied that the taxpayer took acceptable precautions to avoid the loss or destruction of the form. If the tax record was a written document, it is not reasonably possible to attain a substitute document.
It is important that taxpayers keep a record of these circumstances and inform the tax office in writing to back up the claim.
Currently, people aged 65 to 74 can only make voluntary superannuation contributions if they meet the ‘work test.’ This means they must report themselves to be working a minimum of 40 hours over a 30 day period within the financial year to qualify.
The government has proposed that from 1 July 2020, individuals aged 65 and 66 will be able to make voluntary concessional and non-concessional superannuation contributions without meeting the work test. This approach will enable participants nearing retirement to increase their superannuation savings regardless of their working arrangements.
As well as this, the government also proposes to increase the age limit for receiving spouse contributions from 70 to 74, to be implemented on 1 July 2020. Currently, people aged 70 and over cannot receive any contributions made by another person on their behalf, and the change will give older Australians greater flexibility to save for their retirement.
