Sally Preston
Understand how company profits should be taxed, distributed and documented.
This article explains the key tax issues that arise when private companies retain or distribute profits, including company tax rates, dividends, franking credits, Division 7A, director loans and corporate beneficiary arrangements following Bendel. It highlights the practical traps that can arise when company money is treated as personal or group money without proper planning.
Sally Preston
End-of-financial-year tax planning is important, but the bigger opportunities usually come from planning well before 30 June. Long-term tax planning can affect cash flow, the way profits are extracted, the structure used to hold assets, and the tax payable when a business or investment is eventually sold.
Sally Preston
Trusts are common in business and investment structures, but they are often misunderstood.
This article explains what a trust is, the roles of trustees, appointors and beneficiaries, why the trust deed matters, and the key tax issues to watch — including trust distributions, section 100A, family trust elections, corporate beneficiaries and Bendel.
Sally Preston
Trust distribution planning is no longer just about preparing a resolution before 30 June. Section 100A can apply where a beneficiary is made entitled to trust income but another person receives the real economic benefit.
This article explains how the ATO looks at reimbursement agreement risk, adult child distributions, corporate beneficiaries and the practical records trustees should keep, to support their position.
Sally Preston
Thinking about expanding your Australian business overseas?
This article explains five key international tax questions to consider before you launch, including business structure, permanent establishment risk, transfer pricing, withholding tax, profit repatriation and broader international tax issues.
Sally Preston
Australian tax residency is not always obvious. Moving overseas, accepting a foreign role or spending most of the year outside Australia does not automatically make you a non-resident.
This article explains the key residency tests, common misconceptions about the 183-day and two-year rules, and the practical factors the ATO considers when determining whether Australia remains your tax home.
Sally Preston
Foreign trusts can create unexpected Australian tax issues when an Australian resident receives money, assets, loans or other benefits from an overseas structure.
This article explains how section 99B can apply, why gifts or capital distributions should not be assumed to be tax-free, and what records should be reviewed before funds or assets are transferred to Australia.
Sally Preston
Australian tax residency and foreign resident CGT rules can significantly affect the tax outcome when Australian assets are sold or cross-border structures are involved.
This article explains taxable Australian property, main residence exemption traps, CGT discount issues, foreign resident withholding and the importance of obtaining advice before contracts are signed or residency changes.
Sally Preston
Selling a business can trigger significant tax consequences.
This article explains how the small business CGT concessions may reduce, defer or eliminate capital gains tax, why the rules are complex, and why business owners should obtain specialist tax advice before agreeing to a sale structure.
Sally Preston
Valuations are often needed for business sales, restructures, related-party transactions, CGT concessions and employee share schemes.
This article explains when a valuation may be required, what the ATO expects, how to choose the right valuer and why the new CGT changes may make 30 June 2027 valuations especially important.
Sally Preston
Choosing the right business structure is about more than setting up an ABN or registering a company. Your structure can affect tax, asset protection, profit extraction, succession planning and future sale outcomes.
This article compares sole traders, partnerships, companies and trusts, and explains why Australia’s new CGT reforms make structure reviews more important than ever.
Sally Preston
Do you earn income mainly from your own skills, knowledge or labour? If so, the personal services income (PSI) rules may apply to you. These rules can have a significant impact on how your income is taxed, the deductions you can claim and whether income can be retained or distributed through a company, trust or partnership. Understanding how the PSI rules operate is essential for consultants, contractors and other professionals who provide their services through a business structure.
Sally Preston
A practical guide to employee share schemes, options, phantom equity and profit-share plans, including tax timing, start-up concessions, reporting obligations and key design issues for private businesses.
Sally Preston
Engaging workers as contractors can seem simple, but the wrong classification can create PAYG withholding, superannuation, payroll tax and workers compensation risks.
This article explains the key issues businesses should review before assuming a contractor is not an employee.
Sally Preston
Subdividing or developing land can have very different tax outcomes depending on your intention, the level of development activity, and whether the sale is treated as ordinary income or a capital gain.
This article explains the key income tax, CGT and GST issues, including how the CGT rule changes from 1 July 2027 may affect future property transactions.
Sally Preston
Earning extra income from a side hustle, online platform, consulting work or small business?
This article explains when your activity may be treated as a business, what that means for tax, ABNs, GST and deductions, and when a business loss can — or cannot — reduce your other income.
Sally Preston
Property investment tax rules are changing, and the ATO is paying close attention to rental property deductions, holiday homes, short-term accommodation and capital gains.
This article explains the key tax issues for property investors, landlords and holiday accommodation owners, including negative gearing, repairs versus improvements, Airbnb-style rentals, interest deductibility, ownership structures, land tax, CGT on sale and non-resident property owners.
Sally Preston
The ATO’s updated guidance may change how deductions are claimed for Airbnb properties and holiday homes.
This article explains when rental income must be declared, when expenses may need to be apportioned, and why private use can put interest, rates, insurance and other ownership costs at risk.
We all have one.....and this is ours.....
Sally Preston
Australian tax law is increasingly unforgiving when documentation, elections or year-end records are missing, late or defective.
This paper does not argue that taxpayers can disregard the law as it currently stands. Instead, Sally Preston makes the case for legislative reform, examining how Division 7A loan agreements, family trust elections, interposed entity elections, trust distribution resolutions and franking credit rules can turn administrative failure into substantive tax liability — even where the income has been returned, the transaction occurred as intended and there is no obvious revenue loss.
The paper argues for a clearer statutory substantial compliance approach that protects integrity while ensuring the tax system taxes the mischief, not the missing file note.
Sally Preston
Bendel has changed the way advisers need to think about unpaid present entitlements to corporate beneficiaries. The High Court confirmed that a UPE is not automatically a Division 7A loan merely because it remains unpaid, and the ATO’s Decision Impact Statement accepts that position. But that does not mean UPEs can now be ignored.
This article considers the former ATO view, the practical impact of Bendel, the remaining risks under Subdivision EA and section 100A, and why the proposed trust tax changes may again alter the value of bucket company planning.
Sally Preston