With the next Federal election close by, it is important that you start evaluating the parties’ proposed policies that will affect your clients’ businesses.
The federal budget has been rescheduled to Tuesday 2 April – from its usual 2nd Tuesday in May and it is expected that Parliament will be dissolved on 15 April. With Parliament resuming 12 February that leaves only 10 sitting days for the House of Representatives and 5 sitting days for the Senate. Even after the election the new senate will not take place until 1 July so the crossbenchers will still have the balance of power.
There are currently 246 Bills before Parliament. As soon as an election is called, any legislation not passed lapses. So a significant number of Bills will not be passed.
“The key bill that I believe should be passed is the Treasury Laws Amendment (2018 Superannuation Measures No.1) Bill 2018,” said Effective PD and Tactical Super Director Deanne Firth.
The bill which contains the superannuation guarantee amnesty also covers:
- the tightening of non-arm’s length income of superannuation entities to include non-arm’s length expenditure
- LRBA changes to ensure that, in certain circumstances involving limited recourse borrowing arrangements
- the total value or a superannuation fund’s assets is taken into account in working out individual members’ total superannuation balances
- the option for employees with multiple employers to opt out of the SG regime to avoid excess concessional contributions
“The main reason I believe it needs to be passed is that the superannuation amnesty was announced on budget night and was to provide for a one-off 12-month amnesty to encourage employers to self-correct historical superannuation guarantee non-compliance,” said Firth. “The amnesty was to commence from 24 May 2018 for 12 months. If we go to an election without this being passed the 12-month period will have ended. This means for those who notified the ATO believing they were in the amnesty period will be required to apply the existing law,” she added.
To find out more about the policies and views being supported by the Liberal and Labor parties, watch Effective PD’s webinar on Liberal vs Labor. To subscribe, visit www.effectivepd.com.au. Effective PD offers an innovative way for busy accountants to be on top of their game with continuing professional development in a brief, flexible and easy way.
