Rolling Out Tax Reform

• 2012
  • Raised the tax free threshold from $6,000 to $18,200 (AFTS Recommendation 2)
  • Introduced the Minerals Resource Rent Tax on iron ore and coal projects (AFTS Recommendations 45, 46, 47 and 48)
  • Extended the Petroleum Resource Rent Tax (PRRT) to onshore oil and gas projects (AFTS Recommendations 45)
  • Introduced transfer pricing reforms to confirm the transfer pricing in Australia's tax treaties operate as intended
  • Increased the managed investment trust (MIT) withholding rate from 7.5 per cent to 15 per cent and introduced a clean MIT withholding tax regime
  • Introduced the instant asset write-off to provide small business with an immediate deduction for assets that cost less than $6,500 (AFTS Recommendation 29)
  • Introduced immediate deduction of first $5,000 of cost of motor vehicles for small businesses (AFTS Recommendation 29)
  • Introduced loss carry-back arrangements to allow companies to carry back up to $1 million worth of tax losses and offset against past profits (AFTS Recommendation 31)
  • Halved the withholding tax rate on managed investment trusts from 30 per cent to 15 per cent (AFTS Recommendation 33)
  • Replaced the entrepreneurs tax offset with better targeted incentive for small business (AFTS Recommendation 6)
  • Removed concessional FBT treatment for in-house fringe benefits if they are accessed by salary sacrifice (AFTS Recommendation 9)
  • Reformed the FBT treatment of airline transport by modernising the method for determining the taxable value of airline fringe benefits (AFTS Recommendation 9)
  • Invested $2.1 billion to replace the Education Tax Refund with the simpler and fairer Schoolkids Bonus as an automatic payment to all eligible Family Tax Benefit Part A (FTBA) families (AFTS Recommendation 6)
  • Provided greater consistency between family payments and Youth Allowance by aligning the eligibility age for FTB-A (AFTS Recommendation 98)
  • Improved support for families by increasing the rate of FTB-A for 16 to 19 year olds in full-time secondary study to match that for 13 to 15 year olds (AFTS Recommendation 91)
  • Reformed the living-away-from-home allowances and benefits (AFTS Recommendation 9)
  • Improved targeting of the net medical expenses tax offset through means testing (AFTS Recommendation 7)
  • Consolidated eight dependency tax offsets (AFTS Recommendation 6)
  • Phased out the mature age workers tax offset (AFTS Recommendation 6)
  • Decreased the taper rate of Newstart
  • Allowance for single principal carers (AFTS Recommendation 85)
  • Increased the income free area for students receiving Youth Allowance
  • Protected the integrity of the wine producer rebate
  • Reduced duty free allowance for cigarettes (AFTS Recommendation 75)
  • Better targeted the employment termination payments tax offset (AFTS Recommendation 6)
  • Extended superannuation concessions to 3.6 million low income earners by introducing a Low Income Superannuation Contribution of up to $500 (AFTS Recommendation 18)
  • Reduced the tax concession on superannuation contributions received by very high income earners from 30 per cent to 15 per cent (AFTS Recommendation 18)
  • Established the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (AFTS Recommendation 41)