Even though a reportable fringe benefits amount is included on your payment summary and is shown on your tax return, it is not included in your assessable income. However, it is included in a number of income tests for:
- Medicare levy surcharge
- Medicare levy surcharge lump sum payment in arrears tax offset
- deductions for personal super contributions
- super co-contribution
- tax offset for contributions to your spouse's super
- mature age worker tax offset
- Higher Education Loan Program (HELP) and Financial Supplement repayments
- dependent tax offsets, including
- dependent spouse
- child-housekeeper
- parent, spouse's parent or invalid relative
- housekeeper tax offset
- senior Australians tax offset
- pensioner tax offset
- your child support obligations
- your entitlement to certain income-tested government benefits.
Medicare levy surcharge
If your income for Medicare levy surcharge purposes (or your combined income for surcharge purposes if you had a spouse) exceeds the surcharge thresholds, you will have to pay the surcharge for any period you did not have an appropriate level of private patient hospital cover during the year.
You do not pay income tax or the Medicare levy on your reportable fringe benefits total. However, you add your reportable fringe benefits total to your taxable income to work out your liability for the Medicare levy surcharge.
Income tax deductions for personal super contributions
Your reportable fringe benefits total may affect whether you can claim a deduction for personal super contributions you make.
Super co-contribution
The super co-contribution is a government initiative to help low-to-middle income earners save for retirement.
Your reportable fringe benefits total may affect whether you are eligible to receive super co-contribution.
Tax offset for contributions to your spouse's super
You may be able to claim a tax offset for contributions you make to a complying super fund or retirement savings account on behalf of your spouse. Your spouse's reportable fringe benefits and reportable employer super contributions are included when working out if you are eligible for this offset.
|
For more about:
|
Mature age worker tax offset
The mature age worker tax offset can reduce the amount of tax you are liable to pay. The maximum tax offset is $500.
The mature age worker tax offset is not the same as the senior Australians tax offset or the pensioner tax offset, and some people may be eligible for more than one of these. Your reportable fringe benefits total and reportable employer super contribution amounts are included when working out if you are eligible for this offset.
Compulsory HELP and Financial Supplement repayments
You include your reportable fringe benefits total when working out the amount you must repay against a Higher Education Loan Program (HELP) or Financial Supplement debt.
Dependent tax offsets
From the 2009-10 income year onwards, your adjusted fringe benefits will be used in the adjusted taxable income (ATI) test to work out:
- whether you are eligible for the following tax offsets
- spouse (without dependent child or student) tax offset
- child-housekeeper tax offset
- housekeeper tax offset
- parent, spouse's parent or invalid relative tax offset
- the amount you are entitled to.
Senior Australians and pensioner tax offsets
From the 2009-10 income year onwards, your adjusted fringe benefits will be used in the rebate income test to work out whether you are eligible for the following tax offsets and the amount you are entitled to:
- senior Australian tax offset
- pensioner tax offset.
Child support assessments
If you are a child support customer, your reportable fringe benefits total will be included in the income used to calculate your child support.
Income-tested government benefits
You may also need to take your reportable fringe benefits total into account in the income tests for some government benefits.
|
For more about how reportable fringe benefits affect government benefits, visit the Centrelink website.
|
Last Modified: Monday, 20 May 2013