From the Institute of Chartered Accountants

The government has set a deadline of 1 December to resolve uncertainty over dozens of taxes and policies announced but not legislated. Some of those already announced are as follows:

• Cap on self-education expenses

The government announced on 6 November, 2013 that they will not proceed with the $2,000 cap on self-education expenses announced in the last budget.

• Fringe Benefit Tax (FBT) changes Motor Vehicles

The FBT changes removing the statutory percentage formula for motor vehicles will not proceed.  This is good news for businesses who provide salary-sacrificed motor vehicles to employees for private use. The proposed changes would have required employees to keep a log book for 12 weeks, to establish the business vs personal use of the vehicle, and would have resulted in higher FBT liabilities for most businesses who offer motor vehicle fringe benefits, which in turn would have then resulted in many businesses less willing to offer those fringe benefits to employees. The car industry in particular was expected to be affected.

• Superannuation pensions

The tax changes to superannuation pension earnings above $100,000 a year will not become law.