Travel allowance or LAFHA: which applies to you?

An amount paid by your employer to cover expenses such as accommodation, food, or drinks while you travel for business is typically know as a travel allowance. There is also another type of allowance, called the living-away-from-home allowance (LAFHA), which compensates you for additional expenses when you are required to live away from home due to work duties. So what is the difference between the two?

The allowances are in fact very different, and have different consequences for the person receiving them. 

Ensure that you don’t get a big surprise when your tax is due. Read on  ...

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Belinda Frazer
Division 7A – think twice, it’s alright!

If you own a small private company, perhaps with your spouse, think twice before borrowing money from that company. If the transaction is not recorded correctly you could end up paying tax on any loan thanks to the rules known as Division 7A. You as an individual and your company are different entities so using your business to fund private expenses may attract adverse consequences if proper advice is not sought.

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Belinda Frazer
'Tis the Season of Giving - making and deducting charitable donations

With an estimated 80% of the Australian population donating to charity each year, we are clearly a nation of givers. Surprisingly, though, many people forget to include their donations as deductions at tax time.

Here are some guidelines about what consider when donating and making claims, and what you need to include as evidence to help us prepare your tax return.

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Belinda Frazer
Understanding Alternative Beta

A diversified Alternative Beta program is a mix of simple, well justified strategies, seeking to deliver persistent excess returns with scalable capacity, while exhibiting low correlation to traditional equity and fixed income benchmarks.

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Belinda Frazer