28/12/2025
๐ง๐ต๐ฒ $๐ญ,๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ฌ โ๐๐ป๐๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ๐๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ปโ ๐๐๐ปโ๐ ๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฒ ๐ ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ๐ - ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒโ๐ ๐ช๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ ๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ ๐ ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ป๐ (๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ต๐ผ๐ ๐๐ผ ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ)
Australiaโs 2025 federal election (held 3 May 2025) returned Anthony Albaneseโs Labor government with a clear House of Representatives majority โ 94 seats in the final count. Now attention has shifted from campaign promises to whatโs actually changing in the tax system โ and when.
Below is a clear breakdown of the key changes impacting individual taxpayers, especially workers claiming deductions โ plus how to stay compliant and avoid common mistakes.
๐๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ฎ๐๐ (๐ณ๐ฎ๐๐ ๐๐๐บ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐)
Tax rate cuts for the lowest income bracket are legislated and begin 1 July 2026, with a second cut 1 July 2027.
A $1,000 โinstant tax deductionโ for work-related expenses is proposed to start 1 July 2026, but itโs not yet law (per the ATOโs latest guidance).
Record-keeping still matters under current rules โ including the well-known $300 substantiation rule for work-related expenses.
๐ญ) ๐ก๐ฒ๐ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น ๐ถ๐ป๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐
๐ฐ๐๐๐ ๐ณ๐ฟ๐ผ๐บ ๐ญ ๐๐๐น๐ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฒ (๐๐ต๐ถ๐ ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ ๐ถ๐ ๐ฎ๐น๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ ๐น๐ฎ๐)
From 1 July 2026, the tax rate for the $18,201โ$45,000 income bracket drops from 16% to 15%. Then from 1 July 2027, it drops again from 15% to 14%.
How much could you save?
Government budget material estimates an extra tax cut of up to $268 per year from 1 July 2026, and up to $536 per year from 1 July 2027 (compared with 2024โ25 settings).
What this means for you: your take-home pay and/or tax outcome may shift slightly โ but the biggest wins still come from getting your deductions right and planning ahead.
โ
How ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ซ๐ฏ๐ข๐๐ helps:
Personal tax planning to identify legal strategies to reduce taxable income
Electronic tax return lodgement to save time and reduce errors
Support to eliminate tax return errors that can trigger unnecessary ATO attention
๐ฎ) ๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ผ๐ฝ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ $๐ญ,๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ฌ โ๐ถ๐ป๐๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ ๐๐ฎ๐
๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ปโ ๐ณ๐ฟ๐ผ๐บ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฒโ๐ฎ๐ณ (๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐๐ฒ๐ ๐น๐ฎ๐)
Laborโs campaign included a plan often described as an automatic/instant $1,000 work-expense deduction, designed to make tax time simpler โ essentially letting eligible taxpayers claim a flat $1,000 instead of itemising work-related expenses.
Important: โProposedโ doesnโt mean โavailable nowโ
The ATOโs myTax guidance notes this $1,000 deduction is not yet law and does not apply to Tax Time 2025; itโs intended to apply from 2026โ27.
What we know about how itโs intended to work
Based on published policy costings, taxpayers who claim more than $1,000 in work-related deductions would still need to use the usual substantiation rules. In other words, the $1,000 option may simplify things for some โ but higher claims will still require good records.
โ
How ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ซ๐ฏ๐ข๐๐ helps:
Estimate your tax obligations and plan ahead to avoid surprises
Advisory services + virtual CFO support if you want clearer direction on your finances
Guidance on whether claiming itemized deductions vs a standard option (if legislated) is better for your situation
๐ฏ) ๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ถ๐ฝ๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฑ-๐ธ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐ถ๐ป๐ด: ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ง๐ข ๐ฟ๐๐น๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐
Even before any $1,000 system arrives, the ATO already has a threshold many people search for every year:
If your total work-related expenses are $300 or less, you donโt need receipts, but you still need to show how you calculated the claim.
If your work-related expense claim is more than $300, you generally need written evidence for all of it (not just the amount above $300), with specific rules for things like car expenses and some allowances.
Why this matters: if you regularly spend more than $1,000 on legitimate work costs, strong record-keeping is still your best protection.
โ
How ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ซ๐ฏ๐ข๐๐ helps:
Bookkeeping services that keep your records clean and audit-ready
Digitize receipts, invoices and bills for faster reconciliation and easier substantiation
Monthly/quarterly reviews (for business owners) to keep BAS/IAS and obligations on track
$๐ญ,๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ $๐ญ,๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ณ๐๐ป๐ฑ (๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐บ๐ถ๐๐๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐ฑ๐ฟ๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐ ๐ฏ๐ฎ๐ฑ ๐๐ฎ๐
๐ฎ๐ฑ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฒ)
A deduction reduces your taxable income โ itโs not cash back.
Example: if you claim a $1,000 deduction and your marginal tax rate is 30%, the tax saving is about $300 (not $1,000). Rates vary based on income and circumstances.
โ
If youโre unsure what youโre entitled to claim, professional advice can prevent over-claiming (risk) or under-claiming (missed benefit).
๐ช๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ผ ๐ฑ๐ผ ๐ป๐ผ๐ (๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐น ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฝ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฒโ๐ฎ๐ณ)
Track your expenses as you go, especially if you might exceed $1,000 in a year.
Donโt change your claiming strategy yet โ wait for final legislation and ATO implementation details.
Get tailored advice if youโre PAYG, a sole trader, or you have mixed income (wages + investments).
โ
Talk to ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ซ๐ฏ๐ข๐๐ if you want help with:
Personal tax & financials (PAYG, investment income, tax returns, reducing errors)
Advisory + virtual CFO (budgeting, cash flow forecasting, business planning)
Bookkeeping (cloud-based systems, receipt digitisation, accurate reporting)
Business compliance (ATO support, BAS/IAS, FBT records, TPAR, payment plans)
Business structure set-up (tax planning, succession planning, asset protection)
๐ญ๐จ๐ธ
๐พ๐๐๐ ๐
๐ ๐ณ๐๐๐๐โ๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐?
The rate cuts start 1 July 2026, with another step 1 July 2027.
๐ฐ๐ ๐๐๐ $1,000 ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐
๐๐
๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐?
No โ itโs not yet law and doesnโt apply to Tax Time 2025. Itโs intended for 2026โ27.
๐ซ๐ ๐ฐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐
๐๐
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐?
Under current rules, if your total work-related claims are over $300, you generally need written evidence for all of it, with some exceptions and special rules
If you want clarity, compliance, and better financial outcomes โ weโre here to help.
๐๏ธ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ซ๐ฏ๐ข๐๐
๐๐๐๐ฅ๐ฅ: +๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐
๐ ๐๐๐ฏ๐๐ฅ ๐๐, ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐จ๐ซ๐ ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ซ๐๐๐ญ, ๐๐ฒ๐๐ง๐๐ฒ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐
