employer+reducing+Fbt

=Reducing Fringe Benefits Tax =

Salary sacrifice -- super

Fringe Benefit Tax is only imposed on employers. When an employer provides an employee or an employee’s associate, a benefit in respect to that worker's activities. For most businesses the majority of benefits that fall under FBT can be summarised as:

 * Motor Vehicles

 * Loans

 * Expense Payments

 * Housing

 * Living Away from Home Allowances

 * Airline Transport

 * Board Meals

 * Meal Entertainment

 * Car parking

Looking at motor vehicles, FBT is payable on the private usage of a car by an employee, including company owned, novated leases etc. There are two alternative methods to calculate the FBT for cars:  * Log book - based on actual usage from a properly maintained log book over a 12 week period completed in the last 5 years or,  * Statutory method - based on the total number of kilometres travelled under the premise that the more kilometres travelled the more likely the car is used for business. <span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Please remember to have your log books up to date at the 31st March. <span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">How can I reduce my FBT liability? <span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">You may wish to consider the following to reduce your liability : <span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"> * Replace fringe benefits with cash salary - if you replace your employees' fringe benefits with the cash equivalent in the form of salary or wages, the employees will pay income tax on the salary or wages and you do not incur the fringe benefit tax liability. <span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);"> * Using employee contributions - in most cases, you can reduce your FBT liability by obtaining a contribution from employees towards the cost of providing their fringe benefits.

http://www.makdap.com.au/publications/traps-fbt-exempt-rebatable-employers-preparation-season-now-upon-us

=<span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Traps for FBT Exempt & Rebatable Employers - Preparation =

<span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT/ return preparation season is now upon us and it is timely to highlight potential traps for FBT-exempt and rebatable employers when completing the FBT return.

<span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Broadly, the FBT exemption allows employers to provide benefits to their employees without having to pay FBT in respect of these benefits. The exemption may be available for publicand non-profit hospitalsand ambulance services (subject to a capping threshold of $17,000 per employee), and to public benevolent institutions and health promotion charities (subject to a capping threshold of $30,000 per employee). The thresholds apply to the grossed-up taxable value of benefits provided.

<span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Rebatable employers (such as religious institutions and trade unions), may be entitled to the FBT rebate of 48% of the employer's FBT liability. The rebate is subject to a cap of $30,000 per employee (grossed-up taxable value).

<span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">**Trap 1: Disclosure requirements for** **FBT-exempt employers**

<span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">These are different to those for most employers, specifically:

<span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Where the relevant capping threshold has been exceeded for an employee, only item 13C must be completed with the aggregate grossed-up value of benefits in excess of capping amounts. Many exempt entities incorrectly disclose figures in items 13A and/or 13B.

<span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Where a capping threshold has been exceeded for an employee, item 22 requires the disclosure of the total value of taxable benefits provided (with the exception of benefits to be excluded from the capping amounts noted above, including meal entertainment, entertainment facility leasing expenses and car parking benefits).

<span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">**Trap 2: The payment or reimbursement of an** **employee's car parking expenses and****grocery bills** **are not excluded from the****concessional caps**

<span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">The payment or reimbursement of an employee's car parking expenses is an expense payment fringe benefit, and is to be distinguished from an employer providing a car parking benefit. The taxable value of car parking benefits are excluded from the concessional cap.

<span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">Similarly, the payment or reimbursement of an employee's grocery bill is an expense payment fringe benefit, and is to be distinguished from the provision of meal entertainment. The taxable value of meal entertainment is also excluded from the concessional cap.

<span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">**Trap 3: Reportable Fringe Benefit Amount requirements mutually exclusive to lodging****requirements** **for FBT returns**

<span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">We hope the above will be of assistance to you in preparing your 2010 FBT returns.

<span style="background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);">All employers (including FBT exempt and rebatable employers) are required to include a value for reportable fringe benefits on the employee's payment summary where the notional taxable value of reportable fringe benefits received by an employee during the FBT year is more than $2,000. Accordingly, it is possible to have reportable fringe benefit amounts without having to complete a FBT return.