In an effort to increase protection from scams the ATO recently announced they would be removing hyperlinks from text messages they send to taxpayers Often criminals will send text messages that appear to be from the ATO and include a hyperlink with instructions for the recipient to click on the link The hyperlink may even open up a website that appears to be legitimate but it is in fact a fake and designed to illicit information about the user which can then be used to steal th...

The federal government has introduced a law into the parliament that would provide assistance to eligible persons to buy a home It's not law yet so exact details can't be confirmed It's likely there will be an eligibility criteria but what that will be has not been confirmed The government proposes to contribute 30% of the purchase price for existing homes and 40% for new homes The buyer will likely need to have 2% cash savings to contribute to the purchase There will likel...

Just because your business is the purchaser of goods or services does not necessarily mean it does not have legal rights as a 'consumer' The Australian Consumer Laws protect small business purchases of goods or services if any one of the following conditions are met the cost of the product or service is under $100,000 the product or service commonly bought for personal, domestic or household use it is a vehicle or trailer eligible to be used on public roads The follow...

How much superannuation savings you need for a 'comfortable retirement' depends on how much you want to spend, but if you're not sure the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia ('AFSA') produce regular reports that provide basic data regarding retirement expenditure. AFSA also provide an indication of how much super savings you'll need to meet the expenses of a 'comfortable retirement'. A 'comfortable retirement' is subjective and it is...

Received a Gift Card for Christmas? You should know your legal rights under Australia Consumer Law ('ACL'): Gift Card must be valid for for 3 years from date of purchase (some exemptions to this rule) Replacement Card or refund must be given if the card doesn't work or can't be activated Gift Card can't be offered by supplier in lieu of replacing faulty goods Supplier can't charge fees associated with the Gift Card (e.g., card activation fee) You can read the A...