Revealed: the number of millionaires who paid NO tax whatsoever, how they got away with it and the ways you too can slice your tax bill to ZERO
- Australian Taxation Office data showed 45 millionaires paid no tax in 2018-19
- They were able to eliminate tax bill by making gifts and donations to causes
- Donations to political parties and candidates, charities are tax deductible
An elite group of millionaires in Australia are paying absolutely no tax and it’s all perfectly legal.
New data from the Australian Taxation Office released this week showed 45 people on seven-figure incomes were able to completely avoid giving anything back to the government in the 2018-19 financial year.
They represented a very small minority among the 15,358 people who earned more than $1million, with almost all paying their fair share.
Those with a seven-figure income made up just 0.1 per cent of Australia’s 14.7million income earners.
Those happy few who did cut their tax bill to zero managed to do so with a series of deductions on their taxable income.
An elite group of millionaires in Australia are paying absolutely no tax and it’s all legal. New Australian Taxation Office data released this week showed 45 people on seven-figure incomes were able to completely avoid giving anything back to the state in the 2018-19 financial year
Of these millionaires, 45 were able to reduce their income below the $18,200 tax-free threshold via a series of expense claims – effectively reducing their tax bill to zero.
Of this group, 42 of them declared an income of $6,000 or less.
Another three declared an income of $10,000 to $18,200.
Kate Forbes, the national director of property at Metropole, said they were able to slice their bill by making tax-deductible donations.
Donations to political parties and charities can be claimed on tax.
Another ten were able to effectively reduce their taxable income to zero via gifts and donations.
The 21 millionaires who paid no tax donated an average of $10.1million.
Under existing tax laws, donations can be made to a designated deductible gift recipient.
Individuals can donate up to $1,500 to a political party or candidates and claim this back on tax.
Kate Forbes, the national director of property at Metropole, said a handful of millionaires were able to eliminate their tax bill by making tax-deductible donations. Donations to political parties and charities can be claimed on tax
Political party membership is also tax deductible as are donations that are not connected with running a business.
Of the clever millionaires, 12 of them declared a taxable income of $18,200 to $37,000, enabling them to pay the lowest tax rate of 19 cents in the dollar.
That worked out at just $18,833 in tax between them – or an average tax bill of $1,569.
Australia’s average taxable income stood at $62,549 in 2018-19 with the typical worker paying $19,344 in tax.
Among the 15,358 people who reported an income above $1 million, 15,303 paid an average 44 per cent tax on their earnings; in line with the marginal tax rate of 45 per cent for every dollar earnt over $180,000.
Of the clever millionaires, 12 of them declared a taxable income of $18,200 to $37,000, enabling them to pay the lowest tax rate of 19 cents in the dollar. That worked out at just $18,833 in tax between them – or an average tax bill of $1,569. Australia’s average taxable income stood at $62,549 in 2018-19 with the typical worker paying $19,344 in tax