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25 September 2026
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Examining how five "tax cuts" stack up against bracket creep. Why offsets and incremental changes may do little to ease rising average tax burdens, compared to structural reform through indexation over time.
The Labor government is talking up tax reform to lift Australia’s ailing economic growth. Before any changes are made, it’s important to know who pays tax, who owns assets, and how much people have in their super for retirement.
Realistically, the Government had to amend the stage 3 tax cuts. The current state of the economy is far different from when the Coalition tabled the tax cuts in 2019, which provided impetus for the changes.
Any policy decision needs to recognise who is affected by a change. It pays to check the data on who pays taxes, who owns assets and who earns the income to ensure an equitable and efficient outcome.
The 2018 Budget features cuts to personal income taxes and changes to retirement income policies. There's plenty of money on infrastructure to boost jobs and ease congestion.
Every day, an expert writes somewhere about the adverse impact of a reduction in franking credits due to a lower company tax rate. This tax rate has no impact on the after-tax returns received by Australian shareholders.
Family trusts will be a battleground at the next election, but for the wealthy the main benefit is the not income splitting with family members. How do family trusts work and how do affluent families use 'bucket companies'?
Major reform of Australia's tax laws hits a hurdle when opposition builds to unpopular policies. We have lost the ability to explain and advocate for change, especially when you look at global comparisons.
In defending how superannuation concessions might favour the wealthy, Treasurer Joe Hockey claimed 50% of all income tax is paid by 10% of the working population. Is that statement supported by the data?
There's an ongoing debate about income inequality and personal income tax. Looking at the numbers, 45% of Australian adults pay no personal income tax, while 1.5% of adults pay 26% of income tax.
Conventional wisdom encourages retirees to preserve superannuation. But if those likely to qualify for the Age Pension later in life spend a little more today, it may deliver higher lifetime income and a more stable retirement.
Treasury’s latest CGT reform draft delivers a win for testamentary trusts and deceased estates, exempting estate-derived gains from the 30% floor. However, questions on death and divorce rollovers remain unresolved.
Reversionary pensions have long been a staple of SMSF estate planning, but are they still the best option? Meg Heffron revisits a once-clear favourite and asks whether changing super rules have shifted the balance.
For generations, Australian investors have backed banks, miners and dividends. But has that loyalty come at a cost? A look at the numbers raises an uncomfortable question about where future returns will come from.
The 4% rule has long been retirement's gold standard. But after a difficult period for investors, fresh analysis suggests a more conservative approach may significantly improve the chances of making savings last.
The fight over testamentary trusts looked settled. Then the draft legislation arrived. Hidden in a technical detail is a question that could force many families to rethink wills they thought were already future-proof.