WA State Budget 2023-24

The Premier today handed down the WA State Budget, again showing that Western Australia’s economy remains strong and delivering cost of living support along with further investments into the health system, boosting housing supply, and supporting WA’s transition to clean energy.

The key initiatives announced by the McGowan government today include

·  $715 million to deliver further cost of living relief, providing every WA household with a $400 electricity credit, with targeted electricity support totalling $826 for those households in most need.

·  A record $2.7 billion of additional investment in our health and mental health system, bringing the total new investment to $10 billion this term, to deliver quality healthcare for Western Australians, with more beds for our hospitals, more nurses and doctors, and reforms to ease pressure on emergency departments.

·  $750 million of additional investment to boost housing supply and housing choice, particularly supporting those in need, with a $450 million top-up to the Social Housing Investment Fund, increasing the commitment to deliver 4,000 additional social houses.

·  Taking action on climate change, with a $3 billion investment including delivering the Government’s plan to decarbonise electricity production and move towards cleaner, affordable, reliable energy, as well as progressing works on Perth’s third desalination plant and a range of other climate initiatives.

·  An additional $463 million in economic infrastructure and diversification initiatives taking total new investment in this term of Government to more than $3.8 billion to set up the State for the long-term, supporting ongoing and future jobs.

·  The WA Budget continues to be in a strong position, with a $3.3 billion surplus expected in 2023-24

·  The McGowan Government has now reduced state net debt by almost $16 billion

You can read the full Media Release here Media statements – Budget surplus delivers cost of living support to all WA households

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Cryptocurrency

“Crypto” is the latest buzz word in society, with everyone wanting to try their luck in this new market. Whilst there has been little governance in prior years, the ATO has started to crack down on crypto currency transactions. Many of the crypto trading platforms available today now report your transactions straight to the ATO and are known as Australian cryptocurrency designated service providers.

This raises some concern for investors, who in the past, have not reported their crypto sales. The ATO is now also able to back date prior year information using their data matching software.  

As a result of these latest changes, it has become important to disclose all crypto investments to your accountant before lodging your Income Tax returns, as this may raise some flags with the ATO should the sales data not match their records.

Crypto investments are, and have always been reportable, however the ATO is now making a targeted effort to ensure these sales are disclosed.

Crypto transactions are treated the same way as standard shares, and like foreign transactions they must be converted into Australian dollars at the point of the sale. The capital gain event generally occurs when you sell, transfer or gift a share, however in the case of cryptocurrency, this also includes trades, swaps, exchanges which are only some of the crypto type transactions.

The capital gain or loss is the sale amount net of the purchase costs associated and are subject to a 50% discount should the asset be held longer than 12 months, which can also be offset against any losses made.

At GeersSullivan we have relevant experience in handling cryptocurrency transactions and are starting to see more clients with these investments as time passes. Should you have any questions or need assistance with lodgement, please get in touch with one of our team members on (08) 9316 7000 or admin@gscpa.com.au.

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