Minimise Your Personal Tax 2025 – Tax Planning Guide
As we approach the end of the financial year, now’s the ideal time take proactive steps to minimise your personal tax. With these 9 strategies, you may be able to reduce your bill at tax time and use your savings to help take meaningful steps toward your personal or family goals. The key is to implement strategies that are both tax-effective and aligned with your long-term financial objectives.
With your tax savings, you could:
- Reduce your mortgage
- Top up your superannuation
- Save for a holiday
- Invest in property
- Pay for your child’s education.
1. Make the Most of Superannuation Contributions
One of the most effective ways to reduce your taxable income is through your superannuation. For the 2024–25 year, the concessional contributions cap is $30,000. This can help you if:
- You have the capacity to contribute additional amounts – doing so before 30 June could result in significant tax savings, especially if you’re on a higher marginal tax rate.
- Your total superannuation balance is below $500,000 as of 30 June 2025 – you may also be eligible to use the carry-forward rule, allowing you to make extra contributions by using any unused concessional cap amounts from the past five years. This is ideal for those with inconsistent income or recent increases in earnings.
- Your spouse earns under $40,000 – contributing to their super may entitle you to a tax offset of up to $540. In addition to boosting your family’s retirement savings.
If you’re a high-income earner with income above $250,000, you may be subject to Division 293 tax (an additional 15% on super contributions).While that may seem like a penalty, it’s still more favourable than paying up to 45% income tax plus 2% Medicare levy in marginal income tax.
2. Consider Government Contributions
For lower income earners, the government may also pitch in. If you earn below $60,400 in the 2024-25 financial year and make a non-concessional contribution to your super, you could be eligible for a government co-contribution of up to $500. To receive the full amount, you’ll need to contribute $1,000 and earn below $41,112.
3. Review Investment Ownership and Structure
Tax time is a good time to assess who owns your investments. This is because ownership impacts the tax you pay on income or capital gains. For example, investing through a family trust offers the flexibility to distribute income in a tax-effective way, particularly if you have beneficiaries on lower tax rates.
Keep in mind, however, that restructuring assets may trigger capital gains tax or stamp duty, so professional advice is always recommended before making any major changes to your business structure.
4. Claim What You’re Entitled To:
If you work from home, even occasionally, you may be able to claim a deduction using the ATO’s fixed rate method of $0.67 per work hour. This covers:
- Electricity
- Internet
- Mobile phone use
- Office supplies
You’ll need a log of your hours and how you calculated them, so keeping records of how many hours per week you work from home is essential.
Additionally, if your job requires you to buy tools, uniforms, undertake training or attend conferences, then these may also be deductible, provided they’re directly related to earning assessable income. To take advantage of these deductions, you will need to hold onto receipts and relevant documents.
5. Get a Depreciation Report for Your Investment Property
If you own an investment property, having a depreciation schedule prepared by a quantity surveyor can add deductions which could significantly reduce your taxable income.
A depreciation schedule allows to claim the decline in value of the building’s structure and assets such as appliances and furnishings. In addition, the quantity surveyor’s fees will be deductible in the year paid.
6. Keep Your Vehicle Logbook Up to Date
If you use your car for work (but not commuting), ensure you’ve kept a valid logbook for at least 12 continuous weeks. This helps calculate the work-related percentage of your car expenses.
Alternatively, you may choose to claim up to 5,000 kilometres using the cents per kilometre method (at $0.88 per km in 2024–25), without needing a logbook, though you must be able to satisfy that the travel was for income producing purposes and that the expense was calculated on a reasonable basis.
7. Prepay Deductible Expenses Where Possible
If you own investment properties or have margin loans, you may be able to prepay up to 12 months of interest before 30 June. This allows you to claim a deduction this financial year, potentially reducing your taxable income. Other prepayable expenses may include insurance premiums, memberships, or subscriptions related to your income-generating activities.
8. Income Protection Insurance
If you don’t already have income protection insurance, it’s worth considering—not just for peace of mind, but for the tax deduction. These premiums are usually deductible, and you can prepay them for the year ahead to claim the deduction now. This type of insurance can replace up to 75% of your income if you’re unable to work due to illness or injury.
9. Strategies for Business Owners
Small business owners should ensure they’ve reviewed available deductions before year-end. The $20,000 instant asset write-off is available for eligible business purchases, provided the asset is installed and ready for use by 30 June 2025.
Make sure all employee super contributions are paid and received by the relevant fund before 30 June—otherwise, you won’t be able to claim a deduction for them this financial year. Now is also the time to review your debtors and write off any bad debts that are unlikely to be recovered.
Conducting a stocktake? Identify obsolete or slow-moving stock, which can be written down or written off completely to reduce your assessable income.
Get Expert Advice Before 30 June
Effective tax planning is not one-size-fits-all. It’s about tailoring strategies to your personal or business circumstances to achieve the best outcome.
If you haven’t yet reviewed your tax position, now is the time. Contact your local office today to schedule your pre-30 June tax planning session—we’ll help you navigate the best opportunities available before the clock runs out.
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*This blog/article is general and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider whether the advice is suitable for you and your personal circumstances. If relevant: Before you make any decision about whether to acquire a certain product, you should obtain and read the relevant product disclosure statement.