I wrote on Monday this week of the steps you can take if you have misplaced your “Group Certificate“, but what about the evidence for your deductions?
There are different rules for a business for substantiating a claim for Goods and Services Tax (GST) which won’t be discussed here – but for general deductions, whether they be by a business or an individual, the following guidelines, courtesy of the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), may assist you if you have misplaced any original documentation:
An original document from the supplier of the goods or services should show:
- name of the supplier
- amount of the expense
- nature of the goods or services – if not shown, your client may write this on the document before they lodge their tax return
- date the expense was incurred
- date of the document.
However another document or combination of documents containing the information listed above may suffice; examples include:
- bank and other financial institution statements
- credit card statements
- BPAY reference numbers (may be called receipt or transaction numbers)
- email receipts
- PAYG payment summary (may show union fees)
- paper or electronic copies of documents – must be a true and clear reproduction of the original
While I am an advocate for keeping accurate documentation in an accessible manner, the above notes prove that there are alternatives available if required.
If you need some assistance with your record keeping, Contact The Tax Chic for a consultation!
Regards
