If you were a salary or wage earner during the 2009-2010 tax year, you may be eligible for a refund
Refunds are considered in the case of those who (a) worked for only part of the year (b) earned less than $9880 (c) were paid a lump sum such as redundancy (d) used the ME or ME SL tax code (e) earned between $24,000 and $48,000 but did not receive government payments (f) worked while still at school (g) had more than one job (h) had expenses to claim and (i) paid too much tax.
If any of the above applies in your case, please check for refund.
Inland Revenue’s website has a calculator that can work out your end-of-year tax position quickly and easily.
The online calculator will show if you have a tax refund or tax to pay. Please read the instructions carefully and enter your income details for the year. If you do not have an account with us, you can register online.
If you are entitled to a refund, you should request for a personal tax summary. If you have to remit tax, you should take appropriate action.
You can request a personal tax summary by following the links Get it done online>Income tax>Request a personal tax summary. Please check at the outset if you are entitled to a refund.
Tax Credit for Donations
You can claim a tax credit if you gifted $5 or more to an approved charitable organisation, and you have a receipt to support your claim.
Donations made to Approved Charitable Organisations are exempt from tax. These include organisations set up to benefit the society, some churches, medical research schools and universities, some overseas aid funds and free kindergarten associations.
You can claim a tax credit for donations (but not school fees) paid to state-owned schools (including Integrated Schools), schools approved as charities for tax purposes, school boards of trustees or parent-teacher associations.
If you pay school fees to state-funded schools, you can claim a tax credit, but only if the money goes to the school’s general fund.
The following school payments do not qualify: (a) payments for classes where there is a take-home component such as woodwork (b) payments for an activity where attendance or participation is voluntary (c) payments for transport to or from a school activity, such as a camp (payments for food at the camp do not qualify) and (d) tertiary or tuition fees.
You can find the complete list of approved charitable organisations (sometimes called ‘Donee Organisations’) on our website.
Your tax credit would be 33⅓% of the total gifts made, up to a maximum equal to your annual taxable income.
There are other tax credits available.
If you paid for childcare or a housekeeper (in certain situations) in the previous tax year, you may be able to claim a greater tax credit.
In order to make a claim, you must send us a completed Tax credit claim form (IR 526) along with relevant receipts. The form can be downloaded from our website.
Abdul Rafik is Inland Revenue’s Community Relationships Advisor based in Auckland. He is happy to answer readers’ queries, which should be sent to venkat@indiannewslink.co.nz
Free taxation seminars and workshops: If you are in business, you may find our free tax seminars and workshops (held throughout the country) useful. Visit our website for details.
www.ird.govt.nz
