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Increase And Extension Of The Instant Asset Write-Off

From 12 March 2020, the instant asset write-off threshold will increase from $30,000 to $150,000 for depreciable business assets.

Assets will need to be used or installed ready for use from between 12 March 2020, when the changes were announced, and 30 June 2020 to qualify for the higher threshold. Anything previously purchased does not qualify and anything purchased but not installed ready for use by 30 June 2020 will not qualify.
If your business is likely to make a tax loss for the year, then the instant asset write-off is unlikely to provide a short-term benefit to you.

There are some assets that don’t qualify such as horticultural plants, capital works (building construction costs etc.), assets leased to another party on a depreciating asset lease, etc.

What businesses can access the instant asset write-off
To access the instant asset write-off, your business needs to be a trading business (the entity buying the assets needs to carry on a business in its own right). It also needs to have an aggregated turnover under $500 million.

Accelerated depreciation deductions
In addition to the increased instant asset write-off rules, accelerated depreciation deductions will apply from 12 March 2020 until 30 June 2021. This will bring forward deductions that would otherwise be claimed in later years.

Businesses with a turnover of less than $500 million will be able to deduct 50% of the cost of the asset in the year of purchase. They can also claim a further deduction in that year by applying the normal depreciation rules to the balance of the asset’s cost.

The accelerated depreciation deductions will presumably only be relevant if the business cannot already claim an immediate deduction for the full cost of the asset.

For example, let’s assume that a business purchases a new truck for $250,000 (exclusive of GST) in July 2020. In the 2021 tax return the business would claim an upfront deduction of $125,000. The business would also claim a further deduction for the depreciation that would have arisen on the balance of the cost. If the business is a small business entity and using the simplified depreciation rules, this would mean an additional deduction of $18,750 (i.e., 15% x $125,000). The total deduction in the 2021 tax return would be $143,750. Without the introduction of this investment incentive the business would have claimed a deduction of $37,500 (i.e., 15% x $250,000).

This incentive will only be available in relation to new assets that are acquired after 12 March 2020 and are first used or installed ready for use by 30 June 2021. It will not apply to second-hand assets or buildings and other capital works expenditure.

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