The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is warning the community to be wary of incorrect or misleading information this tax time, particularly claims promising greater refunds, shortcuts or hacks.
The ATO is seeing a rise in tax-related content and ‘tips’ being shared - especially online - and is urging taxpayers to treat unverified advice with caution.
ATO Assistant Commissioner Anita Challen says Australians should think twice before acting on information from third-party sources such as artificial intelligence (AI) platforms, ‘finfluencers’, or advice from family or friends.
“In an environment where misinformation can spread within minutes, it’s important to pause and check your tax information before you act on it, for example when you go to lodge your tax return. If a tax claim sounds too good to be true, it’s worth checking”, Challen said.
“AI can be helpful, but it often draws from a broad and inconsistent range of sources, which can lead to inaccurate advice. For example, it could be drawing content about tax obligations or laws from outside of Australia or outdated sources. Your tax return isn’t the place for guesswork.”
Taxpayers who have questions about the legitimacy of tax information should refer to the ATO’s website, the ATO app or speak to a registered tax professional.
For those working from home, the ATO reminds taxpayers can calculate deductions occurred using one of two methods:
- the actual cost method which requires records of all the expenses that are being claimed and the work-related use of these expenses to substantiate the deduction; or
- the fixed rate method which allows taxpayers to claim 70 cents for every hour worked from home and covers additional running expenses that are often difficult to apportion, like internet, phone usage, electricity and stationery.
“If you think you’ve overclaimed your work-related expenses in previous years, you need to lodge an amendment or speak to your tax professional and ask them to amend your prior year claims”, Challen concluded.