July 1 changes come to city Super saver scheme Pay increase
Financial year brings spate of changes
WITH the new financial year upon us, today will bring a spate of changes for Toowoomba and the rest of Australia.
From fees and charges to superannuation, here’s how Toowoomba will be different starting today.
Power prices skyrocket
POWER prices are set to skyrocket in Queensland with AGL, Origin and Energy Australia announcing increases of up to 20 per cent after the annual review of prices by the energy regulator.
Superannuation changes
THE biggest changes to Australia’s superannuation system in years kick in from today, affecting super contributions and the way super and retirement income are taxed.
Workers earning less than $40,000 will be able to claim a new tax offset of up at $540 a year, while high-income earners earning more than $250,000 may have to pay extra tax on contributions.
Workers wanting to put extra money into super and claim a tax dedication for it will no longer be forced to set up salary sacrifice arrangements in advance.
From today they can inject at any time but will have to fit in within a new lower contribution cap of $25,000.
Retirees earning tax-free income payments from an account-based super pension will also be hit with a new limit on how much super they can transfer into the account. Called the “transfer
balance cap”, the limit will initially be set at $1.6 million.
FROM today savers will be able to salary sacrifice extra into their superannuation account above the compulsory contribution, up to a maximum of $30,000 in total and $15,000 in a year.
They will then be able to withdraw that cash from July 1, 2018 onwards, along with any associated earnings, to go towards a home deposit.
THE national minimum wage is set to increase by 3.3 per cent, giving 2.3 million of Australia’s lowest paid
workers their biggest pay rise in six years.
From today the national minimum wage will increase to $18.29 per hour or $694.90 per week.
The base rates of pay in modern awards will also increase.
It is an increase of 59 cents per hour which means the minimum wage will be about $36,000 per year.
Bulk billing incentives
PATIENTS are more likely to be bulk billed from today, after the federal government partially unfroze the Medicare rebate to index bulk billing incentives to inflation in last month’s budget, giving doctors a
slight pay rise.
The rebate for standard doctor visits won’t be unfrozen until next July and specialists will have to wait until 2019.
Car registration
CAR registration, driver’s licence fees and toll fees have all risen as of today.
As at the March quarter, the consumer price index had gone up 1.8 per cent for the year, but drivers will now receive a double blow with registration and licencing fees again increasing by 3.5 per cent.
All tolls in south-east Queensland except the AirportlinkM7 have increased.
The largest toll increase is nine cents on both the Clem
7 and Legacy Way, rising to $5.02 and $5.03 respectively.
ID scanners
VENUES within the Toowoomba CBD Safe Night Precinct licensed to trade past midnight are required to install new ID scanners at every entry point.
The new laws require the scanners be operated by a licensed security guard past 10pm for every patron entering the venue from that time.
Designed to increase the safety of patrons and allow laws such as banning orders to be enforced at entry points, the move has been met with concern by licensed venue operators in the CBD.