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2008 Taxation Statement Guide & Common QuestionsThe Taxation Statement Guide provides you with general information about your 2008 tax return. It is recommended that you read the Taxation Statement Guide before preparing your taxation return. 
Common questions about TaxationQ. What is the difference between Capital Gains Taxable Australian Real Property and Capital Gains Non Taxable Australian Real Property? A. This distinction is only relevant to non-residents. A non resident for Australian tax purposes is only subject to Capital Gains Tax on assets classified as Taxable Australian Real Property. Q. I am not completing a tax return, can I still claim my Imputation credits? A. You may be able to, depending on your individual circumstances. Contact the Australian Tax Office (ATO) on 13 28 61 or visit www.ato.gov.au for a copy of the relevant form to claim your imputation credits and check the eligibility criteria. Q. Does this tax guide have information for companies, trusts, superfunds or partnerships? A. The tax guide has been prepared as general information only and relates to the ‘2008 tax return for individuals’. Therefore, the above entities may need to make adjustments to the information provided. Q. Can you instruct me on how to complete e-tax online or over the telephone? A. All E-Tax enquiries including tax over the telephone should be made directly to the ATO. The personal Tax Infoline is 13 28 61. Alternatively visit the ATO website www.ato.gov.au. or the E-Tax website http://www.ato.gov.au/individuals Q. I did not redeem during this financial year so why are capital gains included on my statement? A. Capital gains can occur when an asset in a fund is sold. The fund is required to distribute all taxable income, including any capital gains. You should include these capital gains when completing your tax return. Q. What does the reduction in cost amount on the capital gains statement refer to? A. This generally relates to the impact of past distributions of tax deferred income on the capital gain or loss on redemption of units in a fund. You do not pay tax on a tax deferred distribution at the time that you receive the distribution, but instead offset it against the cost base of your units. When you redeem your units the capital gain is higher (or capital loss is lower) than it otherwise would have been by the amount of the tax deferred income received in the past that has been offset. This is referred to in the capital gains statement as “reduction in cost”. Your financial adviser or taxation consultant will be able to explain this more thoroughly. Q. Why have I got foreign sourced income in my Australian Share Fund tax statement? A. This will represent a foreign-source dividend received from a stock listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. Funds such as the Australian Share Fund may invest in any stocks contained in their benchmark index.^ This can include companies such as Auckland Airport which have operations offshore and pay foreign sourced dividends. ^The Benchmark Index for the BlackRock Australian Share Fund is the S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation Index. Q. I am a non-resident for tax purposes. Why haven’t I received a tax statement when I have received income from my investment(s)? A. If you are a non-resident for tax purposes a tax statement is not issued, as its purpose is to assist Australian residents to complete their Australian tax returns. We can, however, provide a consolidated distribution statement upon your request. Q. Why haven’t I received a tax statement this year? A. The Fund in which you are invested may not have paid any income for the year. In this instance the Fund does not need to be considered for tax purposes and therefore no tax statement is issued. Q. My accountant telephoned you, but you refused to give them information concerning my investments. Why? A. Under the Privacy Act we are unable to disseminate information about you and/or your investments with us to any other party unless we have received written authorisation from you to do so. Q. Why do some of my capital gains not include a concessional or discounted component? A. Generally, investments which are redeemed within twelve months of acquisition are not entitled to concessional treatment, and the whole amount of any gain may be taxable. You should speak to your financial adviser or taxation consultant as your ultimate capital gains tax position will depend on your overall investment activity for the year. Q. Can I have individual tax statements for each fund I am invested in? A. We only provide one consolidated tax statement. However we can send you individual distribution statements for each Fund in which you are invested upon your request.
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