Tonight I announced that eligibility for the dependency tax offsets will be better targeted so that those on high incomes are no longer entitled to claim them.
The Government will apply an income threshold so that those earning more than $150,000 will not be entitled to claim the Dependent Spouse, Housekeeper, Child-Housekeeper, Invalid Relative and Parent/Parent-in-law tax offsets. This change will take effect from 1 July 2008.
From 1 July 2009, the Government will align the definition of income for these offsets with that applying to family assistance payments. The new definition of income will be used for the claimant and the dependant.
Those taxpayers affected by this change have been significant beneficiaries of personal income tax cuts in recent years and will continue to benefit from the personal income tax cuts scheduled to commence from 1 July 2008 and future years.
These changes are designed to reduce workforce participation disincentives that can be associated with the dependency tax offsets and more closely align the eligibility criteria with those applying to family assistance.