Resource 2: ATO-My Tax

[Numeracy Resource Collection]

Task Item 2: Part A - RESOURCE 2

ATO - MyTax

By using the Paint software, from the ATO's website, available at https://www.ato.gov.au/Individuals/, the following image of the 'Individuals' or 'MyTax replaces e-tax' page is collected and imported.

 

2.1-First date accessed:  31 August 2016

2.2-Site's address:  https://www.ato.gov.au/Individuals/Lodging-your-tax-return/In-detail/MyTax-replaces-e-tax/

2.3-What does the website offer?

The Australian Taxation Office announces that from 1 July 2016, a new site of MyTax is available for Australian taxpayers to prepare their individual Tax Returns. Dealing with real information, MyTax is an online tool helping individuals to lodge their own information for tax purposes, and they can get their Returns-Refund or Payable liability, back in the fast pathway. The function of Pre-fills is provided to ensure that all related data are smoothly and automatically linked to other relevant organisations providing necessary information towards completing the tax return. In addition, it is believed that the site has been upgraded to do everything e-tax could do, plus extra things it could not process such as investments, rental properties, and capital gains or are a sole trader (ATO, 2016). My Tax brings a number of advantages. ATO confirms that MyTax is a more streamlined, efficient and personalised service. Using MyTax, the taxpayers do not need to download anything and the lodgement can be lodged on a range of devices like personal computer, Smartphone or tablet. In addition, this web site discloses a range of valuable, authentic and official information; these transparently provide real life tool, particularly, in developing knowledge of taxation and preparing tax documentation for individuals. Using Tax Online services for many years, in this financial year ended 30 June 2016, I have found that MyTax is a very convenient, and easy tool to exercise to claim my tax.

2.4-Who might find the website useful?

All taxpayers might benefit from the transparency of information about taxation in terms of finishing/completing individual Tax Returns by themselves.
In VET contexts, this website provides useful, meaningful, and authentic resources for vocational trainers and TAFE educators.  Data from the Training.gov.au site shows a range of courses in the areas of practising, teaching and learning of Finance, Accounting and Taxation.
This government's website delivers information of tax documentation and knowledge of taxation. Therefore, it provides valid, reliable, transparent, and authentic materials assisting learning, teaching, and practising towards taxation activities. Particularly, two VET units involving the site's materials are found: the Unit of Competency FNSACC502 - Prepare tax documentation for individuals; and the Unit of Competency: FNSFLT206 - Develop knowledge of taxation.
In general, along with TAFE trainers and learners completing the courses such as Diploma of Accounting FNS50215, or Certificate II in Financial Services FNS20115, individual taxpayers would benefit by getting directly information from this website. 
Further, in the VET context, the following tables display a range of training packages and qualifications consisting of the Unit of Competency FNSACC502 as below.

Training package Code	Title - Sort Table listing Training packages that include this unit by the Title column
FNS- Financial Services Training Package	Financial Services Training Package
SIS10- Sport, Fitness and Recreation Training Package	Sport, Fitness and Recreation Training Package
SIS- Sport, Fitness and Recreation Training Package	Sport, Fitness and Recreation Training Package

Qualifications that include FNSACC502 - Prepare tax documentation for individuals 

Qualification Code	Title - Sort Table listing Qualifications that include this unit by the Title column
SIS50612- Diploma of Sport Development	Diploma of Sport Development
SIS50115- Diploma of Sport and Recreation Management	Diploma of Sport and Recreation Management
FNS60215- Advanced Diploma of Accounting	Advanced Diploma of Accounting
FNS50215- Diploma of Accounting	Diploma of Accounting

Overall, I found that a number of tax payers preparing tax returns by themselves, and students and teachers involving training packages and or getting the above qualifications will benefit from information of the Resource 2.

2.5-How might you use/ how have you used this website with students?

In the past few years, in my local community, through the Tax Help program held by the ATO (Australian Taxation Office), I had used this site (the old version) in helping low income people to get their Tax Returns. Although the Online Tax for individuals is designed with clear steps of filling information only – individuals need to type in figures such as the total income and total expenses, I found that people -clients, receiving this free service were not familiar with the technology – they were not confident in using the computer or laptop; also, the majority of their income was from Centreline allowance and/or dividends from their investments which were a very simple type of income. Using this site, the clients were served in one-to-one basis, we needed to fill in all questions which have been designed for the online forms. From my experience, it took about 30 to 50 minutes in order to finish one individual tax file / claim, depending on how complexities of the income and expenses were. However, in many circumstances, if people received a single income, then the time for completing one file/claim was about 15minutes or less.

In addition, in assisting people to practise themselves for their own tax returns, using this site, I also conducted some workshops introducing techniques showing the learners how to use the site to claim the individual Tax Returns. The feedback from learners showed that they had found the site was very useful and that they might use it for their forthcoming Tax Returns. 

In contrast, year after year, because the tax online structure is often changed to meet the changes of the Tax law, I found that many  people receiving multi-sources of income such as salaries, superannuation and capital gains, and having complex expenses such as HECS, logbooks, and union fees, etc…preferred not to  use the online but their tax agents.

In the VET contexts, for example as mentioned in my posted cluster 2, I would use this site in teaching, for example, the unit of competency FNSACC502 - Prepare tax documentation for individuals by asking students to access and practise with their real information. 

However, I have found and believed that by suggesting and introducing this site to a wide range of people would develop the common knowledge in taxation for all taxpayers in our communities, because there are two things which cannot be avoided for all taxpayers. These are their taxes and their deaths. (Note: this statement stems from a quote “Nothing is certain except for death and taxes” – by unknown). 

For my future teaching, based on syllabuses’ outcomes, I will choose this website to generate a wide range of learning activities for the subjects of Commerce, Business Services, and/or Business Studies focusing on Personal Finance topics in the approach to the authentic and meaningful teaching and learning. These activities would be considered as formative assessments during my teaching program. Also, the information from the site could be used to design the summative assessment conducting in the final stage of the program of individual tax returns.