Telstra and retail giant Wesfarmers dropped out of the top 10 in the report released on Thursday, as BHP was revealed to be the single largest taxpayer. The company paid $7.3 billion in 2020-21, up from $4.6 billion the prior year. The company's BHP Iron Ore (Jimblebar) entity paid $2.4 billion.
Australia's largest taxpayers
Iron ore giants BHP and Rio Tinto were the largest taxpayers in 2020-21, paying a combined $11.5 billion in income tax on more than $100 billion in total reported income. These two miners posted $52.5 billion in taxable income to the ATO.
The highest-earning Americans pay the most in combined federal, state and local taxes, the Tax Foundation noted. As a group, the top quintile — those earning $130,001 or more annually — paid $3.23 trillion in taxes, compared with $142 billion for the bottom quintile, or those earning less than $25,000.
The top 1 percent of taxpayers (AGI of $548,336 and above) paid the highest average income tax rate of 25.99 percent—more than eight times the rate faced by the bottom half of taxpayers.
Supporters of the progressive system claim that higher salaries enable affluent people to pay higher taxes and that this is the fairest system because it lessens the tax burden of the poor.
That includes Adani Mining Pty Ltd, one AGL entity, Alcoa Australian Holdings, Ampol, Anglo American Australia, ExxonMobil Australia, two Glencore entities, a Peabody Australia holding company, Santos, two Shell energy entities, Whitehaven coal, Woodside Petroleum, and Yancoal Australia.
These millionaires are able to arrange their financial affairs to massively reduce their tax. They claimed deductions in earning income from interest and dividends such as management fees and investment advice. They also claim deductions for the cost of managing their tax affairs.
The main reason Australia ranks so highly on individual income tax levels is because Australians don't pay separate social security taxes. These account for an average 25.9% of total tax revenue, or close to 9% of GDP, across the OECD.
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) analysed the tax returns of more than 15 million Aussies from the 2020-21 financial year to come up with the rich list. Double Bay took out the top spot, living up to its 'Double Pay' nickname, with residents of the 2028 postcode raking in an average annual income of $266,381.
Australians wanting to be in the country's top 1% for wealth need to have an individual net worth of US$5.5 million ($8.3 million), Knight Frank's 2023 Wealth Report has found.
In some years, billionaires such as Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and George Soros paid no federal income taxes at all. Billionaires avoid these taxes by taking out special ultra-low-interest loans available only to them and using their assets as collateral.
Retirement exemption
There is a lifetime limit of $500,000 CGT exemption on the sale of an active business asset. For those who are under 55, the proceeds from the sale of the asset must be paid into a superannuation fund or retirement savings account.
The Group's effective tax rate for FY22 was 29.3%. This is the rate recognised in the financial statements included in our 2022 Annual Report and is calculated as total income tax expense divided by profit before income tax (on a continuing operations basis).
Banks in Australia pay a lot of tax compared with other industries. In 2016, a total of $22.4 billion in tax was paid by companies listed on the ASX 200. The seven companies classified as banks1 paid $12.4 billion or 55 per cent of all tax paid by the ASX 200. This is much higher than any other industry.
For rich folks, credit cards are a tool to manage their finances and simplify their spending. Credit cards give people a convenient way to spend, and that includes the wealthy. They often use credit cards to make large purchases or to pay for travel and entertainment expenses.
Billionaire, businessman and the chairman and chief executive of LVMH (LVMUY), Bernard Arnault holds the crown as the richest person in the world. According to Forbes, Arnault has a fortune of $234.5 billion.
We automatically deduct tax from these payments. But if your Centrelink online account is linked to myGov, you can change or stop the tax amount online. You can also do this by: using your Express Plus Centrelink mobile app.
Based on 2019 data and including state taxes, we are the eighth-lowest country in the OECD for tax collection relative to our economy's size, with tax revenue at 28% of GDP compared with the OECD average of 33%.
1. Gina Rinehart, $37.41 billion (up $3.39 billion) Another year, another Rich List crowning Gina Rinehart as Australia's wealthiest person. 2023 marks the fourth consecutive year the mining magnate has held that mantle.
The average annual income range for the Australian middle class is between AUD 46,000 and AUD 140,000.