Taxpayers may be missing out on money they may rightfully claim when lodging their tax returns. Those lodging in their tax returns for the current financial year should be alert in identifying what they may be able to claim as tax refunds.

For a lot of people, it could pose a difficult task to know what to claim since the taxation system can be overwhelming and complex to comprehend sometimes. Therefore, it is a good idea to seek for consultation with tax experts on how you can claim what is rightfully yours as a taxpayer. A tax expert will be able to educate and enlighten you on how to maximize tax deductions, offsets as well as other entitlements. Having understanding on what to claim is very necessary to lodging a desirable income tax return and obtaining a deduction for applicable costs and expenses incurred all through the financial year.

Here are some tips to assist you when preparing your tax return:

Making claims on all expenses related to work: take out time to compute any expense related to work, which you can claim. It is possible to claim reasonable amount of money associated with work expenses without a receipt; however, the claims must be strictly for items needed for your work and the expenses must have been actually incurred.

Think of making tax effective superannuation contributions: due to current changes, a taxpayer who is self employed could possibly claim all their contributions to a complying superannuation fund as completely tax deductible up to age 75. It may be possible also for low income earners to be able to access the government contribution for each dollar of personal contributions made by qualified taxpayers.

Get to review your pay package: one effective way to obtain tax savings is to take advantage of the salary packaging offered by your employer (if any), especially if you are on the peak marginal tax rate. A number of common and tax effective items that can be salary packaged are motor vehicles and superannuation. One of the best ways that taxpayers can improve their finance is to ensure that they check what is rightfully theirs to claim as tax refunds. Taxpayers should also watch out for any change in taxation policy (which could be announced in recent budget) that will assist in the preparation of their tax returns for the current financial year; which will also guide them in planning and organizing their finances for the subsequent financial year. 

You can postpone income and bring deductions forward:  it is usually a wise thing to postpone receipt of income and bring forward deductions like interest payments, subject to prepayment rules operation prior to the end of the financial year.

Deduct every non-work related expenditure: the fees charged you by a registered tax agent to prepare your tax return or to manage the affairs of your tax are permitted in the year the fee is paid. Other deductions include bank charges and interest payments on funds to finance shares purchase as well as other income-prone investments. Also, donations to charities as well as other gift deductible recipients are to be claimed.

The tips outlined above are few of the several tips that will assist you in getting tax refunds in form of claims on what is rightfully yours. However, you need to check the rules that apply to your own state as well as federal tax system.