Western Australia
March 26, 2014

The Department of Agriculture and Food (DAFWA) is reminding farmers to look into their eligibility for a tax offset if they are purchasing a seeder this season.

Department economist Peter Rixson said farmers may be entitled to a refundable tax offset of 15 per cent of the cost of an eligible seeder.

“The purpose of this tax offset is to encourage conservation tillage practices to reduce emissions, increase soil carbon and improve productivity,” Mr Rixson said.

“Such no-till machinery is often the first choice of WA broadacre farmers for its productivity advantages.”

An eligible no-till seeder used in conservation tillage farming practices include:
- sowing a crop into untilled soil using narrow or knife points to minimise disturbance to soil (less than 20% soil disturbance),

- zero-till practices where a crop is sown with one pass using a disc seeder.

The Australian Government intends to discontinue the Conservation Tillage Refundable Tax Offset as of 1 July 2014 as part of the Carbon Tax repeal.

To claim the offset, primary production businesses need to submit a Research Participation Certificate application form in the same income year in which the new, eligible conservation tillage seeder equipment was purchased and installed.

Primary producers wishing to claim the offset for the 2013-14 income year will need to complete and submit the form on or before 30 June 2014. This time constraint is a requirement of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997.

“You can only apply for the certificate when the machinery has been delivered to and is installed, ready for use, on your property,” Mr Rixson said.

“The Australian Department of Agriculture website advises that the Research Participation Certificate application form is to be completed on a computer and submitted online.”

More information on the tax offset can be found on the Australian Taxation Office website www.ato.gov.au search ‘Conservation tillage refundable tax offset’ or the Department of Agriculture’s website www.daff.gov.au/rto search ‘Conservation tillage refundable tax offset’.
 

Website: http://www.agric.wa.gov.au

Published: March 26, 2014