Budget 2018: $20,000 instant asset write-off scheme extended for one more year

Australian small businesses have been given 12 more months to take advantage of the federal government’s instant asset write-off scheme.

Announced as part of the 2018 federal budget, the popular scheme will be now expire on June 30, 2019, instead of June 30 this year.

It’s a small win for small businesses, which have embraced the scheme since it was first introduced in the 2015 budget.

But the announcement will also no doubt disappoint those in the small business community who hoped to see the scheme become a permanent feature of the tax system.

In a pre-budget poll of SmartCompany readers, 60% said they were hoping the government would make the scheme permanent. Meanwhile, Peter Strong, chief executive of the Council of Small Business of Australia, told SmartCompany his members say “time and time again” how well-used the scheme is.

But Strong admitted in March he finds it challenging that every year, the small business community has to argue for a policy that has widespread appeal.