What is base value of a car you own?

The base value of a car you own is:

• the original cost price you paid (excluding registration and stamp duty)
• the cost of any fitted non-business accessories
• dealer delivery charges.

All cost and charges include goods and services tax (GST) and luxury car tax where appropriate.

Non-business accessories are fitted accessories not required to meet the special needs of your business operations. An example of a business accessory is a fitted GPS in a salesman's car, while alloy wheels, rear spoilers and seat covers are non-business accessories. Any non-business accessories added after you purchase the car increase the base value of the car for the year in which they are added and for subsequent years.

Example: Exempt use

• An electrical company employee takes the company van (carrying capacity of less than one tonne) home each night as there is no security at the company premises. The only non-work-related use during the FBT year was a trip to pick up some furniture and take it to the employee's home. This use of the van would be exempt from FBT.
• If the use of the vehicle exceeds the limits set out above, it is a car fringe benefit. All the private use of the vehicle, including the travel between home and work, is taken into account in determining the business percentage under the operating cost method. If no logbook records are maintained, the statutory formula method must be used to value the car fringe benefit.

Example: Non-exempt use

• A council employee takes a utility (carrying capacity of less than one tonne) home each night and on the weekends. Although the utility is clearly marked as a council vehicle, the employee uses it for shopping and other private purposes during the week and often for country trips on the weekends.
• This use of the utility would not be exempt from FBT and would be treated as a car fringe benefit. Assuming there are no logbook records, the taxable value of the utility would be calculated using the statutory formula method.
• Dual cab vehicles are variants of conventional goods vehicles with additional seating positions behind the driver and front passenger seats. They share a common chassis, to which the single or dual passenger cab and alternative tray sections may be fitted.
• Dual cabs qualify for the work-related use exemption only if one of the following applies:
• they are designed to carry a load of one tonne or more, or more than eight passengers
• while having a designed load capacity of less than one tonne, they are not designed for the principal purpose of carrying passengers.

A dual cab that has a designed load-carrying capacity of less than one tonne may qualify for the work-related use exemption only if the vehicle is not designed for the principal purpose of carrying passengers.

To determine whether the majority of the designed load capacity is attributable to passenger-carrying capacity, multiply the designed seating capacity (including the driver's seat) by 68 kilograms, which is the figure used for applying the Australian Design Rules. If the total passenger weight so determined exceeds the remaining 'load' capacity, the vehicle is treated as being designed for the principal purpose of carrying passengers and is ineligible for the work-related use exemption.

Example: Dual cab vehicles

A dual cab vehicle with a gross vehicle weight of 1,950 kilograms, a basic kerb weight of 1,400 kilograms and a designed seating capacity of five would be considered a vehicle designed principally for carrying passengers. This is because the majority of the total load capacity (340 kg (5 × 68 kg) of a total of 550 kg) would be absorbed by its designed passenger-carrying capacity.