July comes again. The weather is cold. The days are darker. For many their last holiday was six months ago. But cheer up folks, that tax refund is just around the corner. So get your group certificates, submit your return and before you know it, you’ll be playing The Apprentice theme song up loud and flicking those $100 notes in the air in slow motion.
Now the average tax return in Australia currently is between $2,000 and $3,000. So we’ll run with that in the budget for what you should spend your tax return on.

SPEND YOUR TAX RETURN ON A HOLIDAY


Flying overseas is very affordable these days, especially if you can fly in the off peak seasons i.e not in the school holidays. $2,000 can get you return flights to almost anywhere in the world during an airline sale. Come July, the best month to book flights for is February. As this is when most people are back in the swing of the work or school year, airlines are offering flights sometimes half the price as you would’ve paid for bookings in December or January.
If have a family however, you might want to pack the car and head off somewhere in the school holidays instead. For a family, there are few places better than the Gold Coast and that tax return can be well spent at the theme parks.

SPEND YOUR TAX RETURN ON YOUR HEALTH


When it’s the middle of winter, a lot of us start to gain that ‘winter coat’. When the weather is cold, we tend to eat more and exercise less. So this is a great time to get started on your health goals. A $2,000 tax return is enough to get you a year’s gym membership, a wearable fitness watch and plenty of activewear to make sure you look the part as well.

SPEND YOUR TAX RETURN ON SEASON TICKETS


Season tickets for footy teams tend to be released around November, so if you can hold on to that tax refund for that long, you could sort your next sporting season out with some reserved seats for all the home games. $2,000 will be enough for all of the family and plenty of change for some fresh jerseys as well.

SPEND YOUR TAX RETURN ON A TV


Technology is so damn cheap these days and $2,000 will get you a smart TV with acronyms like SHD, LED, OED and it’ll get you one of 55 inches or even larger if you seek a good sale. If you have a little change left over, why not add a year of Netflix or Stan subscription to watch on your new big screen?

SPEND YOUR TAX RETURN ON YOUR CAR


Cars are damn expensive to run, especially in New South Wales. If you get change from $2,000 after paying your rego, green slip (and pink slip if needed) and insurance for 12 months, you’re doing well. But the government knows that we really like travelling to places dozens of kilometres away in a short amount of time. So not long after getting your money back from the government via the ATO, it’ll go straight back to them. Sigh.

SPEND YOUR TAX RETURN ON BILLS


 
This doesn’t sound like much fun. But if you’re well on top of your utilities already and you know roughly what your refund will be, racking up the credit card bills in the EOFY sales may be a smart move. Albeit a risky one if your refund is lower or takes longer than expected.

TREAT YOURSELF, YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY WITH YOUR TAX RETURN


With your tax refund, you could shout your family or friends to an amazing meal at Lantern Club’s MaZi restaurant. With a huge range of scrumptious dishes (click here to see the menu), you’ll have the best meal of the financial year. That’s a guarantee as good as death and taxes! Call our friendly Reception team to book a table on 8037 8200 or click here.