Jim Chalmers pledges fix to negative gearing reform’s ‘widow’ issue

CHALMERS TO FIX TAX CODE’S ‘WIDOW’ PROBLEMLabor is tinkering further with its tax reform package, this time fixing an issue that would prevent Australians who inherited an investment property from their partner to access negative gearing. The tax reforms changed rules around negative gearing so that investors would only be able to use rental losses to reduce tax on other income if the properties in question were newly built. As the Australian Associated Press reports, the provision now being fixed has been dubbed a “widow’s tax” by media outlets.