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Jeffrey Hutton is a Morningstar contributor.

Planning ahead and a careful reorganisation of assets and debt with a spouse are some basic steps you can take in order to lower your tax bill. Trouble is, few people bother to take the time or effort to get across strategies that can pare back their own tax bill.

Next year will see big changes to superannuation contribution rules, as well as a temporary flood levy, so it's never been more important to take advantage of some simple tips to minimise your tax bill, before it's time to file.

Tax rules are getting tougher and more complicated. So the top tip for anyone who wants to keep their tax bill to a minimum is to get good advice, experts say. But, awareness of tax strategies and rules among the general public tends to be poor.

"For lots of clients, taxes are just considered something that's too hard to think about," says Andrew Moore, a tax accountant and financial planner with Specialised Business Solutions.

"It gets put in the too-hard basket and they don't even try."

The federal government is introducing a 1 per cent levy on incomes over $100,000 this financial year to pay for reconstruction following the floods in Queensland and Victoria last summer. Incomes between $50,000 and $100,000 will face a 0.5 per cent extra tax.

The government will remove the $50,000 cap for contributions into super at the concessional rate of 15 per cent for those over 50 after 30 June, replacing it with the $25,000 limit for everyone. The government is said to be working on exemptions and may outline them early next year.

Experts agree splitting assets and debt between spouses according to income is a good way to minimise tax. Negatively geared assets should be in the name of the higher-earning spouse, while positively geared assets should be in the name of the lower earner of the pair.

"Split income with your low-income spouse," advises Murray McKinley, director of McKinley Plowman & Associates.

"Interest-bearing cash accounts, term deposits, managed funds and shares should be in the low-income spouse's name," McKinley says.

"If asset protection is an issue, talk to your accountant."

Keeping notes is another good way to take advantage of tax deductions to which you may be entitled. Jotting down in a diary the number of times you use your car, for example, for work purposes other than commuting can earn you, on average, 74 cents a kilometre in deductions, Moore says.

"Not keeping records are how a lot of clients miss out on deductions," Moore says.

"They realise their mistake when it's too late."

Meeting with your accountant a few months before the end of the financial year can help you set strategies to potentially get across how much extra you can stash away into superannuation without breaching your cap.

The goal? Have your tax planning in place at the beginning of the financial year and not the end.