Business Tax recipes
Registering Your Business for the GST
If you’re in business, no matter how small, you’re under a range of legal requirements as to how to run key elements of your business, and depending on how much money your business deals with, this may mean you’re required to register for GST. The government takes taxes extremely seriously, so make sure you know exactly what your business’s obligations are, so that you can have all of your information in order.
Who should register?
Any business or enterprise which has a ‘GST turnover’ over of more than $75,000 for the year, or more than $150,000 in the case of charitable groups, is required to register for the GST. You must also register your business for GST if your business is in any way involved in driving people around in either taxis or any other type of chauffeur-style driving. In this case, regardless of your GST turnover, you’re required to register for GST.
Preparing Your Small Business for Tax Time
The best way to prevent a nightmare for your small business when it comes to tax time is by preparing well beforehand and being organised. Make it as easy as possible for you and your business to keep track of all financial activity, as it will make doing your small business’s taxes no big deal. The following are some of the ways to ensure your small business is always ready for tax time, and all will come in handy if you ever get audited.
Use online banking
Using online banking for all of your business’s financial transactions will make your life much easier when tax time rolls around, as you’ll have everything already recorded for you via your bank statement. This can be extremely helpful if you have any staff, as whether you’re paying them via cheque or direct deposit, you’ll have a record of everyone’s pay. This will make life easier for your tax accountants when they need to look over everything.
Business Financial Statements 101
Like personal budgets and tax statements, financial statements are vital for any business. They facilitate business decision making, provide a clear picture of the status of the business, and enable owners and managers to know when business goals have been reached. We look at the essential statements for businesses of all sizes, including the profit and loss statement, the balance sheet, the cash flow statement, and the statement of retained earnings.
Why Use Financial Statements?
Financial statements provide readers with a picture of the financial status of the business. In large companies and for investors, financial statement literacy is vital, as it is for small business owners. For those who need specific advice, specialists for small business accounting in Sydney and elsewhere are qualified to provide in-depth consultations about financial reports.
8 Strategies for Minimising Small Business Tax
Small businesses form a valuable part of the Australian economy and the Australian government provides a range of tax incentives and exemptions to encourage small business owners. When tax time comes, great records, knowing about your allowable deductions, and obtaining professional advice can all help to significantly reduce your small business tax liability. These are eight easy strategies to consider.
1. Review Your Business Structure
Your business structure can significantly boost your ability to legally reduce your tax liability, whether it’s a sole trader, unit trust, company, partnership, or any other business vehicle. An accountant with expertise in small business accounting in Sydney or elsewhere in Australia may be able to save you thousands or more in tax every year.
How to Simplify Small Business Tax Compliance
Around 96 per cent of businesses in Australia – over 2 million – are small businesses, which in turn employ around 5 million Australians. In this article, we look at some of the ways in which small businesses can simply their tax compliance strategy to save money and to improve productivity by freeing up time for core business activities. For specific compliance advice, it’s a good idea to consult accountants in Sydney or elsewhere in Australia.
1. Outsource Compliance
Tax Compliance Cuts into Personal Time for Small Business Owners
Research has suggested that too many small business owners devote a large amount of personal time on tax compliance. A 2010 study by Galaxy Research found that 40 per cent of small business owners spend personal time to address reporting obligations, with a majority dedicating as much as an extra 60 hours every year, or around one Sunday every month on tax issues.
2012 Changes to the Small Business Depreciation Rules
Tax law changes for small business depreciation will benefit for 2.7 million small businesses. They’re due to take effect from July 1, 2012. In this article, we take a look at these changes and what they have in store for your business. If you require more information, qualified accountants in Sydney and elsewhere in Australia can assist with specific advice.
The Changes
The legislation is set to take effect from July 1, 2012, affecting the 2012 – 13 income year. The key changes to the small business depreciation rules include:
5 Expert Tax Tips for Small Business
Effectively dealing with tax and tax minimisation is a crucial part of running any small business. While it is important to learn many details yourself, if you are unsure find some small business accounting in Sydney to avoid any possible taxation mistakes. These five expert tax tips can help you get ahead on some of the key small business accounting and tax issues.
1. Reconsidering Your Business Structure
Tax time can be a great time to review your business structure. Whether you’re a sole trader, in a partnership, a trust, or operating as a company, accountants in Sydney and elsewhere in Australia can provide you with specific advice about restructuring your business if required.
5 Tax Tips for Starting Your Own Business
Starting your own business can be an exciting time. In the midst of getting organised and setting up the new enterprise, it’s easy to overlook a few key things. Tax, above all, shouldn’t be neglected. Tax minimisation and compliance begins from the very start. There are quality accountants in Sydney who can assist with helping you optimising your structures for tax, even at the inception stage of your new business. These are five practical tax tips to know as you get started.
1. Put Tax into Perspective
Tax shouldn’t be an once-a-year activity. Tax planning and compliance should take an important role in everyday and longer term decision making from the start. The impact of any tax concessions on cash flow should be considered from a wider perspective.
Business Tax: The Basics
If you are a small business, partnership or sole trader, there is a good chance that your specialisation is in the goods or services you provide and not running a business itself. Of course, the business administration side of things is possible to learn over time, and if you have the drive and ambition to go to work for yourself then you most certainly have the capacity to learn how to make smart business decisions. Something that will really help you when you start out is investing in an accountant. An accountant can explain to you your rights, responsibilities and areas in which you should be paying more attention or investing more money. What’s more, they’ll be able to help you keep your business taxes in order, which is crucial to the ongoing success of your enterprise. Here, we outline some of the basic points about business tax you should know.
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