Christmas Related Matters Christmas Bonus Payments Employees are often paid a bonus around Christmas time. Generally, the bonus is paid for performance over the past year – in this case, when it is classified as a ‘one-off bonus’, it is taxed only in the current financial year. If the business is paying a bonus for

myGovID, RAM, and Client–Agent Linking How to set up myGovID, a business in Relationship Authorisation Manager(RAM) and authorise a Tax or BAS Agent to work with the ATO. Client–Agent Linking: What Business Owners Need to Do Note: If a Business is seeking to appoint a new Agent, follow this process. If a business continues to

Important Information for Business Owners With the New Financial Year having started on 1st July 2022, there are new and updated changes and obligations for employers. Please see below a comprehensive list business owners to consider and discuss with your Bookkeeper. What’s Changing End of Year Payroll Cut Off Whichever day you normally/regularly pay your

The Taxable Payments Annual Report Lodgement Due Date – 28th August Annually The Taxable Payments Annual Report (TPAR) must be lodged by 28th August each year. If your business makes payments to contractors you may need to report these payments in a TPAR. From the 23rd of March 2022, the ATO will apply failure to lodge penalties

ABLIS is a national service delivered by a partnership of Australian, State and Territory governments, and helps you identify and find relevant state, territory and Australian government licences, permits, approvals, regulations, and codes of practice, allowing you to obtain detailed information and manage the many compliance obligations. All your legal obligations are listed in one

Director ID Implementation With the implementation of the Director Identification Numbers (DIN’s or Director ID’s) pending, it will be important to understand the new obligations for those operating in the capacity of a Director, as failure to apply for a DIN within the required time frame will leave you open to both criminal and civil

Helping Small Business Create Employment Contracts Business.gov.au have created a build your own employment contract, for an employee under Australia’s Fair Work System, that is tailored to your business needs. Making your employee’s pay and conditions clear from the start can help protect your business in the long term. It helps small business employers to

The minimum percentage employers are required to pay is set to increase over time, with the next increase to 10% due on 1st July 2021. This should be considered in part, a wage increase. What This Means for Small Business The proportion of wages that employers must contribute to their workers’ superannuation is legislated to

The ATO’s small business independent review service will be offered permanently as a dispute resolution option for eligible small businesses with a turnover less than $10 million. It provides small businesses an additional opportunity to resolve a dispute with the ATO where they disagree with the audit position related to most income tax and indirect

    With the current focus on a change in tax record-keeping obligations to encompass all things digital plus the need to businesses to adapt to a new era in the way they operate, going digital is more important than ever. The virtual world that we’re currently living in doesn’t allow for the same face-to-face

Are gifts to your employees, clients, and suppliers claimable as a business expense? Gifts may be classified as “entertainment” and therefore not claimable or subject to Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT). For gifts such as wine, food, hampers, vouchers, etc., these are not considered to be entertainment. If the gift is a minor benefit (i.e. less

Australia has over 3.5million small businesses. Small businesses contribute to a third of our economic activity, keep millions of Australians in jobs and are responsible for paying wages to almost half our workforce. They are vital to our everyday lives – especially now we are trying to find the way to economic recovery. Go Local

7th September 2020 Update: It is now Law. JobKeeper 2.0 Less employers, less employees, lower rates and two different tiers.And Fair Work JobKeeper discretions continue (for some). Which Employers? If the business currently receiving JK experiences an ongoing decline in actual GST Turnover of 30% (50% large, 15% NFP). Or A business is allowed to

There is plenty of information coming out about the current stimulus packages. You already know about Cashboost and JobKeeper. But do you know about: Rent relief Power bill relief Bank charges/merchant fee/interest relief Business Loans with generous terms ATO debt relief Fair Work changes to some Awards to allow for standdowns, changes of hours, and

  Any business that uses the Governments Small Business Superannuation Clearing House directly will NOT be able to use Auskey after 27 March 2020. The March quarter super payments are due before 28th April! Auskey is ceasing on 27th March 2020. Business will have to: Have the authorised person of the business establish their myGovID

From 11 Sep 2018, Xero is making it compulsory for users who have access to sensitive data (eg. payroll, the subscriber, and anyone who can change bank details in the software) to have increased security when logging in to the software. This is to reduce the risk of internet hackers using their login to change

Backup of Computers and all Data Backups are essential. Offsite, remote or cloud backup is the best option; you can “set and forget”, and it then happens automatically in the background. Alternatively use an external drive and schedule regular backups, e.g. at the end of each work day. Electronic Document Storage Electronic storage of business

When does a hobby become a business? We often get asked: at what point does a growing hobby need to be registered as a business? Here are some handy pointers: Business Victoria: So you want to start a business? ATO: Are you in business?

We’re always being asked: how do I get my great idea off the ground and start earning a living from it? Well, we’ve been there and done that, and work with plenty of business owners who started with a side project before turning it into a profitable startup! Here’s a compilation of some sites to

How to Create Custom Invoices in QBO We are often asked: how do I create a customised invoice in Quickbooks Online? Well if you want to use one of the styles QBO has on offer, there is a link to the guide here: http://www.intuit.com.au/r/product-updates/invoice-customisation-deep-dive/ There are only a few pre-determined styles to choose from, however, and

What is GST? Goods and services tax (GST) is a broad-based tax of 10% on the value, (i.e. 1/11th of the price), of most goods, services and other items sold or consumed in Australia. There are some transactions that are GST-Free or GST-exempt. Businesses that are registered for GST will: include GST in the price

The New World of GST Codes – Simpler BAS The ATO has simplified the GST reporting system to make it simpler for a business to conduct its trading with less complexity in applying the GST law. GST or Not Included To trade in Australia a business must: Obtain an ABN. Decide whether to register for

This document is intended to raise an area of possible concern for discussion and to provide information about workers who may be engaged as contractors but should be engaged as employees. To remain compliant with the laws of Payroll Tax, Workers Compensation and Superannuation Guarantee, an independent contractor must pass a number of tests to

Superannuation Employer Obligations Offer your employees a ‘choice of fund’ Identify new employee is eligible Provide a standard choice form Nominate a default fund (must be a MySuper product) Act on employee’s choice of fund Pay superannuation guarantee before due date As of 1 July 2014, the superannuation guarantee rate is 9.5% You must keep

SuperStream Overview SuperStream is a compulsory system of submitting Superannuation Payment information (standardised data) electronically. The information links the payment made by the employer to the employees account in the relevant superfund/s. It is the intention that SuperStream will make the whole superannuation system and employer meeting their obligations efficient, faster, more reliable and with

Business Record Keeping Requirements Under tax law, if you are operating a business you are required to keep ALL records explaining declared income and expenses, (i.e., tax deductions), whether it is a $5,000 sale or a $2.00 deduction, the ATO want to see some form of proof and also they may seek out inconsistencies. These

What it Means to be a Director of a Company A company is a separate legal entity with its own rights and obligations. Company assets, liabilities, income and expenses belong to the company entity, not to the individual directors. Directors are bound by certain rules that govern your behaviour. You must carry out your duties

Payroll and FairWork Information Requirements There are many legal obligations that an employer is bound by. As soon as you engage employees, you will most likely have tax and superannuation obligations at the least, and there are many more issues to consider when employing people. It is the legal responsibility of the employer to pay

If you engage a bookkeeper/BAS agent to make payments on your behalf, you need to take care of security issues as this can be risky. Ensuring you have appropriate procedures and security controls in place and that you and your staff follow these at all times is very important. Inadequate internal controls can leave the

There are many aspects of legal obligation and compliance that apply to a business owner. We recommend you review this list to become aware of all the areas that may apply to your business. This list is not exhaustive. There may be other obligations that apply to your business; for example, if you are in a

Annual Shutdowns Many businesses have a scheduled period of closing business operations during the Christmas and New Year period. How an employer must treat this depends on the award or agreement the employee is governed by. These guidelines apply to permanent employees—casual employees do not have to be paid during a scheduled shut down. Award

Businesses that utilise software with online storage of their data should be aware of the terms and conditions of use the software providers publish. You should also be aware of the Privacy Principles that govern how your business data and personal information is utilised by your accounting software provider. Access to Your Data It is

Allowing for Private Expenses The ATO acknowledges that at times it is convenient for a business owner to purchase goods through their business that are in fact for private use, and also that there are goods that are purchased that may legitimately be used for both home and work purposes. There is no problem with

As your BAS Agent, Ringwood Bookkeeping BAS Agent #93258002, we are required by the Tax Practitioners Board to advise you as needed on your rights and obligations in relation to the BAS services we provide. Currently we provide the following BAS services: GST matters PAYG Withholding PAYG Instalments Superannuation TPAR We are able to advise you on

Data from Australian Payments Clearing Association (APCA) in 2014 shows that 0.02% of all credit card and cheque transactions were fraudulent – total of $311 million. Over the last ten years, the amount of fraud has increased significantly due to a rise in online transactions (where the physical card is not present), and sophistication of

From 1st July 2012, businesses in the building and construction industry are required to report annually to the ATO all subcontractors that provide building services. The report is aimed at capturing services (labour) provided, rather than goods. If a contractor supplies both goods and services, then whether the contractor is included in the report is

Most bookkeepers, whether employees or contractors, work on an hourly basis. As such, the more time they have to spend chasing info from their clients, the more costly it is. How do you save money on bookkeeping? Here are some tips on how to lighten your bookkeeper’s load, and therefore lighten your bill! ACCESS TO INFO

Your Payroll seen by the ATO ….. All Year The Single Touch Payroll (STP) legislation has received Royal Assent. It is law and is going to happen! Who? All “substantial” employers, (20 or more employees by headcount), must participate. The count happens as of 30 April each year, commencing 2018. You must then enter STP

A Member of ICB (MICB) attains certification by proving that they have performed bookkeeping services at a significant level for a period exceeding two years and by doing so they have proven their level of bookkeeping knowledge. Members have achieved the Certificate IV Financial Services (Bookkeeping). This qualification recognises a bookkeeper’s skills and competence formally

Previously in Quickbooks, in order to have salary sacrifice calculate correctly, two payroll items – a Company Contribution Item and a Deduction item – needed to be set up.  This has been amended in new Quickbooks versions since 2009/10 to a single payroll item, and now ensures that the process has been simplified immensely. The example

The term “BAS Agent” typically applies to a business who contracts to a client to provide services to that client to do with their BAS obligations. The new legislation was implemented with a view to providing business with protection and security. It is about the qualifications, experience, competence, professionalism of us as an external person

If you have a small retail business, this is a handy resource for your register staff and for whoever records the daily takings in your accounting system. This free info sheet helps explain why it is important to balance your register at the end of the day, and what elements to look for if it

If you have a till or an EFTPOS machine, end of day can get a bit confusing to balance, and of course everyone makes calculation errors from time to time! Here is a basic spreadsheet template for you to plug in your till z-reading, your cash count and EFTPOS totals, to see if everything balances