Debtors and late-payers—the bane of every business owner.

No matter how profitable your business is, it won’t survive without good cash flow. If you can’t pay your bills on time, you may end up trading while insolvent. And that’s not just bad business—that’s illegal.

But to do that, you need your clients to pay their bills on time. And that’s something you can’t always rely on. Sometimes they forget. Sometimes they don’t have the money. And sometimes they just decide they don’t want to...Read more

Starting a business is part science, part art, and a large part hard work! It can get lost in all the excitement but you need to get the balance right.

Approximately 20 percent of all small businesses fail in their first year; and your chances of your business making it to five years are around 50/50.

One thing is for sure: leaving your success up to chance is not an option. Get clear on where you want to take your business and how you are going to get there.... Read more

Where some businesses have tripped up in the past is where the source of benefits provided is not clear cut - that is, where non-cash components of remuneration are sourced not directly from an employer, but from an associate, a related company or from a third-party provider.

For fringe benefits tax (FBT) to apply, the conventional wisdom is that the benefits involved are provided instead of cash salary, and further that such benefits are usually paid in respect of an employment relationship. Hence the pool of accepted FBT-attracting items - laptops, cars, entertainment expenses and so on.

But as mentioned, it has often been the case that employer taxpayers have made the mistake of assuming that because a benefit is provided by "someone else", they are...... Read more

 

Single Touch Payroll is a government initiative to streamline business     reporting obligations, which is due to become compulsory from 1 July 2018. When a business pays its employees, the payroll information will be sent to the ATO via the business’s payroll software.

Reporting under the Single Touch Payroll (STP) system removes the requirement to issue payment summaries, provide annual reports and tax file number declarations to the ATO. During the first year of its introduction, the ATO says employers will not be liable for a penalty for a late STP report.

Important points to keep in mind for the transition to STP include...... Read more
 

If you are operating a small business and at the end of the income year you estimate that your trading stock's value has not changed by more than $5,000, remember (especially if you are new to business) that you can choose not to conduct a formal stocktake.

By making a decision to do this, you will not be required to account for the changes in the trading stock's value. The estimate you use to make this decision (known by the ATO as an "election" to use the "simplified trading stock rules") will be deemed to be reasonable by the ATO if either...... Read more




 

The days of a lax approach to valuations are over.

While there is not always the need to employ a qualified independent valuer for each valuation, there are important circumstances where it is mandated, and others where it is recommended.  Where one is not used then appropriate documentation needs to be kept of how valuations were determined. Back-of-the­ envelope or simply made-up valuations will not suffice.

Whilst in the old days the ATO had little it could do against SMSF trustees, the current penalty rules provide...... Read more

 

Every investor goes in with dreams of a pot of gold, but there is a fundamental difference between investor types - one looks to line their pockets with investment returns along the way, and the other has the patience to wait until the end of the rainbow to reap the rewards.

The distinction between investing for growth or investing for income should not be seen as a "them or us" battle. Rather, investing for growth or investing for income will depend on the personal circumstances of the individual.

The needs of each person naturally differ, and the type of investment they prefer will depend on these needs. Many investors simply need capital growth, and are looking to grow their portfolio for later use, say with the aim of securing a more comfortable retirement. Others, for example...... Read more