Category: Small Business
Bonus Article, Just like income tax, there is an anti-avoidance rule for GST
The GST Act contains anti-avoidance provisions that are similar to those available for income tax purposes. The rules (known as Division 165) are designed to deter schemes that would produce benefits by reducing GST payable, increasing refunds, or altering the timing of payment of GST or refunds, and are aimed directly at artificial and contrived...
Bonus Article, Tax losses and franking offsets for corporates
Companies are not entitled to a refund of franking tax offsets, however they may be able to convert them to carried forward losses in subsequent years. Companies are able to choose the amount of prior year losses they wish to deduct, after first having offset losses against net exempt income. There are however the following...
The new “consumer” rules for GST and online purchases
Australians have been taking full advantage of the offerings on the digital marketplace with gusto for years now, but it has only been relatively recently that the rules for goods and services tax (GST) have caught up. With the purchase of digital products such as the streaming or downloading of movies, apps, and e-books and...
Removing tax deductibility of ‘non-compliant’ payments
From 1 July 2019, businesses will only be able to claim deductions for payments that are made to workers (employees or contractors) when the employer has complied with the pay-as-you-go (PAYG) withholding and other tax reporting obligations for that payment. If the PAYG withholding rules require a business to withhold an amount from a payment that...
The same business test to be replaced by a “similar business” test
Among the first batch of tax legislation the government dealt with in the new year was a bill that contained changes to the “same business” test. The same business test is relevant in a number of contexts, but most particularly in determining if a company is eligible to claim deductions for past year losses, current...
Bonus Article, Single touch payroll employers to send payment summaries to myGov
From 1 July this year employers with 20 or more employees will report to the ATO in real time from their payroll software. The changeover to Single touch payroll (STP) is a gradual change, and some employers may start reporting later. Employers will be able to see STP information they report through the ATO’s business portal,...
Tax incentive for angel investors in start-ups
For more than two years now (from 1 July 2016) two key tax incentives have been available for investors considering putting their money behind qualifying start-up businesses — or as the ATO has dubbed them, early stage innovation companies (ESICs). The incentives provide eligible taxpayers who invest in new shares in an ESIC with: a non-refundable carry...
The ATO is looking for personal services income diverted to SMSFs
The ATO has announced that it is reviewing arrangements where members of an SMSF (typically at, or approaching, retirement age) purport to divert income earned from their personal services to their fund, which results in minimising or even avoiding tax altogether on that income. The ATO says these arrangements typically display all or most of...
Bonus Article, Small business CGT concession changes will tighten eligibility
The legislation Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Integrity and Other Measures) Bill 2018 has just recently passed both houses in Canberra, which among other measures also makes changes to the long-established small business CGT concessions. The legislation’s explanatory memorandum (scroll down to page 13 of this PDF of the EM) spells out the incumbent basic conditions...
Do you need an agreement with your business partner?
Going into new business with other people is exciting and can be extremely rewarding. A formal agreement can set the ground rules and stop owners getting caught out if things don’t quite go as well as planned. Whether your firm is structured as a partnership or a company, you and your business partners need to...