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05th Apr, 2019
The Small Business Ombudsman, Kate Carnell, has announced that taxpayers wanting an external review of an adverse tax decision by the ATO through the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) can now contact the office of the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman for assistance.
From 1 March 2019, small business owners without legal representation can access an hour with an experienced small business tax lawyer at a significantly reduced cost, subsidised by the office of the Ombudsman. Lawyers can review relevant documents and provide advice on the viability of an appeal. And should an appeal progress, the Ombudsman’s case managers will help the small business owner through the process.
Small business taxation decisions will be finalised within 28 days from the date of a hearing at the AAT.
05th Apr, 2019
The ATO has released its latest small business benchmarks, providing over 100 different industries with average cost of sales and average total expenses. Businesses can see clearly what the relevant benchmarks are for their industry. The benchmark data is drawn from over 1.5 million small businesses around Australia.
Business owners can use the benchmarks to gauge the strength of their business and keep an eye on their competition.
The benchmarks also help the ATO identify small businesses that may be doing the wrong thing and not properly reporting some or all of their income.
12th Nov, 2018
The Prime Minister has announced that the Government will bring forward its planned tax cuts for small business by five years. The Labor Party has also indicated it supports bringing forward the tax cuts.
This means businesses with a turnover below $50 million will pay a tax rate of 25% in 2021–2022, rather than from 2026–2027 as currently legislated.
12th Oct, 2018
The Treasury Laws Amendment (Accelerated Depreciation for Small Business Entities) Bill 2018 has now passed through Parliament without amendment.
The Bill makes changes to the tax law to extend by 12 months the period during which small businesses can access expanded accelerated depreciation rules for assets that cost less than $20,000. The threshold amount was due to revert to $1,000 on 1 July 2018, but will now remain at $20,000 until 30 June 2019.
Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Kate Carnell has welcomed the extension, but reminded small businesses and family enterprises that the instant asset write-off is a tax deduction, not a rebate – your small business needs to make a profit to be eligible to claim the benefit.
12th Sep, 2018
The Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman, Kate Carnell, has called for the $20,000 instant asset write-off for small businesses to be embedded in legislation and extended up to $100,000 every three years. Ms Carnell said increasing the instant asset write-off to $100,000 every three years would enable small businesses with higher costs for key equipment to participate.
These recommendations stem from the Ombudsman’s November 2017 paper, Barriers to investment: a study into factors impacting small to medium enterprise investment.
05th Sep, 2017
Small businesses with a turnover of less than $10 million can get an immediate deduction for assets that cost up to $20,000 each in their 2016–2017 return. The $20,000 threshold now applies until 30 June 2018.
Assets that cost $20,000 or more can’t be immediately deducted. They need to be deducted over time using a small business asset pool.
Does your small business have a tax debt? The ATO encourages you to get in touch to set up a payment plan. If the debt is $100,000 or less, you can use the ATO’s self-help service to easily arrange paying by instalments.
If a business pays its tax debt late or by instalments, interest accrues on the unpaid debt. However, some businesses with activity statement debts may be eligible for interest-free payment plans.
To deal with a business tax debt of more than $100,000, you can phone the ATO on 13 11 42.