Blog

Managing your superannuation transfer balance account

29 May 2021

Most people think of retirement as a time to put your feet up and relax, but it can also be a time when pre-retirees and retirees alike actually need to flex the grey matter.

With all the rules and regulations swirling around the superannuation sector these days, it’s not unusual for those nearing retirement to feel compelled to dust off the calculator and bone up on certain superannuation concepts. The transfer balance account and the transfer balance cap are topics that can challenge many retirees.

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Single touch payroll: When your reporting can cease

10 April 2021

A business may no longer be required to lodge single touch payroll (STP) reports for a number of reasons. These are if your business no longer has employees, has ceased trading, has changed structure, is not paying employees for the rest of the year, or has paused due to COVID-19.

Depending on your business’s situation and circumstances, what you need to do may be different.

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Both tax and SMSF audits on still on ATO’s radar, but some leniency given

13 March 2021

While the ATO has lately been focusing on the rollout of stimulus measures, it has also flagged that audit work is not off the table completely.

In late July, when the ATO fronted a parliamentary Senate Select Committee on COVID-19, its representative said plans were to start tax audits sometime between September and October 2020. Time and efforts however were diverted to the rollout of the JobKeeper scheme and other stimulus measures, with the ATO sourcing staff for this work by redeploying people from initiating audits, saying it had been a “conscious choice” not to initiate new audits during the peak of the pandemic.

But that, as they say in the classics, was then — and this is now. The takeaway for everyone is that audits will not go away, and will come at some point, so taxpayers and SMSF trustees need to have their affairs in order.

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Land Tax Assessments 2020/21

3 March 2021

If you have not received your Land Tax assessment yet, Revenue SA are currently processing these and you should expect to receive these in the post very soon.

For the 2020/21 financial year there are some changes to the way land is grouped for assessment.

Which may result in you receiving assessments in multiple ownerships for the first time.

Due to these changes, if you hold land in a trust, due to higher trust land tax rates, you may find your Land Tax Assessments are significantly higher than the previous year. Please contact our office should you require assistance, as we may be able to assist with reducing this assessment.

Please note exempt land, such as your main residence will appear on your Land Tax Assessment, although it remains exempt and excluded for calculation purposes.

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Calling time out on your business? Some essentials you’ll need to know

7 February 2021

When you first went into business, either buying an established enterprise or starting from scratch, probably the last thing on your mind was the day you would close the door for the last time.

But in a way it’s inevitable, whether through the outcomes from COVID-19, retirement, health reasons or, in a more ideal scenario, pursuing another career. But it’s important for you to know what’s involved when you come to the time when you close your business, as this can go a long way to smoothing the transition.

For starters, it’s important that all your tax issues are finalised before you cancel your Australian business number (ABN), which ceases that business. This allows the ATO to finalise your business’s account and issue any refunds that may be owing.

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New data matching programs initiated by Federal Government

11 December 2020

Over the first quarter of this financial year, the government has initiated two new data matching programs, using data that the ATO holds.

Data matching involves bringing together data from different sources and comparing it. For example, records from different agencies or businesses are compared, with the results possibly identifying people who are being paid benefits to which they may not be entitled, or people who may not be paying the right amount of tax.

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ATO’s cyber safety checklist

11 December 2020

Scammers never seem to rest, with even the lastest JobKeeper iteration coming in for some scam treatment. In a new update the ATO reports that it is receiving reports of email scams about JobKeeper and backing business investment claims. “The fake emails say we’re investigating your claims. They ask you to provide valuable personal information, including copies of your driver’s licence and Medicare card.”

During this time of heightened scam activity, the ATO is encouraging individuals and businesses to:

Use multi-factor authentication where possible and don’t share your password with anyone
Run the latest software updates to ensure operating systems security is current
Secure your private wi-fi network with passwords (not the default password) and do not make financial transactions when using public wi-fi networks
Exercise caution when clicking on links and providing personal identifying information
Only access online government services via an independent search – not via emails or SMS
If in doubt, call the ATO on an independently sourced number to verify an interaction
Educate your staff on cyber safety and scams.

To report a data breach or scam visit ato.gov.au/onlinesecurity

What the “full expensing” write-off deduction means for business

11 December 2020

The Federal Budget measure of allowing businesses to fully write-off eligible assets is a boon to Australian businesses, even though the measure is temporary. Just to recap, businesses with aggregated annual turnover of less than $5 billion will be able to deduct the full cost of eligible capital assets acquired from 7:30pm AEDT on 6 October 2020 (Budget night) and first used or installed by 30 June 2022.

“Full expensing” in the year of first use will apply to new depreciable assets and the cost of improvements to existing eligible assets. For small- and medium-sized businesses (with aggregated annual turnover of less than $50 million), full expensing also applies to second-hand assets.

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COVID-19 Lockdown

19 November 2020

During the current COVID-19 lockdown our office will be closed, however, we are still available should you need to contact us.

We will all be working from home and available via email and mobile phone and we can arrange a meeting by Zoom if required.

With the current lockdown there are a couple of key issues to consider:

JobKeeper 2.0 – the eligibility for JobKeeper for the January to March 2021 period is based on your income for the current quarter. Therefore should the lockdown result in your turnover for the quarter ended 31 December 2020 being 30% below the turnover for the December 2019 quarter you will be able to claim JobKeeper for your employees from January to March 2021.

Staff Wages – we have sought specialist advice for our clients from Strategic Employee Relations in relation to employer’s obligations to payment of staff who are unable to work due to the lockdown. Click on this link to view their Guidance Notes for your reference.

Should you require any assistance during this time, please do not hesitate to contact us via email at admin@nulli2advisory.com.au. However, most importantly, stay safe and hopefully, the lockdown only lasts for a short term.

Kind Regards
i2 Advisory

What can you do with your employees if you are required to temporarily shut your business as a result of a government lockdown?

19 November 2020

Employers may be faced with a situation where they are required to temporarily shut their business as a result of a State or Federal Government lockdown to combat COIVD-19.

An employer is highly likely to be able to “stand down” their employees “without pay” if a temporary lockdown does occur.

What is a stand down?

Employers have the ability to unilaterally stand down employees without pay if they cannot be usefully employed due to “a stoppage of work for any reason the employer cannot reasonably be held responsible” such as a Government lockdown.

A stand down means that an employer does not have to make an employee redundant but rather “pauses” their employment.

Contracts of employment, modern awards or enterprise agreements may contain different stand down provisions so it is important to check these instruments before implementing a stand down.

Process to implement a stand down

The below outlines a recommended process to implement a stand down:

Step 1: Check any contract of employment, applicable modern award or enterprise agreement for specific stand down provisions;

Step 2: Draft a stand down letter;

Step 3: Meet and provide an employee with the stand down letter. Explore ways to mitigate the impacts such as taking annual leave, annual leave at half pay, long service, banked TOIL or RDOs;

Step 4: Keep in touch with the employee on stand down to check on their welfare and bring them back to work when they can be usefully employed;

How long can a stand down last?

There is no time limit on a stand down and advice should be sought if a stand down becomes prolonged;

Further questions?
Every situation is different and the above is provided as general guidance. Please do not hesitate to contact Zev Costi on 0433 876 233 or at zev@nullstrategicemployeerelations.com.au if you have any questions.

Strategic Employee Relations Pty Ltd (ABN 70 625 206 680)