Tag: cash flow

calculator on AUD$

Using business money for private purposes

Posted on | by Allan Hall

2 steps to take

If you use money or assets from your company or trust for private purposes and don’t account for the transactions correctly, there can be tax consequences.

That’s why it’s important to get it right.

Business money and assets you take or use for private purposes can include:

  • salary and wages
  • director fees
  • fringe benefits, such as an employee using the company car
  • dividends paid by the company to you as a shareholder (that is, distribution of the company’s profits)
  • trust distributions if your business operates under a trust and pays you as a beneficiary
  • loans from a trust or company
  • ad hoc drawings or takings
  • allowances or reimbursements of expenses you receive from a trust or company.

If you’ve used business money or assets from a company or trust for private purposes, follow these steps to avoid unintended tax consequences:

  1. Keep accurate records of the transactions, and
  2. Account for the transactions in the company or trust tax return and your individual tax return, if applicable.

Remember, there are different reporting and record-keeping requirements for each type of transaction, so make sure you know how to keep accurate records to suit your circumstances.

You can also practise good record-keeping habits by regularly cross-checking your records against the original documents so you can fix mistakes earlier and monitor your business’s cash flow.

Taxpayers are ultimately responsible for keeping business records and what you claim in your tax returns, however Registered Tax or BAS Agents like Allan Hall on the Northern Beaches can help and advise on your tax.

CONTACT ALLAN HALL BUSINESS ADVISORS

Parliament House

Support for Australian small business

Posted on | by Allan Hall

The Government has introduced the Treasury Laws Amendment (Support for Small Business and Charities and Other Measures) Bill 2023 (the Bill) into Parliament.

The Bill delivers measures announced in the 2022‑23 Budget to ease pressure and boost resilience for small businesses.

Schedule 1 to the Bill will implement a $20,000 instant asset write‑off for one year, as announced in the 2023‑24 Budget, to improve cash flow and reduce compliance costs for small businesses.

Small businesses with aggregated annual turnover of less than $10 million will be able to immediately deduct eligible assets costing less than $20,000, from 1 July 2023 until 30 June 2024.

The $20,000 threshold will apply on a per asset basis, so small businesses can instantly write off multiple assets.

This is targeted, responsible support, to help Australia’s small businesses continue to grow.

Schedule 2 to the Bill will introduce the Small Business Energy Incentive, a 2023‑24 Budget measure designed to help small and medium businesses electrify and save on their energy bills.

Up to 3.8 million small and medium businesses with aggregated annual turnover of less than $50 million will have access to a bonus 20 per cent deduction for eligible assets supporting electrification and more efficient use of energy.  

The new tax incentive applies from 1 July 2023 until 30 June 2024. Up to $100,000 of total expenditure will be eligible for the incentive, with the maximum bonus tax deduction being $20,000.

The new Small Business Energy Incentive builds on the Albanese Government’s measures to help small businesses become more energy efficient and ease pressure on their energy bills.

Small businesses are the engine room of Australia’s economy, which is why these new measures are so critical.

CONTACT ALLAN HALL BUSINESS ADVISORS

Katherine O’Connor Director at Allan Hall Business Advisors

Announcing Katherine O’Connor appointed Director at Allan Hall Business Advisors

Posted on | by Allan Hall

We are thrilled to announce the promotion of Katherine O’Connor to the position of Director at Allan Hall Business Advisors as of 1 May 2023.

After gaining her foundations in tax and accounting in the Sydney CBD, Katherine O’Connor joined Allan Hall in 2008 and has continued her rise through the firm, culminating in her announcement as Director on Monday.

Katherine sets a high bar with her ability to provide an unwavering commitment to both her clients and Allan Hall team members, while also raising her three children and managing her CFO duties with her husband’s expanding Fire Protection company.

Katherine’s clients range from small businesses through to significant global entities and she applies the same level of personal attention and pride in her work with them all.

With her combined chartered accounting experience at Allan Hall Business Advisors and her first-hand commercial experience as a small business CFO, the expertise she offers her clients includes tax management, cash flow and profit enhancement and how to negotiate the many regulatory requirements facing businesses.

Internally, Katherine has played a leading role in the selection, development, mentoring and management of our strong team of accounting and support staff. She is committed to growing effective teams with clear communication and honest, transparent feedback and always has time and support for her team members. Her leadership has contributed to the continued awards that Allan Hall Business Advisors has won over recent years, including our announcement as Best Business Advisory Firm in the 2023 Client Choice Awards.

We warmly welcome Katherine to the Director Group and look forward to her ongoing success at Allan Hall.

We know you will all join us in congratulating Katherine on this wonderful achievement! 

Read Katherine’s full profile here »

CONTACT ALLAN HALL BUSINESS ADVISORS

Finance Team

Paying a ‘loyalty tax’ with your current lender?

Posted on | by Allan Hall

On the back of the 9th consecutive rate rise by the RBA this month, it’s more important than ever to pay attention to the interest rate you currently have, to ensure you are not paying a ‘loyalty tax’ with your current lender.

Each time the RBA has increased the cash rate in the past 9 months, every lender has passed on the full amount within a couple of weeks to existing customers. What this means is that whilst your current lender passes on the full increase, they are offering new customers a reduced rate to win more business.

To make sure you’re not paying the ‘loyalty tax’, please reach out to Allan Hall Finance so we can work with you to get you the best deal possible.

Also, there is $359 billion worth of fixed rate loans which are due to expire this year. If you have one of these loans where your current fixed rate is around the 2% mark, you will be looking at a rate of 5%+ once it expires.

It’s important to start planning months ahead for this and Allan Hall Finance can help you through this transition by letting you know what your increased repayments will look like. For example, if you have a $700,000 loan, your repayments could increase by $1,170 per month post the fixed rate.

Allan Hall Finance will also explore the market to make sure you are getting the best deal possible post the fixed rate expiring.

By exploring the market for you, below is an example of what you could potentially save by simply engaging Allan Hall Finance to work for you to find a better deal.

Loan AmountCurrent Monthly Repayments0.50% Discount = Yearly Savings1% Discount = Yearly Savings
$500,000$2,918$1,872$3,708
$1,000,000$5,836$3,756$7,428
$1,500,000$8,754$5,640$11,148
$2,000,000$11,672$7,524$14,868
$2,500,000$14,590$9,408$18,576
$3,000,000$17,508$11,292$22,296
$4,000,000$23,343$15,058$29,724

Lenders are also offering cashbacks between $2,000 – $5,000 to refinance

* Current monthly repayment amount is based on an Owner Occupied variable rate of 5.75% and savings are based on a 30-year loan term. T&Cs and lender approval apply

There are also some attractive cashback offers which some lenders are offering to get new business.

To speak with a member of the team from Allan Hall Finance, please get in contact.

CONTACT ALLAN HALL FINANCE

invoice

Understanding eInvoicing

Posted on | by Allan Hall

Change can be hard, particularly when things seem to be working and the need to do things differently isn’t obvious.

Perhaps you’ve found this when it comes to invoicing for your business.

You may be used to sending PDF invoices via email and manually entering the invoices you receive into your accounting software. You may even be used to dealing with regular problems with invoicing, like late, lost or compromised invoices or mistakes.

If you think this is all the normal cost of running a business — it doesn’t have to be!

Switching to eInvoicing will help you reduce manual data entry, because eInvoices automatically appear in your business software, ready to be checked and paid.

While getting started with eInvoicing can seem daunting, it’s probably much easier than you think.

Deputy Commissioner for Small Business Deb Jenkins presents a new series of short videos about eInvoicing to help you out. They help explain how eInvoicing can benefit your business by helping you save time and money.

eInvoicing doesn’t give the ATO access to your invoice data. It’s not a compliance measure; it aims to reduce your admin, boost your cash flow and give you more time to focus on what matters most.

eInvoicing products and services are becoming more available over time. More than 16,500 Australian businesses are adopting it, including well-known and large Australian companies and federal and state governments.

There has never been a better time to get started. Talk to your adviser or business software provider today to find out about making the change.

CONTACT ALLAN HALL

public holiday australia

One-off Public Holiday on 22 September 2022

Posted on | by Allan Hall

Key areas for employers to consider

Thursday 22 September 2022 has been declared a one-off public holiday for the National Day of Mourning for Queen Elizabeth II.

Many of our clients have voiced concerns regarding the impact of this decision on their business, particularly in relation to an unexpected loss of trade, staff rostering, additional overtime payment costs, and reduced cash flow and profits.

Key areas for employers to consider

1. Open for trade – normal public holiday rules and entitlements will apply:

  • Trading rules: Employers who decide to trade on the public holiday must abide by the public holiday trading rules set out by the applicable state/territory government. Further information regarding the public holidays in your state or territory, can be found here: National Day of Mourning and other upcoming public holidays – Fair Work Ombudsman
  • Penalty rates and other award requirements: Employers who choose to remain open on the public holiday are obligated to pay the penalty rates set out in the applicable modern award or enterprise agreement. Other obligations may also apply in relation to the public holiday and your employees. Employers are encouraged to check the applicable modern award/s or enterprise agreement for the current penalty rates and other requirements. Should you need support, our experienced HR Consultants at Allan Hall HR are available to help.

2. Closed for trade:

Permanent employees who would usually work on 22 September are entitled to take the day off, and will be paid their base pay rate for the ordinary hours they would have otherwise worked on that day. The base rate of pay does not include:

  • Incentive based payments
  • Bonuses
  • Loadings
  • Monetary allowances
  • Over time
  • Penalty rates

Employers cannot change an employee’s days/hours to deliberately avoid this payment. Full-time and part-time employees have the right to be absent from work on public holidays, or to be paid the appropriate penalty rates under the applicable award or industrial instrument.

3. Staff scheduling changes:

  • Casual workforce: Employers may need to consider whether they will reduce their casual workforce to save costs or increase their casual workforce to meet an increased demand. Make note of any rostering requirements as per your company policy.
  • Notice regarding a change in roster: An applicable award or industrial instrument may contain requirements in relation to the period of notice required to be given by an employer to change an employee’s roster.

4. Changes to payroll:

  • If payroll is scheduled for 22 September, employers will need to consider delays in bank transfer of wages and whether they may need to move the pay date forward.
  • If an employee already has an annual leave day scheduled on Thursday 22nd, this will now need to be treated as a public holiday for payroll and leave accrual purposes.

Contact us

Our experienced HR Consultants are available to support you with any employee-related questions. Please get in touch with us today on 1300 675 393 or at [email protected].

inflation/stocks

How businesses with accurate data insights are surviving inflation

Posted on | by Allan Hall

Article by SmartCompany: The Great Data Divide

How SMEs with accurate data insights are surviving the inflationary cycle

Key points

  • Real-time data is more accessible to small and medium businesses than ever before
  • It’s allowing a generation of business owners who’ve had to rely on experience and gut feel to transform their businesses into data-driven operations and grow their revenues and margins in the face of difficult economic headwinds

Regardless of industry, businesses can be divided into haves and have nots by the accuracy and recency of their data. For those running on gut feel, or how they’ve always done it, a perilous combination of economic drivers could push them to the wall.

With every news story headline, the outlook seems to get more challenging for SMEs. With supply chains stretched, prices rising and skilled employees impossible to find, there are pressures across every single facet of business.

Unfortunately, if you believe the forecasts — it’s likely to stay that way for a while yet. It seems that business owners are confronted with a never-ending set of challenges, and to make money in the current climate, good data, far more than good luck, is required.

In the current environment, and for a long while into the future, the divide between those who have data and those who don’t, is akin to a forecast about who will (and won’t) thrive, or even survive. While big data remains the province of large corporates and governments, real-time data is more accessible to SMEs than ever before.

This article also references the Xero Small Business Insights Report findings for July 2022. 

Read the full article here »

At Allan Hall we’re experts in Xero – online accounting software that’s easy to use. Find out more about Xero here or drop us a line to get started. A better way to work – together with us, share access to your business numbers so everyone is up to speed. Xero accounting software lets you work anywhere.

CONTACT ALLAN HALL

Parliament House

Federal Budget 2022-2023

Posted on | by Allan Hall

Tax and Superannuation Overview

The Federal Treasurer, Mr Josh Frydenberg, handed down the 2022–23 Federal Budget at 7:30pm (AEDT) on 29 March 2022.

In an economy emerging from the pandemic, the Treasurer has confirmed an unemployment rate of 4% and an expected budget deficit of $78 billion for 2022–23.

As international uncertainties add pressure to the cost of living, key measures provide cost of living relief in the form of an increased Low and Middle Income Tax Offset, a one-off $250 payment for welfare recipients and pensioners and a 6-month fuel excise relief.

Other measures seek to promote innovation, with expanded “patent box” tax concessions proposed, and provide tax incentives for small business to invest in the skills of their employees. A lower GDP uplift rate for PAYG and GST instalments has also been proposed to support cash flows of small and medium businesses.

To read our comprehensive Budget report outlining the changes to taxation and accounting, please click below:

2022-2023 BUDGET REPORT

The highlights are set out below:

Business

  • Additional state and territory COVID-19 business support grant programs will be eligible for tax treatment as non-assessable non-exempt income until 30 June 2022.
  • Small and medium businesses will be able to deduct an additional 20% of expenditure incurred on external training courses provided to their employees.
  • Small and medium businesses will be able to deduct an additional 20% of eligible expenditure supporting digital adoption.
  • The Boosting Apprenticeship Commencements wage subsidy will be extended by 3 months.
  • Concessional tax treatment will apply from 1 July 2022 for primary producers selling Australian Carbon Credit Units and biodiversity certificates.
  • Access to employee share schemes in unlisted companies will be expanded.
  • The PAYG instalment system is set for a structural overhaul with a set GDP uplift of 2% to apply for the 2022–23 income year.
  • Additional funding will be provided to further reform insolvency arrangements, including the insolvent trading “safe harbour”.
  • Business registry fees will be streamlined over 3 years from 2023–24.
  • Wholly owned Australian incorporated subsidiaries of the Future Fund Board of Guardians will be exempt from corporate income tax.

Increased deduction for small business external training expenditure

Small and medium businesses will be able to deduct an additional 20% of expenditure incurred on external training courses provided to their employees.

The additional deduction will apply for businesses with aggregated turnover of less than $50 million. The external training course must be delivered by an Australian entity and provided to employees in Australia or online. In-house or on-the-job training and expenditure for persons other than employees will be excluded.

The measure will apply for eligible expenditure incurred from 7:30pm (AEDT) on 29 March 2022 (Budget night) until 30 June 2024. Where eligible expenditure is incurred before 1 July 2022, the additional deduction will be claimed in the tax return for the following income year.

Increased deductions for digital adoption by small businesses

Small and medium businesses will be able to deduct an additional 20% of eligible expenditure supporting digital adoption.

The additional deduction will apply for businesses with aggregated turnover of less than $50 million. Eligible expenditure will include the cost of depreciating assets and business expenses supporting digital adoption, such as portable payment devices, cyber security systems or subscriptions to cloud-based services. An annual cap of $100,000 will apply to expenditure eligible for the additional deduction.

The measure will apply for eligible expenditure incurred from 7:30pm (AEDT) on 29 March 2022 (Budget night) until 30 June 2023. Where eligible expenditure is incurred before 1 July 2022, the additional deduction will be claimed in the tax return for the following income year.

Apprenticeship wage subsidy extended

The Boosting Apprenticeship Commencements wage subsidy will be extended to support businesses and Group Training Organisations that take on new apprentices and trainees. The subsidy will now be available to 30 June 2022. This measure will provide for an additional 35,000 apprentices and trainees. Eligible businesses will be reimbursed up to 50% of an apprentice or trainee’s wages of up to $7,000 per quarter for 12 months.

Individuals

  • The low and middle income tax offset will be increased by $420 in the 2021–22 income year to ease the current cost of living pressures.
  • A one-off payment of $250 will be made to individuals who are currently in receipt of Australian government social security payments, including pensions, to ease cost of living pressures.
  • Additional funding will be provided over 5 years to support older Australians in the aged care sector with managing the impacts of the pandemic.
  • Costs of taking a COVID-19 test to attend a place of work will be tax deductible for individuals and exempt from fringe benefits tax from 1 July 2021.
  • A single Paid Parental Leave scheme of up to 20 weeks paid leave will replace the existing system of 2 separate payments.
  • CPI indexed Medicare levy low-income threshold amounts for singles, families, and seniors and pensioners for the 2021–22 year announced.
  • The number of guarantees under the Home Guarantee Scheme will be increased to 50,000 per year to assist homebuyers with lower deposits.

Superannuation

The 50% reduction of the superannuation minimum drawdown requirements for account-based pensions will be extended for an additional year.

Need help?

If you would like assistance to interpret these changes and how they may affect your individual circumstances or your business, please contact your Allan Hall Advisor on 02 9981 2300.

The full Budget papers are available at www.budget.gov.au and the Treasury ministers’ media releases are available at ministers.treasury.gov.au.

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11 facts about superannuation

11 Tax Facts About Superannuation

Posted on | by Allan Hall

Compared to other investment structures, super is widely considered to be one of the most tax-effective investment structures available from a wealth accumulation and cash flow generation perspective.

Although not a comprehensive list, below are 11 of the top tax facts about super.

Please note: Each tax fact isn’t covered in detail (only a brief snapshot is provided), other important considerations go with each. For example, it’s important to consider things such as contribution eligibility, and conditions of release. To discuss how any of the below may be relevant to your situation, talk to your Financial Adviser.

Super investment structure

Overview

When investing via super, it’s important to understand that there is an accumulation phase and a retirement phase. From a life stage perspective:

  • Accumulation phase generally coincides with the time in your life where contributions are being made to your super, and you are accumulating wealth via these contributions and investment earnings. Nearing retirement, some of us may commence a transition to retirement income stream (TRIS).
  • Retirement phase generally coincides with the time in your life where you are using the wealth you have accumulated to help fund your retirement lifestyle via either a retirement income stream, lump sum withdrawals, or a combination of both.

With the above in mind, from a tax perspective, the tax facts listed below are grouped according to their relevance to each phase. For example, the tax facts regarding contributions are underneath the title ‘Super (accumulation phase)’, as contributions can’t be made to a super account in retirement phase.

Super (accumulation phase)
  1. Investment earnings in your super. Investment income is generally subject to a maximum of 15% tax. And, capital gains on assets held for longer than 12 months receive a 1/3 (33%) tax discount, which effectively reduces the tax rate to 10%.
  2. Concessional (pre-tax) contributions to your super. The amount contributed is reduced by a tax of 15% (contributions tax). When considering salary sacrifice and personal deductible contributions (types of concessional contributions), this tax of 15% may be lower than your marginal tax rate. Please note:
    1. If you have income and concessional contributions totalling more than $250,000, you can pay an additional 15% tax (called Division 293 tax) on some or all of your concessional contributions.
    2. If you have adjusted taxable income of $37,000 or less, you may be eligible to receive the low-income super tax offset (up to $500).
    3. Making concessional contributions to pay for premiums for certain insurance held through super can reduce contributions tax.
  3. Non-concessional (after-tax) contributions to your super. The amount contributed isn’t reduced by a contributions tax. Please note:
    1. If you have total income less than $54,837, you may be eligible to receive the Government co-contribution (up to $500).
    2. If you make a spouse contribution (i.e. non-concessional contribution to your spouse’s super), you may be eligible to receive the spouse contribution tax offset (up to $540). The receiving spouse’s income must be less than $40,000.
  4. Insurance in your super. Your super fund trustee can generally claim the insurance premiums as a tax deduction, reducing the tax paid by your super fund trustee on your concessional contributions and super earnings. The tax saving is often rebated to your super account, effectively reducing the premium cost by 15%.
  5. Saving for a home deposit via your super. If you make voluntary contributions, you may be eligible to withdraw all or part of these contributions plus associated earnings for use as a deposit via the First Home Super Saver Scheme. Please note:
    1. The maximum amount that can be withdrawn is $15,000 of voluntary super contributions per financial year made since 1 July 2017 (up to a total of $30,000 across all years). The amount that can be withdrawn is 100% of eligible non-concessional contributions, 85% of eligible concessional contributions, plus 85% of associated earnings. Tax is payable on the associated earnings and concessional contributions portion of the withdrawal (taxed at marginal tax rates, including the Medicare Levy, less a 30% tax offset).
  6. Small business capital gains tax (CGT) concessions. If you are considering selling a small business or the assets it uses, you may be eligible for CGT concessions that help reduce the taxable capital gain associated with the sale, and build your super retirement nest egg in the process. Please note:
    1. You may be able to contribute amounts from the CGT 15-year asset exemption and retirement exemption to your super, without using your non-concessional contributions limits.
  7. Pension payments from your super. Pension payments from an accumulation phase transition to retirement income stream (TRIS) are generally tax-free if you are aged 60 or over. If you are under age 60, the taxable portion of pension payments is taxed at your marginal tax rate, less a 15% tax offset.

    Super (retirement phase)
  8. Investment earnings in your super. Investment income and capital gains are generally tax-exempt. Please note: The transfer balance cap, which is currently set at $1.6 million (indexed) per person, limits the amount of super benefits that can be transferred to retirement phase.
  9. Pension payments from your super. Pension payments received from a retirement income stream (eg account-based pension or retirement phase TRIS) will be tax-free to you if you are aged 60 or over at the time of receiving the pension payment.

    Super (accumulation or retirement phase)
  10. Lump sum withdrawals from your super. Any lump sum withdrawals made after 60 years of age are generally tax-free. If you make a lump sum withdrawal and you are aged between preservation age and 60, the taxable component of the lump sum is taxed as follows:
    1. The amount up to the low rate cap amount (currently $215,000) is tax-free.
    2. The amount above the low rate cap amount is taxed at 15% (plus the Medicare Levy).
  11. Passing away and your super:
    1. A death benefit lump sum paid to a nominated beneficiary who is a tax dependant is received entirely tax-free. If the beneficiary is a tax non-dependant, then any tax-free component is tax-free, but the taxable component is taxed at 15% (taxed element) or 30% (untaxed element), plus the Medicare Levy.
    2. Income payments from a reversionary death benefit income stream paid to a nominated reversionary beneficiary who is an eligible pension recipient dependant are received entirely tax-free if you or the reversionary beneficiary are aged 60 years or over at the time of your passing. If both you and the reversionary beneficiary are under 60 at the time of your passing, the pension payments from the reversionary death benefit income stream are taxed as follows:
      1. the tax-free component is tax-free, and
      2. the taxable (taxed element) component is taxed at marginal tax rate plus Medicare Levy, less 15% tax offset.

However, when the reversionary beneficiary turns 60, the pension payments from the reversionary death benefit income stream are tax-free.

Talk to us

Each tax fact outlined above isn’t covered in detail (only a brief snapshot is provided) and other important considerations go with each. For example, it’s important to consider things such as contribution eligibility, and conditions of release. To discuss how any of the 11 tax facts about superannuation may be relevant to your situation, give us a call. We would love to hear from you!

CONTACT US

General Advice Warning

The information contained on this website is general in nature and does not take into account your personal situation. You should consider whether the information is appropriate to your needs, and where appropriate, seek professional advice from a financial adviser.

Mark O’Connell, Robin Bell and Allan Hall Financial Planning Pty Ltd are Authorised Representatives of Consultum Financial Advisers Pty Ltd ABN 65 006 373 995 AFSL 230323.