It’s nearly here…the moment lots of you look forward to all year…tax time!

Having said that, there are many who detest having to lodge a tax return, but at the moment it is an obligation you have to the government…so I figure you might as well embrace it, and get the most out of the process that you can!

Of course The Tax Chic is here to make it as easy for you as possible – how good is that?

In preparation, here are some hot tips for you to consider as the end of the year approaches:

1. Where have you worked this year? Will you have more than one PAYG Payment Summary (Group Certificate) to collect?  If so, you might want to contact former or casual employers and ensure they have your correct mailing address so you receive your paperwork as soon as possible.
2. How many bank accounts do you have? Make sure you’ve got all of those details handy so you can account for any interest received at 30th June.  While the Tax Agent Portal that I have access to can provide a lot of this information, it certainly doesn’t hurt for you to have this information also.
3. What other investments do you have? Do you need to look up dividends or distributions received (most commercial investments have an area on their website you can access)? If you have a rental property, or more then one rental property, do you have all of the records for the year?
4. Have a good think about your deductions? Find your records and collate the information in a succinct format.
5. Don’t forget Centrelink – many payments received from Centrelink have taxation implications so be sure to log into your account and check your details.

Stay tuned for Part 2 later in the week…

Regards

Continuing on from our earlier post “Hot tips for business at EOFY Part 1“, here is Part 2!

Over the course of the two posts, I’ll be providing a total of 10 hot tips – if you implement two of these each week for the next five weeks, you’ll have everything sorted by mid-July…just be sure to prioritise the ones that NEED to happen before 30th June!

Today’s hot tips for business are:

1. Update your business and marketing plans…or create one if you don’t have one
2. Review your business structure to ensure it meets your needs, take a look at our previous series here
3. Have a look at your business and personal insurances – if you need help with this, contact me and I’ll send you a referral
4. Ensure you backup your files – both on your hard drive and to an external source such as an external hard drive or USB (and keep them safe)
5. Check you have the correct details of your employee – this will ensure your end of year payroll processing will run smoothly

Let me know how you go with these!

Regards

The EOFY is upon us…(that’s the end of financial year if you need another acronym to remember!)

While many of the things I’m about to mention should be on your radar throughout the year, the end of the financial year is often an opportune time to review these items.

I especially encourage those of you who are new in business to take note of the following, and I wish you well with your first EOFY!

Today’s hot tips for business are:

1. Make sure your records are up to date and all of your Business Activity Statements (BAS) and Instalment Activity Statements (IAS) have been lodged
2. Ensure you can locate all of your paperwork to claim a tax deduction, you might also want to revisit our previous posts regarding deductions here and here
3. If you haven’t already, engage the services of a Registered Tax Agent (yes, The Tax Chic is a Registered Tax Agent!)
4. Be wary of scams…the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and banks will never ask for personal information in an e-mail, so please take care!
5. Check your finances – review the terms of your overdraft and loans to ensure they still meet your needs

Stay tuned for more hot tips for business at EOFY later in the week!

Regards

As a business owner, do many of you bother to invest in your education?  Do you make it a priority? Or do you simply not find the time?

Many of us have had to do some type of formal training to get to where we are today…and it’s no secret that some of us have professional membership requirements of continuing professional education that must be satisfied – but if you aren’t required to do any further education…do you bother?

If you do get out and partake in some education and training, does it have a direct link to your occupation, or do you look for education tools regarding your role as a business manager or ways to improve your business that might not be your speciality?

I’m an information junkie…I’m happy to listen to anyone who is an expert in a field I am not an expert in, in the hope that I can tap into the way their brain works and see if I might be able to implement a piece of their knowledge in my business!

Due to my junkie status, I attended an education event in Melbourne over the weekend…it was focussed on the use of technology and marketing in small businesses and I found I learnt a lot and actually gained some confidence to try a few different tools that I might have otherwise put in the “too hard basket”!

The bonus, especially at the tax planning stage of the year, is that the cost of the event and my associated travel expenses, as well as the cost of any initiatives I decide to implement are all tax deductible!

Let me know your thoughts on investing in your education…

Regards