JobKeeper 2.0 - The Alternative Test

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JobKeeper 2.0 - The Alternative Test

The legislative instrument confirms that the updated versions of the alternative tests should be used in determining whether an entity passes the original decline in turnover test for JobKeeper fortnights starting on or after 28 September 2020 as well as determining whether an entity passes the new additional decline in turnover tests to access the JobKeeper extension from 28 September onwards.

If an entity has already passed the original decline in turnover test for a JobKeeper fortnight before 28 September 2020 then there is no need to apply the original test again. 

The updated alternative tests released by the Commissioner of Taxation are broadly similar to the alternative tests that were released in connection with the original decline in turnover test. However, there are some key differences.


These have just been released, so we are putting together a framework to apply the tests.

We're here to help you if you need support to apply the alternative tests. Just contact our office on 03 5911 7000 for assistance.


15 May '19

Whats the difference between an accountant bookkeeper and tax agent

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The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is closing in fast on everyone who doesn't properly declare their income and pay the correct amount of tax.

 As your Tax Accountants, we want to help you be aware of what the ATO is doing and how you can protect yourself.


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28 Apr '19

THINKING OF SELLING YOUR BUSINESS?

Do not sell without first gaining professional advice

For the majority of small to medium sized business owners, the value of your business is your biggest asset, and very likely, your retirement fund.

Upon sale of your business it is critical you receive the maximum available net proceeds. However, many taxpayers miss this once in a lifetime chance through poor transactions planning and the holding of assets in inappropriate structures. Just because you consider yourself a small business does not mean you have automatic access to all available CGT concessions.

 

While the rules are complex, if the correct planning is in place, a husband and wife team can receive up to $4 million tax free after the sale of their business. (If you’ve run your business for at least 15 years, all the sale proceeds might be tax free!)


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24 Apr '19

Best way to finance your business assets

Are you thinking of acquiring, upgrading or replacing capital assets that will be used in running your business?


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What every employer needs to know about fringe benefits

The Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) year ended. With the ever increase budget deficits, the ATO will be reviewing whether all employers who should be paying FBT are, and that they are paying the right amount.

To help you meet your fringe benefits obligations, we’ve put together a list of essentials every employer needs to know about FBT and review every year, such as:  

  • Should I be registered for FBT?
  • What information do I need to give my accountant?
  • What is exempt from FBT?
  • How can I reduce my FBT liability?
  • Are the benefits I pay my employees minor and infrequent?
  • Do I need to review our salary sacrifice agreements?


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12 Apr '19

Buying a home on behalf of a family member

How to help a family member who can’t get finance get onto the property ladder without incurring capital gains tax.


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26 Mar '19

Do you have a car owned by the Business

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20 Mar '19

Should I transfer my business premises to my SMSF?

One of the advantages of self-managed super funds (SMSFs) is the ability to acquire a business real property (BRP), such as a commercial property, a shop or even a farm through your SMSF.


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15 Mar '19

Exit Strategy: Why a Succession Plan Is Important for your Business and your Family

You started your business with the intention of making it a success yet your long-term vision most likely does not take into account what will happen to your business when you retire or in the event you should not be able to continue working.


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5 Mar '19

Don't just talk about it, do it! Business Execution The Key to Getting Ahead

Being successful in business demands you have certain essential components in place. Such as a durable business model. A solid plan of action. Sound financial management and bookkeeping.


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Tax Lodgement Due date is fast approaching!

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8 Feb '19

Do you run a business in the building and construction industry?

The ATO has just announced that it will begin contacting businesses in the building and construction industry who have not lodged their Taxable Payments Annual Report for the 2018 and prior financial years. What is it? Do you need to report? What information should you report? What if you haven't lodged your report? We answer these questions and more.


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6 Feb '19

You get what you pay for

With free advice, you often get what you pay for.  It’s been a long time since I’ve been surprised by clients or colleagues telling me about the latest tip that’s shared around the barbeque.  What strikes me is the blind faith put in these comments.


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25 Jan '19

How to call in your Debts

One of the most effective ways to deal with a cash flow crisis is to call in your debts. Only downside is this typically involves picking up the phone and speaking with your debtors in person.


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Is your Business Sailing Along Without A Map, Drifting?

For many, the word ‘budget’ is about as appealing as the word ‘diet’. It seems to imply what you will go without, rather than what you will achieve.

To a successful business owner, however, the word ‘budget’ has a very different meaning.


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9 Jan '19

Is Your Company Structured to Save Taxes

As an accountant, we wear many hats when dealing with clients. Sometimes we’re accountants, sometimes advisors, sometimes a confidante, and sometimes we’re just another parent of a kid on your child’s soccer team.


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9 Oct '18

Is Your Business Adequately Covered? What else could go wrong and should you be considering

A new financial year is a bit like “new year’s eve”, a time to make those New Year’s resolutions. Insurance is not typically first and foremost in your mind when you’re dealing with the day-to-day running of your business.


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1 Sep '18

Why my kids own a Piece of Xero

Here it is, my blog on why I purchased $5,000 on Xero shares for each of my two children. For over 6 months I have been contemplating whether this experience would be beneficial to anyone if I shared it. I kept thinking, “Who would want to read it?” and “What would I say?” and “Would anyone care?” Well, here I sit on my way back from seeing the Grand Canyon whilst holidaying in the USA with the family. I have time, so I pulled out my iPad and started to write. So, here it is. The story of why I purchased those Xero shares.


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25 Jul '18

Should I set-up a self-managed super fund? And how?

There has been a lot in the news lately regarding self-managed super funds (SMSF’s) from the Royal Commission into financial planning, and the banks tightening up on lending to SMSF’s some may wonder if it is all still worth it or a viable option. Yes absolutely! However, some of these changes are there to protect members of super funds because a SMSF may not be the most appropriate for everyone.


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17 Jul '18

How to Plan for A Healthy Cash Flow

I always say, “cash is king” you can have a great idea, make lots of sales but if no-one is paying how can continue to pay your bills?


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9 May '18

Are travel deductions for rental properties still available in 2018

In short, the answer to the above question is yes if actively letting residential rental properties is your business and that you have pursued the said business post 1 July 2017. In addition, Companies, superannuation funds (not SMSFs, however), public unit trusts, and managed investment trusts are still allowed to claim travel deductions for any costs related to the upkeep and management of their residential rental properties.


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19 Jan '18

Take a note - here are the key dates you need to be aware of

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8 Dec '17

Personal Finance Planning with Xero

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21 Nov '17

Tracking your Profit

As a business owner facing down the end of another financial year, you’re likely paying more attention to those all-important profit and loss margins.


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15 Nov '17

Personal Budgeting

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14 Nov '17

Got an Online MyGov Account?

Got An Online MyGov Account? Be Sure To Read This The Online MyGov has caused major hassles for tax agents so we felt it was important to let you know. Over the past year, the ATO has made several changes to the way in which it communicates with tax payers and their delegated tax agents.


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24 Oct '17

Doing Business In The Cloud

As Xero’s Victorian Accounting Firm partner of the Year the team at SMART Business Solutions LOVE Xero and everything CLOUD.


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17 Oct '17

Guidelines for guarding your new business name

Picking the right name for your business or company is an important aspect of beginning a new venture or revamping your current one.


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10 Oct '17

Crowd Funding

Crowd funding: a revolutionary new way to back your business start up So you have an amazing new business, but no access to the capital you’ll need to successfully launch it? If this is the case, you have several options to secure funding. 


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20 Sep '17

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7 Sep '17

How to thrive with Amazon in Aussie Retail

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8 Aug '17

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A healthy cash flow is vital to keeping your business operating optimally. Should a large percentage of your customer's delay, their payments or – in the worst-case scenario – refuse to pay you, your business could be placed in a very difficult position.


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Are you financially literate? Is your financial future planned?

More and more often in the news today we read about the epidemic that is financial illiteracy running rampant amongst the younger generation.  We lament the lack of financial education they’ve grown up with and wonder how they will ever survive in this world of fragile economies, overpriced real estate and cheap debt.


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22 Jun '17

Payment Summaries

With Xero, this process becomes so easy, it’s just a click of a button!  However, it is important not to forget the vital steps that should be taken before pressing the publish button!


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Many proposals from budget night will also impact your future tax position. So take a read through and see which measures can potentially benefit your business.


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BAS Time has just got a lot easier with the ATO's new "Simpler BAS" plus with BAS time again- tips & common errors

Do you remember when our own team was part of the Australian Governments Board of Taxation Review into the Tax impediments for small business that was commissioned by the then Minister for Small Business, Bruce Billson? One of the key recommendations from the review was to reduce the BAS reporting requirements down to what the ATO actually need or use.


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16 May '17

Does your company need a shareholders agreement?

Is there an Agreement in place?

The concept of a shareholders' agreement is similar to that of a marriage contract except it involves all the shareholders of a corporation and their relationship with the company and each other.


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10 May '17

The 2017/18 Federal Budget

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28 Apr '17

How to Determine What's Driving Your Business

While creating a driverless vehicle may be a distinct possibility in our near future, a business without people to guide and shape it is not a realistic proposition.


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18 Apr '17

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Hitting that brick wall? Are you overwhelmed by the number of different tasks you’re trying to manage in your business? Many businesses do not have absolute clarity around their team’s defined roles and responsibilities.  


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14 Apr '17

Contractors or Employees?

Contractor or employee? Follow these guidelines to stay on the right side of the ATO.

Taking on a contractor can be the ideal solution to tackling a particular project or assignment that demands specialised skills or capabilities your regular employees do not have. Possibly you just require an extra pair of hands, for a limited period, to ensure you keep your company’s workflow on track? Or perhaps you’re keen to bypass the formal recruitment process and its incumbent employee obligations?


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22 Mar '17

Have you caught the Entrepreneurial Bug? Look out, it’s contagious, but here is the cure

With the Government’s announcement of the New Start-up investment tax incentives introduced to Parliament this week we may see more of us catch the contagious ‘entrepreneurial bug’. Guided by your never resting spirit you have taken a leap of faith and now find yourself facing a daunting tsunami of challenges. So while these incentives are considered the 'world's most generous', starting a business can be a daunting task. Many will struggle to succeed because of mistakes made during the initial start-up phase. The following are some common pitfalls to avoid when starting a business


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14 Mar '17

10 Reasons to switch to cloud computing

Don’t be left up in the air by traditional IT solutions. Check out our top 10 advantages for small businesses switching to cloud computing.


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20 Jan '17

Business Planning Service

Success is about planning.  We want to help you achieve success.

Our Business Development offerings are practical and tangible services that help to create long term value.  Business Planning is a great starting point.


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13 Jan '17

2017 FINTECH Business Awards

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10 Jan '17

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If you discovered a business owner was operating without a set budget, you’d probably think he/she was incompetent or not taking his/her financial obligations seriously. Still, many households don’t have a budget in place.


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23 Aug '16

Xerocon San Francisco

What's happening in the Xero space? Here is what we uncovered during Xerocon San Francisco.

Have you noticed that your Xero has gone offline for an hour or two in the last couple of weeks? This is because Xero is moving to a new platform, one that will allow them to develop further the technology that they include within their software.


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27 Jul '16

What are the Red flags that can Trigger a Tax Audit

The past financial year has seen a marked increase in the number of Tax Audits with the Australian Taxation Office’s (ATO) notable inspection of business transactions across the board.


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13 Jul '16

Fad or Fact- Does Social Media Really Matter for Business Owners

You might view Twitter and Facebook as frivolous time-wasters that have no place in the business arena. Five years ago I was my told by a friend, “your business needs a Facebook page”.


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23 Jun '16

NEW Minimum Wage Effective 1 July 2016

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