Three tips for managing construction industry cashflow

  Owning a small business in the construction industry can be incredibly stressful. In addition to the long days and difficult working conditions, you have to worry about cash flow issues. It can take a long time to collect on payment from your clients or contractors who hired your business, and in the meantime you have to pay employees, cover fixed expenses, buy supplies and pay your own subcontractors. Here…  Read more

Early Warning Signs of Insolvency to Watch Out For

Running a business isn’t exactly a walk in the park. It is definitely hard work, but a rewarding journey at the same time and you can probably attest to this yourself. Sometimes, things also don’t go as planned and you may find your business under financial distress. Suddenly you find yourself falling behind on due dates, suppliers are chasing for payments, and your stress levels are skyrocketing. Regardless of the…  Read more

Financial Tips And Forecasting

  Good personal finance skills are important in life, but this seemingly simple concept can be difficult to master. Without having a good grasp of how to manage your money effectively, you run the risk of making financial mistakes that could significantly impact your life. Forecasting can help avoid money traps and help to manage your finances better. 1. Not all ‘tax effective’ investments are good investments. The term ‘tax…  Read more

Forecasting Made Simple

Sophisticated Forecast modeling used to be the domain of big Companies with big budgets. However with the evolution of cloud based software, forecast modeling has become economical even for small and medium sized businesses to use to run their business. Seeton Consulting using Futrli Forecasting Software can forecast for a business owner figures for past and present, and most importantly expected future figures by creating forecast items. Each customizable forecast…  Read more

Accounting Mistakes That Could Make Your Business Pay Too Much Tax

Many small business owners tend to handle their own accounting and bookkeeping, especially when they’ve just started out. However, keeping track of the tax and finance-side of the business– everything from income to expenses to tax compliance– can be overwhelming. Mistakes can happen quite easily and can have costly consequences to your business. Below are five of the most common DIY accounting errors that you should avoid. Unorganised Records It…  Read more

What Tax Deductions can I Claim?

The answer to one of the most frequent questions we get asked every year has been summarised by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) into the 3 Golden Rules for deductible expenses. You must have spent the money yourself , ie, paid for the expense, and weren’t reimbursed It must directly relate to earning your income You must have a record to prove it. Whilst rule 1 and 3 are relatively clear…  Read more

Loss Carry back provisions

  The omnibus tax bill passed in October 2020  contained the temporary loss carry-back provisions that will allow Corporate Tax Entities only to carry back tax losses from the 2019–20, 2020–21 or 2021–22 income years to offset against tax paid in a previous income year as far back as the 2018–19 income year. The tax refund will be limited by requiring that the amount carried back is not more than…  Read more

The worst business advice to follow

When you’re a small business owner, you get used to people giving you advice. Sometimes you seek out their insights while other times they share whether you want them to or not. While the advice is almost always well-intended, it’s not always good. In fact, sometimes it’s downright awful. Here are some tips that well-meaning people give to small business owners that definitely should not be followed. 1. Never turn…  Read more

Keeping JobKeeper fair – extension focus areas

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has released the areas they will be focusing on to ensure that JobKeeper applications are correct. JobKeeper eligibility and payment conditions have now changed. The ATO is continuing to maintain the integrity of the JobKeeper scheme through their compliance activities. Areas that will be monitored include businesses that: did not meet the decline in turnover test do not meet the wage condition for their employees…  Read more

Full Expensing of Depreciating Assets

  The date by which an entity must first use or install ready for use an asset acquired by 31 December 2020 in order to claim the existing instant asset write off (IAWO) 3 has been extended by six months to 30 June 2021. This extension does not change the requirement that the asset must be acquired by 31 December 2020. A new measure allows businesses with an aggregated turnover…  Read more

Personal Tax Cuts In Budget 2020

Australians to Receive Tax Cuts The Australian Government approved $17.8 billion in personal tax cuts, quickly pushing through measures announced last week to support the country’s economy. More than 11 million Australians and 1 million businesses will begin receiving tax relief within weeks after the measures have been approved. The Government will bring forward its planned tax cuts meaning millions of Australians will have more money in their pockets, potentially…  Read more

Federal Budget 2020: What it means for you

  The Federal Budget was released on Tuesday 6th October. This article has a good summary of the “Winners and Losers” of the Budget. You’ll also find a recap of the key points below. Key Points: This budget is based on economic assumptions including that there will be a COVID-19 vaccine rolled out by the end of 2021. Tax cuts for workers – more money in pockets for more Australians.…  Read more

Five Ways to Bring in More Cash for Your Business

  Now is the perfect time to evaluate your financial position and come up with innovative ways to add revenue streams and generate cash. Here are five ways you might consider to improve your cash inflow: 1. Evaluate your current company assets. Take a look at your assets, both fixed and human. Could you make slight pivots to create a new form of income? For instance, if you run a…  Read more

How Much Debt Can Your Business Take On?

During an economic downturn when business is slow, a cashflow boost in the form of debt might be necessary to maintain the smooth running of your business. While there are plenty of lending options to consider including government-backed funding schemes, you shouldn’t borrow what you can’t pay back. So the question is: How much debt is too much? This timely Forbes article teaches how to calculate three important metrics that will…  Read more

ATO Scam Alerts

SCAM ALERT The Australian Tax Office (ATO) is seeing a growing number of people making large payments for fake tax debts. Don’t get caught! These phone calls will tell you that you owe money and need to pay it straight away or you’ll be arrested. The scammer will try to keep you on the line until you pay, often by unusual methods such as bitcoin, pre-paid credit cards or gift…  Read more

JobKeeper Extension Bill

The JobKeeper Payments Amendment Bill was introduced in the House of Representatives on Wednesday 26th August. We appreciate your patience as we process these changes This Bill introduces the extension of the JobKeeper scheme that was announced last month. The proposed rate changes will see the current $1500 per fortnight payment drop to $1200 for full time workers. and $750 for those working less than 20 hours per week from…  Read more

Will JobKeeper end in September for you?

Since the government announced the $70-billion JobKeeper program to support businesses and their employees during the COVID-19 pandemic, many small- and medium-sized businesses and non-profit organisations heavily relied on this scheme to stay afloat. According to a recent survey by the Australian Institute of Company Directors on the impact of COVID-19, over 40% of the respondents reported reliance on JobKeeper payments. 47% of SMEs indicated that the JobKeeper Scheme had…  Read more

Job Keeper v.2 – A brief summary of changes

The Australian Government has announced cuts to payments under the JobKeeper and JobSeeker schemes but has extended their life spans. JobKeeper 1.0 will remain till 27 September 2020 and thereafter, JobKeeper 2.0 will continue for a further six months till 28 March 2021. The temporary JobSeeker coronavirus supplement will be extended to 31 December 2020. The changes to JobKeeper are: There will be two rates of JobKeeper payments for eligible…  Read more

Will your business be viable after September 2020!

  Around 900,000 businesses are now on JobKeeper, covering 3.3 million employees. Once this stimulus is turned off at the end of September 2020, a business has to rely solely on its own turnover to meet expenses and provide profits for its owners. Temporary insolvency relief and the resumption of deferred loan repayments will also start to kick in then. Creditors will also seek to recover debts, some of which…  Read more

Tax Time 2020 – ATO continued focus on Investment Properties

The ATO has advised it will continue to focus on rental deduction claims in tax time 2020. It doubled its in-depth audits last year after findings that nine out of 10 claims contained an error. The ATO has recognised that COVID-19, bushfires and floods have placed residential rental property owners in unforeseen circumstances, resulting in reduced rent, deferred payment plans and mortgage repayment deferrals. Rental income only needs to be…  Read more

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