News

The tax office has issued a list of the most common errors it sees when businesses are reporting their GST, in a bid to streamline the process for business leaders.

According to the ATO, the most common GST reporting errors are:

• Transposition and calculation errors
• Not having tax invoices  not having records (i.e. tax invoices) in order to claim GST credits. Invoices are required as proof of all business purchases that cost more than $82.50 (inclusive of GST).
• Not knowing what is actually GST applicable Not all suppliers charge GST. See more here  
• Accounting system errors  The set-up of your accounting system is critical to getting your BAS right.
• Not correcting identified mistakes After reviewing your GST transactions, you may discover an error or discrepancy with your reported GST. If this occurs, the tax office encourages you to correct it.

Parliament has passed legislation to extend STP reporting to all employers from 1 July 2019. The Treasury Laws Amendment (2018 Measures No. 4) Bill 2018 is yet to receive Royal Assent.

Single Touch payroll is a new ATO reporting requirement.  Under STP each payroll will be reported to the ATO when it’s processed.  Your employees will receive payslips through my.gov and you will not have to issue Annual Payment Summaries.  Once you’ve closed your last payroll for the year you will notify the ATO through your payroll and your employees will receive their annual payroll detail through their my.gov.

What does that mean for employers:

You will need to transition to Single Touch Payroll within the next few months.  The process involves:

• Reviewing your current payroll set-up to make sure it’s accurate and complete
• Assigning payroll categories (MYOB)
• Notifying the ATO of your software ID and linking your software to the ATO
• Start reporting through STP

At this time of year, we are often asked questions about what can and cant be claimed, staff parties, customer gifts, etc. It’s often complicated and can some expenditure can depend on your FBT status.

Here are some details from the tax office.

Work Christmas Parties and Gifts

Fringe benefits tax and Christmas parties

Fringe benefits tax (FBT) and entertainment for small business