There can be some solid reasons to consider having the ownership of your business premises in the name of your self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF). To start with, if your business is travelling along steadily, it will provide a steady source of rental income for the SMSF and capital growth. It may also provide a level...

End of year Christmas celebrations are a chance to get everyone together for some fun as well as thanking the team for a job well done. Business owners may have the option to unlock the bar fridge for employees, but should make sure they are not the ones stuck with the tax hangover. As with...

The concept of a “going concern” exemption for the purposes of the goods and services tax (GST) can still cause confusion when businesses are sold, despite the fact the tax has been in place for more than a decade. A “going concern” refers to an enterprise’s ability to continue trading. The sale of a business...

If you are a company director or an associate of a director, you are likely to be affected by changes to the Personal Liability for Corporate Fault Reform Bill 2012 which reduced the scope for companies to engage in fraudulent activity or evade their employees’ entitlements. The changes not only render company directors personally liable...

It is unlikely to be an aspiration for any individual or business owner, but the words “going broke” can still have unfortunate resonance — even though there are many instances where “fault” lies with circumstance rather than personal or even a business’s shortfall. But hitting the wall does not necessarily mean there can be no...

Every year, the Tax Office issues a comprehensive statistical report based on the most complete set of data at its disposal. Its most recent Taxation Statistics is compiled from tax return information from 2009-10 as well as FBT, GST and activity statement data from the 2010-11 year.  One item of data listed in Taxation Statistics,...

The strategy of transferring ownership of a commercial property to the business owner’s self managed superannuation fund (SMSF) has, at first glance, several advantages for both the business concerned and also for the members of the SMSF. For starters, all lease payments made by the business don’t end up in the pocket of a third-party...

Medium-sized businesses have to change their tax patterns One of the major changes to have come from the latest “Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook” is a proposal for medium sized businesses (that is, those with turnover of $20 million or more) to pay their tax in monthly, instead of quarterly, instalments. The government implemented the...

Capital gains tax (CGT) considerations for small businesses can emerge in regard to all manner of otherwise unremarkable events, including but not limited to the “CGT triggers” list below. Business owners should keep CGT in the back of their mind when considering a range of transactions — there are activities and transactions that may not...

Anecdotal evidence in the aftermath of the Trio/Astarra scam, where hundreds of Australians were devastated by the loss of their retirement savings when they deposited them into Trio Capital, suggests more self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF) trustees may be considering converting into small APRA funds (SAFs). This may be for a number of reasons including more...