Single Touch Payroll

From 1 July 2018, employers with more than 20 employees will need to start reporting to the ATO using Single Touch Payroll.  Employers will need to report, salary, wages, PAYG withholding and superannuation to the ATO at the time you pay your employees.

On 1 April 2018 employers need to take a headcount of your employees.  You do not need to advise the ATO of the number of employees as at 1 April 2018, this is just a method of determining whether your business will be required to report under Single Touch Payroll Reporting.  If you have more than 20 employees as at 1 April 2018, you will be required to use Single Touch Payroll Reporting from 1 July 2018.  Once you start reporting using Single Touch Payroll Reporting, you will continue to report even if your employee numbers drop below 20.  Most software systems should be capable of enabling you to report the pay information to the ATO using Single Touch Payroll.

 

What you need to do

  • If you have more than 20 employees as at 1 April 2018, check the ability of your software to report your pay information to the ATO every pay period.  Review your available options if your current software does not support Single Touch Payroll Reporting.

 

Available resources

The ATO have released resources for employers and are currently running free webinars to assist employers with their compliance:

Please do not hesitate to contact us on (07) 56656469 if you would like assistance with understanding your obligations under Single Touch Payroll Reporting.

DISCLAIMER: The information in this article is general in nature and is not a substitute for professional advice.  Accordingly, neither TJN Accountants nor any member or employee of TJN Accountants accepts any responsibility for any loss, however caused, as a result of reliance on this general information.  We recommend that our formal advice be sought before acting in any of the areas.  The article is issued as a helpful guide to clients and for their private information.  Therefore it should be regarded as confidential and not be made available to any person without our consent,

Buying and selling bitcoin?

With the price of 1 bitcoin reaching US$10,000 this week, it is certainly a hot topic in investment circles.

We have been asked by a number of people about the tax implications of investing in cryptocurrencies, like bitcoin.

There are many different ways in which you can acquire and utilise bitcoin which will give rise to differing tax implications.

 

Bitcoin received in exchange for goods and services

If your business receives bitcoin as payment for your goods or services, the receipt of the bitcoin is ordinary income for your business (and taxed as ordinary income).

 

Bitcoin used to purchase personal use assets

If you purchased A$10,000 worth of bitcoin, and you use this bitcoin to purchase personal use assets, any gain or loss on the bitcoin is disregarded for income tax purposes.

 

Bitcoin used for personal investment

Some people are investing in bitcoin for the purpose of deriving a gain when bitcoin increases in value.  In this situation, any resulting realised gain may be taxed as ordinary income or as a capital gain, depending on the circumstances.  This means, the gain is only taxable when the bitcoin is either sold or exchanged for another currency.

Tax Determination 2014/26 (“TD 2014/26”) confirms that a bitcoin is a CGT asset.  It also considers whether the purchase and sale of bitcoin would be treated as ordinary income or as a capital gain for tax purposes.

 

Tax on ordinary income vs Tax on capital gain

If the gain on disposing of your bitcoin is taxed as ordinary income, it will be added to your other income (salary, interest, dividends etc) and taxed at your marginal tax rates.  The gain will not be eligible for the 50% CGT discount and cannot be offset against any capital losses.  However, if you make a loss on the bitcoin, it can be offset against your other income (salary, interest, dividends etc).

Conversely, if the gain is taxed as a capital gain, it may be eligible for a 50% discount if the bitcoin has been held for more than 12 months.  It may be reduced by any current year or carried forward capital losses.  However, if it is regarded as a capital transaction, any losses will can only be offset against current or future capital gains.

Whether the transaction is ordinary income or a capital gain will depend on the facts and circumstances of each case. 

 

Your bitcoin profit – ordinary income (trader) or capital gain (investor)?

Paragraph 24 of TD 2014/26 suggests the following facts may indicate the transaction is capital in nature:

 A small amount of bitcoin was acquired as a hobby;

  • After two years the taxpayer decides to sell the bitcoin for a small profit.

The relevant factors from the example appear to be the amount invested, the time invested and the return on the investment.

Paragraph 22 of the determination sets out that the Commissioner considers that a gain on the sale of bitcoin will be ordinary income where the taxpayer entered into the transaction for the purpose of making a gain and the transaction entered into was a commercial transaction. 

Overall, the following factors will be considered when determining whether the transaction will be taxed as ordinary income or as a capital gain:

  • The amount of money invested;

  • The length of time the money was invested;

  • The original purpose of the investment;

  • The amount of profit derived on the sale;

  • Whether the bitcoin had any other use.

 

Exchanging bitcoin for another cryptocurrency

If you trade your bitcoin for another cryptocurrency, you are disposing of your bitcoin (which will be subject to Australian tax) and acquiring the new currency.

 

Summary

As you can see, the tax treatment of bitcoin transactions vary depending on the purpose and nature of each transaction.  It is important that you seek professional advice in relation to the tax implications before entering into any transactions. 

 

If you would like to discuss the tax implications of bitcoin, please call us on (07) 56656469.

DISCLAIMER: The information in this article is general in nature and is not a substitute for professional advice.  Accordingly, neither TJN Accountants nor any member or employee of TJN Accountants accepts any responsibility for any loss, however caused, as a result of reliance on this general information.  We recommend that our formal advice be sought before acting in any of the areas.  The article is issued as a helpful guide to clients and for their private information.  Therefore it should be regarded as confidential and not be made available to any person without our consent,

Employers – how are you paying your super guarantee contributions?

Presently, employers with 19 or fewer employees or an annual turnover of less than $10 million can use the free Small Business Superannuation Clearing House (SBSCH) to pay their employees’ superannuation guarantee contributions. Employers can make one single payment to the SBSCH. The SBSCH will then distribute this payment to the relevant superannuation funds.

From early 2018, access to the SBSCH will be transferred to the ATO’s Business Portal. From this point, the SBSCH will no longer be accessible through its current website using your user ID and password.

If you do not have access to the Business Portal (and do not wish to setup access), we can still access the SBSCH on your behalf through our Tax Agent Portal.

It is important that you are aware of your options once the current method of accessing the SBSCH ceases in 2018.

The ATO are running a free webinar on Wednesday 29 November to give you more information about how to access the Business Portal and what services are available through the Business Portal. Click here to register for the webinar.

If you would like to discuss how these changes will impact on your business, please call us on (07) 56656469.

DISCLAIMER: The information in this article is general in nature and is not a substitute for professional advice.  Accordingly, neither TJN Accountants nor any member or employee of TJN Accountants accepts any responsibility for any loss, however caused, as a result of reliance on this general information.  We recommend that our formal advice be sought before acting in any of the areas.  The article is issued as a helpful guide to clients and for their private information.  Therefore it should be regarded as confidential and not be made available to any person without our consent,

Qld Government Grants – Improving your digital presence

On 27 September 2017, the Queensland Government announced Round 3 of their Small Business Digital Grants program.

The program will provide matched funding of up to $10,000 to eligible businesses for the purchase of hardware, software and services (such as digital coaching).

The digital technology or service must fall under one of the five priority areas:

  • Digital marketing and social media

  • Digital content (web pages, mobile apps, media)

  • Receiving payments or selling online

  • Specialised digital technology or software

  • Digital planning and advice/training

To be eligible, your business must:

  • Have fewer than 20 employees at the time of applying for the grant; and

  • Have an Australian Business Number and be registered for GST; and

  • Have a Queensland headquarters or significant Queensland-based operations.

Round 3 opened on 27 September 2017 and closes 24 October 2017.  For more information, please go to: https://www.business.qld.gov.au/business/support-tools-grants/grants/digital-grants

DISCLAIMER: The information in this article is general in nature and is not a substitute for professional advice.  Accordingly, neither TJN Accountants nor any member or employee of TJN Accountants accepts any responsibility for any loss, however caused, as a result of reliance on this general information.  We recommend that our formal advice be sought before acting in any of the areas.  The article is issued as a helpful guide to clients and for their private information.  Therefore it should be regarded as confidential and not be made available to any person without our consent,

Missing super?

On 21 September 2017, the ATO announced the latest figures on lost and unclaimed superannuation.

At 30 June 2017, there was almost $18 billion in lost and ATO-held superannuation accounts Australia-wide.

The ATO’s report also breaks down the lost super accounts by postcodes. TJN Accountants is located in Helensvale (postcode 4212). In Postcode 4212, there is a total of $17.8 million in lost and ATO-held superannuation accounts. Find out the amount of lost super for your postcode here.

A super account is considered “lost” when the fund loses contact with the member. By law, after a period of time, lost super accounts are transferred to the ATO and held as unclaimed super accounts.

People can lose contact with their super funds when they change jobs, move house or do not update their details with the fund. There are almost 2.3 million Australians with 3 or more super accounts. Multiple super accounts generally means multiple fees and charges.

The Assistant Commissioner Debbie Rawlings said the easiest way for people to keep track of their super and find lost super is to use the ATO online services through myGov. You can use myGov to track down lost super and transfer it to a fund of your choice.

Once you have linked your myGov account to the ATO online services, you can view all of your super account details (including any lost accounts) and you can choose to claim or transfer the super accounts online.

Please give us a call on (07) 56656469 if you want more information on finding your lost superannuation accounts.

DISCLAIMER: The information in this article is general in nature and is not a substitute for professional advice.  Accordingly, neither TJN Accountants nor any member or employee of TJN Accountants accepts any responsibility for any loss, however caused, as a result of reliance on this general information.  We recommend that our formal advice be sought before acting in any of the areas.  The article is issued as a helpful guide to clients and for their private information.  Therefore it should be regarded as confidential and not be made available to any person without our consent,

Personal superannuation contributions

If you are a trustee of a self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF), you must give the ATO written notice within 28 days if there is a change to any of the following:

  • the name of the fund
  • the address of the fund
  • details of the contact person for the fund
  • the membership of the fund
  • the trustees of the fund
  • the directors of the fund’s corporate trustee
  • the SMSF’s bank account details (as notified to the ATO)
  • the electronic service address for the fund.

Please contact us on (07) 56656469 if you would like assistance with notifying the ATO of any of these changes to your SMSF.

DISCLAIMER: The information in this article is general in nature and is not a substitute for professional advice.  Accordingly, neither TJN Accountants nor any member or employee of TJN Accountants accepts any responsibility for any loss, however caused, as a result of reliance on this general information.  We recommend that our formal advice be sought before acting in any of the areas.  The article is issued as a helpful guide to clients and for their private information.  Therefore it should be regarded as confidential and not be made available to any person without our consent,

Do you pay a car allowance to employees?

From 1 July 2015, under the cents per kilometre method, individual taxpayers can only claim a deduction of $0.66 per kilometre of work-related travel (up to 5,000km) in their individual tax returns.

Where employers reimburse their employees for their work-related travel, any reimbursement over $0.66 will be subject to tax in the employee’s tax return. Consequently, employers should withhold tax on any allowance paid to employees in excess of the $0.66 per kilometre.

DISCLAIMER: The information in this article is general in nature and is not a substitute for professional advice.  Accordingly, neither TJN Accountants nor any member or employee of TJN Accountants accepts any responsibility for any loss, however caused, as a result of reliance on this general information.  We recommend that our formal advice be sought before acting in any of the areas.  The article is issued as a helpful guide to clients and for their private information.  Therefore it should be regarded as confidential and not be made available to any person without our consent,

ASIC and ATO scam emails

As your appointed tax agent, all official ATO contact about your tax affairs should be with our office.

There have been recent cases of fake ATO emails containing malware with the potential to infect your computer systems and lock access to your own data. Please do not open any emails allegedly from the ATO (or links or attachments in such emails). Contact us for assistance.

Any telephone callers purporting to be ATO officials or ATO debt collection agencies should also be referred to us. Under no circumstances should you give any personal or financial information over the phone. Nor should you transfer any funds as a result of such contact.

There have also been cases of fake ASIC emails. In some cases, these request you to click on a link to renew your company. While the emails look legitimate, they have been confirmed as a scam.

Whenever you are in doubt about email or telephone contact, please contact us immediately to confirm the authenticity.

DISCLAIMER: The information in this article is general in nature and is not a substitute for professional advice.  Accordingly, neither TJN Accountants nor any member or employee of TJN Accountants accepts any responsibility for any loss, however caused, as a result of reliance on this general information.  We recommend that our formal advice be sought before acting in any of the areas.  The article is issued as a helpful guide to clients and for their private information.  Therefore it should be regarded as confidential and not be made available to any person without our consent,

Small business digital grant – $10,000

Round 2 of the Queensland Government’s digital grant will open on 8 March 2017.

It is a matched grant of up to $10,000 for eligible businesses to purchase hardware, software and services (eg. digital coaching).

The business must show that the digital technology/services will enhance the digital capabilities of their business and help them be more competitive and employ staff.

The digital technology/service must fall under one of four identified priority areas:

1. Content development (webpages, mobile apps, visual and audio media etc);

2. Receiving payments or selling online;

3. Specialised digital technology or software (business specific)

4. Digital planning, marketing strategy development, and training.

To be eligible, your business must:

* have fewer than 20 employees at the time of applying for the grant

* have an ABN and be registered for GST

* have a Queensland headquarters or significant Queensland-based operations

* have a turnover of $2 million or less in the last 12 calendar months.

Some of the areas NOT funded include:

* Fees for services provided by a related party

* Franchise fees or related costs

* Maintenance of existing digital technologies, including website hosting or maintenance

* SEO, Google AdWords, Facebook advertising or similar expenses

* Subscriptions, including could (software) services.

For more information, go to: https://www.business.qld.gov.au/starting-business/advice-support/grants/digital-grants

DISCLAIMER: The information in this article is general in nature and is not a substitute for professional advice.  Accordingly, neither TJN Accountants nor any member or employee of TJN Accountants accepts any responsibility for any loss, however caused, as a result of reliance on this general information.  We recommend that our formal advice be sought before acting in any of the areas.  The article is issued as a helpful guide to clients and for their private information.  Therefore it should be regarded as confidential and not be made available to any person without our consent,

Super changes – concessional contributions

Concessional contributions cap

Concessional superannuation contributions are contributions for which a tax deduction has been claimed.  Currently, the concessional contribution cap is $35,000 for people aged 49 and over and $30,000 for people aged 48 and under. 

From 1 July 2017, the concessional contribution cap will reduce to $25,000 to all taxpayers.

 

Unused concessional contribution cap

As outlined above, from 1 July 2017, the concessional cap for all taxpayers is $25,000.  From 1 July 2018, taxpayers with a superannuation balance of less than $500,000 can carry forward any unused concessional cap for up to 5 years.

 

10% test

Currently, in order to claim a tax deduction in their individual tax return for super contributions, an individual must be substantially self-employed (or substantially not employed).  This is determined using the 10% income test.

To satisfy the 10% rule, an individual’s employment income must be less than 10% of their total income (defined as assessable income + salary sacrificed contributions + reportable fringe benefits).

Essentially, individual super contribution deductions are currently limited to taxpayers that are self-employed or have a majority of their income from investments. 

From 1 July 2017, any individual taxpayer can claim a tax deduction for contributions to super regardless of their work circumstances (subject to the concessional contributions cap (above) and the work test (below)).

 

Work test

Currently, taxpayers aged 65 or over (but under 75) need to satisfy the work test before a contribution can be made into super on their behalf.  The work test is satisfied where a taxpayer is gainfully employed for at least 40 hours in a 30 consecutive day period in the financial year in which the contribution is made.

While there was a proposal that the work test be repealed, this proposal was not passed.  As such, the work test will remain in place.

Call us today on 56656469 if you would like to discuss how these changes may apply to you.

DISCLAIMER: The information in this article is general in nature and is not a substitute for professional advice.  Accordingly, neither TJN Accountants nor any member or employee of TJN Accountants accepts any responsibility for any loss, however caused, as a result of reliance on this general information.  We recommend that our formal advice be sought before acting in any of the areas.  The article is issued as a helpful guide to clients and for their private information.  Therefore it should be regarded as confidential and not be made available to any person without our consent,