In this Trimtax Update, we bring you all the latest tax news along with some other items that you may be interested in.

Tax planning

Now is the time to also think about doing tax planning.

With 75% of the income year business owners should turn their attention to planning for any taxes that may be payable after year-end. By doing some simple planning business owners can be provided with information to assist with cash flow forecasting and opportunities to take up focussed spending to reduce likely tax bills.

Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT)

The end of the FBT year has just passed (31 March) so it is important for employers providing non cash benefits to take action now to understand how FBT will apply to those benefits.

The ATO are targeting employers who provide motor vehicles and meal entertainment to employees.

A further understanding of how to meet FBT obligations and the record keeping requirements is also needed before the FBT return lodgment is due 21 May.

Please contact us for assistance in all FBT matters.

Company Tax Rate Changes

The ATO has updated the information on its website covering changes to the lower company tax rate and how to calculate franking credits.

For the 2017 year when lodging a company tax return, small businesses can use the lower 27.5% rate. However a company whose turnover exceeds $10m or more will use the 30% rate.

This means the maximum franking credit for a Small Business Entity (SBE) is 27.5%

Single Touch Payroll – time to prepare

Single Touch Payroll is a reporting change for employers.

It starts from 1 July 2018 for employers with 20 or more employees.

You will report payments such as salaries and wages, pay as you go (PAYG) withholding and superannuation information from your payroll solution each time you pay your employees.

Single Touch Payroll will be expanded to include employers with 19 or fewer employees from 1 July 2019. This is subject to legislation being passed in parliament.

Count the employees on your payroll as of 1 April to see if you need to get ready for Single Touch Payroll.

New small business benchmarks released by ATO

The ATO has released its latest small business benchmarks, providing over 100 different industries with average cost of sales and average total expenses. Businesses as varied as seafood retailers, bricklayers and dentists can see clearly what the relevant benchmarks are for their industry.

To see how your business stacks up against the industry average, check out the latest small business benchmarks and find out how you stack against industry averages.