



The AFL and NRL grand finals have been played, Bathurst has been run for another year and the Melbourne Cup is fast approaching again on the first Tuesday in November.
There is a saying that nothing gets done between Melbourne Cup and Australia Day – we certainly know that the Christmas/New Year period sees a significant slowdown as a number of business take advantage of the summer weather and public holidays to take an extended break.
While this might seem like a good time of year to totally switch off, it is actually an opportunity to get a head start on the coming year ahead. Some ways to take advantage:
- Start planning for the year ahead – whether it be business, investments, budgeting, or even achieving a goal that you’ve been putting off all this year. It could even be planning your next holiday in 2018
- Rest, rejuvenate and recharge – it is a great time of year to take some time out and avoid the inevitable burnout that comes from working hard 24/7/365. Reprioritise your health, as that is what will help you get through those stressful and busy periods
- Use the period to finish those tasks that don’t get done when all the urgent day-to-day jobs get in the road – the three weeks across late December/early January are typically pretty quiet while everyone is on holidays, which provides a perfect distraction and interruption free period to focus on the important, not the urgent
How will you be taking advantage of this period to make 2018 your best year yet?
Superannuation Guarantee Gap And Increased Audits
The Australian Taxation Office has estimated what is calls the Superannuation Guarantee (SG) gap. This gap is the difference between the theoretical amount payable by employers, and the actual contributions received by super funds.
This gap is estimated to be 5.2% or $2.85 billion of the total $54.78 billion in SG payments employers were required to pay in 2014-2015. Due to some employers not meeting their super guarantee obligations either by not paying enough or not paying it at all, the ATO has a range of strategies in place to educate, support, monitor and enforce compliance by employers.
Importantly, if an employee reports an instance of non-payment of superannuation, the ATO will respond to every one of the approximately 20,000 reports of possible non payment of SG from employees or former employees.
How does this affect me?
If you are any employer, it is important to understand your obligations to pay your employees’ superannuation entitlements, and to ensure that these entitlements are calculated correctly.
The first step is to determine which of your workers are employees for Superannuation Guarantee purposes, and this particularly applies to those workers who might be characterised as contractors.
The next step is to work out the employees’ ordinary times earnings, and other earnings which might attract SG.
From there, the use of a computerised accounting system will help streamline the record keeping and reporting associated with payroll and superannuation entitlements. The accounting system can also ensure that the reporting of payment of employees’ superannuation entitlements meets the requirements of SuperStream.
Single Touch Payroll
The ATO is introducing a new system called Single Touch Payroll, which is rolling out over the next 2 years.
This system will require employers to report their wage and superannuation information at the time of payment of the wage. This information then will not have to be reported on BAS or payment summaries prepared as those details will already be with the ATO and then collated by them for the financial year.
As a result of this increased reporting regularity, the ATO will be able to follow up payment of PAYG withholding and Superannuation Guarantee to ensure that employers are meeting their obligations.
The takeaway for businesses employing staff will be that they will need to be organised, and ensure they know what their obligations are in relation to paying superannuation entitlements on behalf of employees.
If you have any doubt about your obligations, please contact us at Value Beyond for a review of your employment.
Government Grants & Assistance – Are You Eligible?
You may have started your business, or are considering starting a new business. Did you know that there are various government programs that provide assistance either through funding or free services that can help you grow and expand your business?
When growing a business, owners are often faced with barriers to growing the business. These barriers can either be financial barriers, such as funding required to expand the business, or it can be a lack of specialised skills and knowledge needed to push the business to the next level.
There are various Commonwealth and State government services which can help in both those areas, by providing financial assistance through grants and other programs, or by providing skills and mentoring.
Queensland Government
Whether you are starting a business or running a business, the Queensland Government’s Business Queensland website provides an abundance of resources to put you on the right track, as well as various grant, rebates and subsidy programs which can help you get the financial assistance you might need to bust through the growth barriers facing your business.
Commonwealth Government
The Commonwealth Government also provides a similar services on its www.business.gov.au website, with information on starting and running your business, as well as details on grants, programs, loans and subsidies that are available.
If you are looking for assistance and are not sure how to navigate the myriad of options available, contact us at Value Beyond to organise a review of your business to find the areas in which you require assistance.
Do I Need A Permit To Run A Giveaway?
One great way to promote your business is to run a giveaway or prize promotion, where customers or potential customers can win a prize for meeting certain conditions.
Typically in the era of social media, this might be for liking or sharing your page or a particular post, or it could be a competition for customers if they purchase from you during a set time period, and/or purchase a minimum amount.
But when do you need a permit for your competition under the Charitable and Non-Profit Gaming Act 1999? There are a range of different categories under which a competition might fall, and which category your competition might fall into will determine whether you need a licence to run it.
Category 1 games
- includes raffles, sweeps, calculate sweeps, football doubles, lucky door prizes, bingo
- total ticket sales not more than $2,000 and total value of prizes is at least 20% of the total ticket sales
- conducted by a non-profit association (or individual in limited circumstances)
Does not require a licence Category 2 games
- same as category 1, but total ticket sales are more than $2,000 but not more than $50,000
- conducted by an eligible non-profit association
Does not require a licence Category 3 games
- Gross proceeds are more than $50,000
- Can be conducted by an eligible incorporated non-profit association
- a licence number must be printed on category 3 games where ticket sales estimated to exceed $50,000
Requires a Category 3 gaming licence
Category 4 promotional games (trade promotions)
- These are free entry draws conducted to promote goods or services
- any person may conduct a promotional game, however, they are normally conducted by business to promote the sale of products
Read the Guide to Category 4 Promotional Games. Does not require a licence
Other categories:
- Bingo centres – requires a bingo centre licence
- Lucky envelopes – requires a luck envelopes printer’s licence
- Tipping competitions – does not require a licence where all proceeds returned to the players as prizes
For most businesses, they won’t require a permit to run a promotion where the prize is their goods or services, and particular if there is no cost for the participants to enter. If you are looking to raise funds from the promotion or giveaway by selling tickets, then you may need to review the rules more thoroughly to ensure that you have any necessary licence.
Upcoming Dates
21 October 2017
Lodgement and payment of monthly September 2017 activity statements
28 October 2017
Deadline for paying superannuation guarantee contributions on behalf of employees for the June 2017 quarter
31 October 2017
Lodge tax returns for all entities with one or more prior year returns where outstanding as at 30 June 2017
21 November 2017
Lodgement and payment of monthly October 2017 activity statements
25 November 2017
Lodgement and payment of quarterly September 2017 activity statements if lodged electronically




