The 2013 Federal Election as a stand-alone event made the biggest impact on the tax and compliance obligations an SME business owner faces. In the week following the election we blogged about the predicted impact of the new Abbott government taking the reigns.
The general sentiment post-election was that the Abbott government would support small business. There was the impression that after years of being tied down with red tape, some of this red tape is being removed and we can get on with running our businesses.
The highlights:
- The carbon tax is gone
- From 1st July 2015, the company tax rate will be reduced by 1.5%
- FBT on motor vehicles will essentially revert back to where it was
- The Small business minister Bruce Billson has retained his cabinet-level role and for the first time this role is held by a minister without numerous other ministerial portfolios. This is great news for business owners and will hopefully see real change come to fruition.
- Abolish the mining resource rent tax (MRRT).
- Discontinue the tax loss carry-back measure (linked to the MRRT).
- Discontinue the small business instant asset write-off (currently $6,500).
- Remove accelerated depreciation for motor vehicles for small business (currently $5,000).
For more details on these highlights please refer to our previous blog post.
You can see that blog post here.
There are approximately 95 tax changes the Coalition has announced it intends to introduce, but which are still unlegislated. So, when it comes to tax issues it is very much a matter of 'watch this space'. One of the tax issues many small businesses would want to keep a close eye on is the loss carry-back measure, introduced in the dying days of the last government. The Coalition plans to repeal it, which will result in around 110,000 Australian businesses no longer being able to 'carry back' their losses to offset past profits and receive a tax refund.
Accounting software provider MYOB’s second Business Monitor Report of 2013 revealed that the business performance outlook and economic confidence of small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) has fallen in the past few months – particularly in agriculture, forestry and fishing, as well as wholesale and manufacturing.
The national report surveyed 1,022 SMEs to find that 23% expect the domestic economy to improve within 12 months and 35% expect an improvement to take one to two years, with 26% thinking it will take more than two years.
You can download the MYOB Business Monitor Report here for further understanding of the SME space since the new government came to power. http://myob.com.au/myob/backing-aussie-business/myob-business-monitor-1258090877325
Azure Group will continue to keep you updated on tax and compliance news that you need to be across and in the meantime if you do have any questions about your individual situation please do not hesitate to contact us at ourteam@azuregroup.com.au.
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