Tax Time Tips – Please add yours

[AgentMail]

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Ok, well with just over a week of this financial year left, I suddenly started to wonder where I had put all those receipts, and was it such a good idea to let me bank stop sending me statements.

I thought it would be a good thread to start collecting everyones tips for preparing for a stress free tax time.

My tip to start us off is: spend some time preparing as much of your paperwork before heading to the accountant as you can. Do you really want to spend $200 an hour for your accountant to put your receipts in chronological order?

[SalenaKnight]

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get a book keeper for $50-60 an hour to input everything for you on a monthly basis – that’s my tip and I learnt THAT the hard way.

[MyGreatIdea]

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My tip would be:

Always take a good look at your P&L and balance sheet early May of each year. If you’ve had a good year (and isn’t that what we’re all aiming for lol) speak with your accountant about making capital purchases or spending money before 30 June which could give you some tax benefit. I haven’t had to do this yet since I’ve yet to make any income…maybe next year

My accountant does this for all his clients, free of charge, just part of the service.

Wendy

[StellarScott]

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Couple It, post: 80617 wrote:

My accountant does this for all his clients, free of charge, just part of the service.

Im sure its part of the service but its not free . But yes reviewing your results before 30th June is an excellent idea.

[MyGreatIdea]

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StellarScott, post: 80645 wrote:

Im sure its part of the service but its not free

Actually Scott…it is As are the phone calls I get every couple of months to see how business is. As are the calls to his mobile that I can make whenever I have a question. As are the chats and coffee when I call in on my way past.

And his rates for EOFY services are more than reasonable. His reward for this outstanding customer service? As a book-keeper I referred no less than seven small businesses to him over the years, all of who are still with him, and all of who are charged exactly as I am.

Sorry for sidetracking the thread, but I have never been able to understand why some accountants only speak to their clients at tax time?

Wendy

[StellarScott]

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shh Wendy your stealing my business model

and today’s 30th June tip (especially for MYOB users) is make sure your book keeper has processed your accountant’s 30th June 2010 entries before rolling over.

[Anonymous]

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Hi folks

A very timely discussion!

Stay tuned for an article on more tax tips from FS contributor Richard Stewart on the home page this Saturday…

Jayne

[IgniteDM]

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If you are like me and scan all your receipts onto the computer and use a program… scan AS YOU GO! Dont do what I did and leave months worth of receipts that suddenly need to be scanned !

On the upside – at least its done now, I can ditch all my paper copies and have a searchable library of pdf receipts – so so handy!

[HammockFG]

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Here’s a couple of tax tips we just included in our EOFY enewsletter to clients:

Bring forward deductible expenses
Bringing forward expenses that are otherwise deductible in the financial year by “prepaying interest” on any investment loans you may have on shares or investment properties.

Put more into super now
Consider investing a portion of your salary, at a better tax rate, into your super fund. Depending on the stage of life you are in, this strategy, called salary sacrificing or making personal deductible super contributions can be a great way to boost your retirement savings. The beauty of this strategy is you pay less tax because your super contributions are taxed at a maximum of 15% compared to your own personal marginal tax rate that can be as high as 46.5%.

Top up your super with help from the government
If you earn less than $61,920# per annum, you could be eligible for a Government co-contribution to your super. To qualify for the full co-contribution of $1,000, you generally need to make a personal after-tax super contribution of at least $1,000 and earn $31,920# per annum or less. Remember, it’s also a great concept for teenagers to take advantage of as they often have part-time jobs and are likely eligible for the full $1,000 co-contribution.

Manage Capital Gains Tax
If you make a capital gain on the sale of an asset this financial year, you could consider selling a poorly performing investment before June 30th enabling you to offset your capital gain with the capital loss. Alternatively, you could consider delaying the sale of a profitable asset until after June 30th in order to defer your capital gain for another 12 months when the tax would then be due.

Warning: Any advice in this publication does not take account of your personal circumstances. Before relying on it to make a decision, you should consider how it applies to your overall circumstances or get personal advice.

[StellarScott]

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Today’s tip

Always seek independent, professional advice, especially before investing your hard earned in ‘tax reduction schemes’ that tend to be promoted this time of year.

[BB]

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It’s not just “Tax Time” – it’s the End of the Financial Year!

And, just like the beginning of every new year – it’s time to set some goals. (Financial goals would be appropriate for this time of year)

It’s a great time to re-assess all areas of your financial life.

Oh – and if you don’t have a working budget in place – now’s the time to get that organised also!

Happy New Financial Year!

B.B.

[OneArmedGraphics]

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IgniteDM, post: 80858 wrote:

If you are like me and scan all your receipts onto the computer and use a program… scan AS YOU GO! Dont do what I did and leave months worth of receipts that suddenly need to be scanned !

On the upside – at least its done now, I can ditch all my paper copies and have a searchable library of pdf receipts – so so handy!

Great tip. And don’t forget to automatically backup your scanned PDFs or images to DropBox or Microsoft Skydrive!

[APG]

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Best advice I could offer is build a solid relationship with a good accountant and be prepared to work actively with them throughout the year. We can’t be all things in business, and at times we need to surround ourselves with expert advice. I personally do that with a whole range of things including IT, legal, financial planning etc just to name a few. Having the right team advising me means that I have proactive solutions to issues (often before they become an issue) and I can concentrate on what I do well. Tax planning and tax advise is no different. Don’t see your accountant as a once a year trip, see them, and engage with them as an active business partner in your business and the rewards including proactive tax advice will flow from the relationship – you will be surprised what a good accountant can add to a small business.

Best wishes to all for the new financial year.
Andrew Green CPA
APG Accounting.

[Adam Stanecki]

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Don’t leave it to the last minute.

Find an accountant who suits you and be in touch with him/her regularly throughout the year.

[Erik]

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My tip – outsource.

Why spend hours trying to deal with tax?

How much does your accountant charge per hour? How much do you charge out at an hour?

Will it take you 3 hours to do what he (or she) can do in 1 hour?

I don’t go near tax – it’s a minefield, and the potential losses for not knowing the system intimately far outweigh the cost of hiring a professional.

[Author]

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