Providing Staff with FBT Free Benefits at Christmas. 

Christmas is fast approaching and employers need to be aware of certain tax implications when having Christmas parties. 

This article by Joe Kaleb, Chartered Accountant & CEO of www.australianbiz.com.au examines in detail some of the most common benefits provided at Christmas and outlines the various income tax, GST and FBT implications for employers. It also focuses on how your business can hold the staff Christmas party without paying any fringe benefits tax (FBT), and in addition provide staff (including their spouses and partners) with certain gifts costing less than $300 (e.g. hampers and skincare products) that is fully tax deductible with no FBT payable.

Read more here...http://www.australianbiz.com.au/business_articles.aspx?i=692&p=1

Nominate now to be this year’s Brisbane or Gold Coast Young Entrepreneur of the Year. 

If you are a business owner operating in the greater Brisbane or Gold Coast area, aged 40 or under in 2013, you now have the chance to be acclaimed as one of your city’s top young entrepreneurs and profiled in a special edition of Brisbane Business News or Gold Coast Business News.

To be in contention, simply complete the online nomination form on the Brisbane Business News http://ow.ly/pgcdp and Gold Coast Business News http://ow.ly/pgcCZ websites.

Xero - Watch this!

Now you can see just how beautiful Xero really is. Watch this video  and tell us what you think on our facebook page.

Contact us today to find out how you can get Xero for FREE until 1 March 2013.

Christmas Party and FBT

It's that time of the year again. Most businesses have Christmas parties to celebrate with clients and/or show appreciation to hardworking staff. 

But when planning a work Christmas party, you should be aware of the tax implications and ways to minimise your obligations.

As Christmas parties can attract fringe benefits tax (FBT), you should consider:

• the benefits of hosting the party at your business premises

• the value of any gifts to staff

• whether to invite clients and other associates

• the cost of catering per person

• Occupational Health & Safety (OH&S) obligations

Visit the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) website   or contact your Chartered Accountant to find out if your Christmas party will attract FBT.

For more information on your OH&S requirements, visit the business.gov.au  Occupational health & safety topic. 

www.ackbookkeeping.com

Xero - Loved by over 200,000 people worldwide

Xero is a great introductory accounting and business platform. It is an online accounting system designed for small businesses and their advisors. The main modules it supports includes bank reconciliation, invoicing, inventory, accounts payable and financial reporting. From the main dashboard you can see an overview of all your vital business data in a nutshell.
Benefits include:

• Share access to your accounts with your bookkeeper or accountant.

• Bank feeds automatically imported from your bank, credit cards and PayPal.

• Create and send professional invoices & get paid online.

• Login anytime, anywhere on your Mac, Windows, iPhone or Android.

• FREE Feature updates, automatic backups, support and more.

Visit Xero.com.au for more information or contact us for friendly assistance.

www.ackbookkeeping.com.au

Employees vs Contractors

Having an ABN does not automatically make a woker a contractor.

The terms and conditions under which the work is performed will determine whether workers with skills or qualifications are employees or contractors.

The ATO's Employee or contractor home page has all the information in one place to determine if a worker is an employee or contractor.

For more information or assistance, contact us today.

PAYG withholding - changes to tax-free threshold

If you have employees who are certain that they will earn less than $18,200 in total income from all sources for the financial year, they can now claim the tax-free threshold from all their employers and other withholding payers.

To claim the tax-free threshold the employee needs to complete a Withholding declaration (NAT 3093).

For more information and friendly assistance, please feel free to contact us .