Getting Preparedfor EOY

With the end of financial year fast approaching it is a busy time for businesses. Below is a basic summary of important dates and year end processes to get you started.

Important Dates

• 14th July 2017 – Payment summaries need to be provided to employees by this date
• 28th July 2017 – Due date for Super Guarantee (SG) payments for the quarter ending 30th June 2017. However if you are wanting to claim a deduction in the 2017 financial year, for superannuation expenses incurred during the quarter ending June 2017 our advice would be to have all contributions paid by 23rd June. This will ensure funds are cleared in Superfund accounts which allows a deduction to be claimed.
• 14th August 2017 – Due date for copies of PAYG Payment Summaries (Group Certificates) to be submitted to the ATO along with your Annual Payment Summary Report
• 28th August 2017 – Due date for Taxable Payments Annual Report to be submitted to the ATO

Payroll

PAYG Payment Summaries (Group Certificates) are the most important and sometimes time consuming task for employers at the end of the financial year.
Completing the below tasks will make the task of processing Payment Summaries much easier:

• Confirm total wages and super on your ‘Profit and Loss’ match your wages report (in Xero this is the ‘Payroll Employee Summary’ report)
• Check there are no amounts in your ‘Wages Payable’ account
• Ensure all employee details are up-to-date in your bookkeeping software

Once Payment Summaries are complete a copy must be sent to the ATO along with a summarised ‘Annual Payment Summary Report’. If you use Xero, it is simply a matter of preparing payment summaries in Xero and forwarding to the ATO.

Bank Accounts

If you haven’t already done so, now is a good time to ensure your bank accounts are reconciled and up-to-date. Once all transactions are reconciled it is important to ensure bank balances, in your bookkeeping software, match actual bank balances on your bank statements.

We suggest running a bank reconciliation report for individual bank accounts at the end of each month. These reconciled balances should match your bank statement balances. (Please note, bank feeds in Xero are one to two days behind)

Business in the Construction Industry

If you operate in the construction industry, you will need to lodge a ‘Taxable Payments Annual Report’ to report all of your payments to contractors throughout the year. This report can be directly generated from Xero and sent straight to the ATO via an AUSKey.

Payroll Tax

Annual Payroll Tax returns are due for lodgement and payment by 21st July 2017. The payroll tax threshold for 2016/17 is $1.1 million wages (including super) per year.

If you believe you are close to this threshold and are not registered for Payroll Tax, please contact us as soon as possible.

Fringe Benefits Tax

Just a reminder that log books need to be completed every 5 years for each car. If you have purchased a new car, you will need to complete a new log book.

Tax Work

Listed below are items we most commonly request from clients to complete/finalise their tax returns.

When compiling your tax work please include these items where necessary to ensure the fastest processing times possible:

• Backup copy of company accounting file – plus login details and password
• Bank statements showing the balance as at 30th June 2017
• Loan statement for the period 01/07/2016 – 30/06/2017 (unless available as a live feed in Xero)
• New Log Books – if completed
• Personal use percentage on motor vehicles, travel, telephone, internet etc.
• New equipment and vehicle purchase information such including invoices and finance documentation
• Ensure debtors and creditors accounts are correct and up-to-date
• Closing stock values (if applicable)

If you would like any further information on this, or wish for us to complete your Payroll Tax or run the the ‘Taxable Payments Annual Report’ report for you please contact our office.