Business

One would hardly think an election is to be held in September given last night’s Federal Budget and its focus on cost cutting, tightening of taxation collections and scaling back on incentives. Even with this fiscally austere approach the government is still forecasting a deficit in 2013/14 of $18b. The Australian economy’s rapid contraction and consequent fall in tax revenue... Read more

A number of tax changes aimed at reducing complexity, cutting red tape and providing tax relief for small businesses have been introduced this year. Following is an outline of the changes relevant for small businesses in this financial year. From the 2012-13 income year, small business can: immediately write-off of all assets valued at under $6,500 (up from $1,000 previously);... Read more

Contrary to popular belief, business names, company names, domain names and trademarks all have very different levels of protection.  In this article, we identify some of the common misconceptions.Neither business names nor company names grant any proprietary (ownership) rights like those granted by a trademark registration. By the same token, neither business names, company names, nor domain names, offer any... Read more

Tax Alert 1 Loss ‘Carry Back’ Provisions: Progress Update – The Government’s proposed  loss ‘carry back’ measure was introduced into Parliament in February.These provisions seek to allow ‘carry back’ of losses in the current financial year to offset prior year profits, to obtain a refund of tax previously paid.The intention of this measure is to assist corporate businesses facing pressures from... Read more

As a company director, do you fully understand the obligations which relate to your duties? Breaches of director’s duties can lead to personal liability including civil and criminal penalties and liability for damages. Serious offences can lead to imprisonment. Most people would be aware of the fiduciary duties for company directors under the Corporations Act, including a duty to act... Read more

It’s Christmas time….what’s tax deductible? December 2012 By Matthew Stewart, Director – Edney Ryan Chartered Accountants So it’s just about the time you are thinking “What are we going to do for our staff for Christmas” or “I hope my employer is going to put on a huge show for the festive season and it’s going to be big because... Read more

Does your business borrow or lend money? Purchase or sell goods on agreement, consignment or credit? Grow crops or raise livestock? Own or lease machinery or vehicles? If so, then the upcoming Personal Property Securities Reform will likely affect you. Currently there are numerous stand-alone State and Commonwealth registers of security interests for example the Register of Encumbered Vehicles (REVS),... Read more

Many of the large banks offer the services of a personal banker, otherwise known as a private banker or relationship manager. Supposedly if you have a personal banker you get preferential treatment, special access to advisors and the best solutions offered to you. You’d also expect that you’re being offered the best rates on your deposits and loans. In this... Read more

We often hear that our ‘Australian’ future may well be made in China. As part of our commitment to remain up-to-date with our advice to clients we recently sought a briefing from experts on one of the burning topics of global investments; China and its impact on the Australian Economy. Here we provide a short overview of the experts’ insights.... Read more

The federal budget has been handed down and the promise of a return to surplus delivered. Here in this issue of On Balance, we highlight some budget changes that are likely to be of particular interest to many of our clients. Spending Cuts Significantly major cuts have been made to defence spending, overseas aid and the 1% reduction of the... Read more