Hiring an accountant and keeping organised records of assets, spending, and creditors are both great options to save time and get you working in your business. Embracing digital tools like Xero and automating routine tasks can also help simplify your business. 

Get a good accountant – it’s not too late!

 Accountants can help make sense of your finances and prepare your accounts and tax returns. Make sure you’re paying the right amount of tax, have an idea of the size of your bill, and know when you need to pay it as soon as possible.

If you’re concerned about accounting fees, here are two tips to keep in mind:

• The easier it is to find and interpret your financial information, the cheaper your accounting bill will be. This is another reason to get a good system in place.
• Ask your prospective accountant for a fixed price quote so there are no nasty surprises. 

Debtors

It’s important to go through your aged receivables summary (people who owe you money) at the end of the year. If someone is a bad debt and will never pay you, write them off now – you’ve already paid tax on the sale which isn’t fair if you’re not going to get paid!

Fixed assets

Take a look at your fixed asset register and ensure that you have, and are using, every asset listed. Pay particular attention to electronic devices which you may have since upgraded. You’ll probably find items that are no longer used or have been thrown away or sold, or traded in for an upgrade. Write them off now and take the tax deduction.

Vehicle logbook

Is your vehicle logbook up to date? Recording all business and personal kilometers for at least 90 days is imperative. Without a logbook determining your business/private use, you are restricted to 25% claim for expenses, which can make a big difference come year-end. The information from the logbook can be used for up to three years provided there are no significant changes in the vehicle’s use.

Creditors

Make sure that you are carefully recording all your creditors (people the business owes money to). Recording all liabilities accurately can reduce your tax bill.

Prepare for next year

Bookkeeper

Looking ahead, think seriously about using a bookkeeper. A bookkeeper can help input information into your system correctly, which frees up your time to do something more enjoyable. If you’re not confident about what goes where, or are time-poor, this is a service we offer here at Traktion.

Accounting software

Using an accounting software package that does what you need is crucial to businesses. The start of a new financial year is a great time to switch to Xero (or other accounting software). Select a Xero pricing plan that works best for you depending on your budget and needs. With a click of a button, you can upgrade or downgrade as needed. 

Business structures

Do you need all those entities and tax structures? Maybe you need two companies and three trusts, and maybe you don’t. Keep an eye on the proposed 39% new tax rate and see how you may be impacted.

Business software

Try to automate your business to save time and money. Is there anything you can automate to make things go more smoothly? Can your applications be integrated with each other or with your accounting system?

Have a chat with your team, mates, fellow business owners and your accountant – there’s a wealth of information out there! After all, you don’t know what you don’t know.

Keep things simple

Keeping things simple is the key to success. Avoid adding unnecessary and burdensome companies, trusts, and structures. Only use multiple codes for different items if necessary. Set up a system for recording your business income and expenses in one place to save time.

Let’s get digital!

Digitise all important paper documents and save them, along with your relevant electronic documents, in an orderly way. Ideally, upload them to your accounting system.

Conclusion

If you’re unsure about how to implement any of these tips or want to talk them through with someone, get in touch – we’d love to make your life easier!