Hey all,
I am looking to start a small business.
I'm just wondering if there's any free information out there, or a paid course is worthwhile?
https://www.tafesa.edu.au/xml/course/sc/sc_T237626218.aspx
I found this above, paid.
https://www.myob.com/au/small-business/resources/tax-time-an…
This is free, it may cover what I need?
Thank you
Are you starting a tax business? No, then use an accountant.
Your time is best spent working on your business, which is generating your income, not figuring out tax.
Honestly, I think margins will be small.
Paying an accountant, for information I believe I should know would probably make having a small business more unlikely.
I may only profit 7.5-10k the first year, it's a side business but I want to do it the right way.
Saving unnecessary costs of possibly, til I actually need an account at tax time.
Accountants need to go through years of training (uni, cpa or ca accreditation, on the job training, professional development etc) - the intricacies of advanced accounting theory and tax laws can’t really be covered in a quick and free course…
As per above, if you’re in too deep, fork out for accountant and just claim the costs towards a deduction.
You can get accepted into accounting firms with science or math degrees.
The accounting aspect is overrated. If you are only doing it for a simple business then you don't need to learn all the concepts.
I'm not trying to avoid an accountant when the time is needed, I'm just trying to gain knowledge to make my life easier before, and during business.
The MYOB is free, so that is at the right price. See where that takes you. Also each state Government has Business Development Department. For SA.
It's good to know about business tax in general and have that information in the back of your mind.
When I started my sole trader business, I read a few things tax related to my business but actually doing my tax, leave it to your tax agent
But I would only use those free courses as a guide, but the best info for business tax is the ATO website and ask questions in the ATO forums and a rep will get back to you with info and sources.
I've learnt more about tax from ATO website than random courses.
You should know how to read the ATO website and look for deductions and ask your tax agent why aren't you claiming it.
I don't plan to do my tax myself, I just want to learn for myself.
I feel it would help in most aspects of running the business.
Pretty much from your below reply, for the wine business as a sole employee trader, just research what parts of the business can be deductable.
You also got to assess yourself if your business is counted as a "hobby" business or an actual side business which can be found on the ATO website and do their mini survey and it will tell you as being a hobby vs business have different tax rules.
Thank you
Those two courses cover some very different things, if all you're doing is googling "business tax" you should probably talk to an accountant to at least get a handle on what you need to learn. Doing a 10 week course to learn about payroll taxes and WET just seems a massive waste of time.
Every small business is different. If you're just doing a side gig, keep very good records of your income, expenses and assets and you can just slap it into your personal tax return. If you're setting up an actual company with employees, maybe look at getting someone to help you setup the books, potential payroll and such. There's no one and done learning how to do tax, it constantly changes and you need to make a commitment to learning it then constantly updating your knowledge.
Yeah,
Just a small business.
It's actually wine, however margins are thin… so total turnover may be very high compared to a low profit.
It's just a passion, but I would like to stay on top of it.
I won't be doing any hiring, it will be run solo by me.
Will take on-board all advice given.
Thanks everyone.
Get an accountant. You seem concerned about unnecessary expenses hurting your bottom line. Your accountant may know some strategies to actually increase your bottom line by minimising your tax liabilities.
The costs might not be what you are expecting either. We pay our accountant $1,200p.a. to file 3 individual, 1 company and 1 trust tax return and ongoing advice throughout the year. It's worth every penny. And in some circumstances it's tax deductible.
You need to learn basic accounting. Two books I read for tax: Tax for Australian for Dummies and 101 Ways to Save Money on your Tax Legally.
You can go either full on company pty ltd or just a sole trader - the later is much easier. If just buy and sell, you just maintain a spreadsheet of sales and spreadsheet of expenses.
Sole trader tax reporting is under personal tax return in sub section of Small Business - it's a lot easier than doing company tax reporting.
ABN registeration for sole trading is free, don't forget you need to register for GST if your expecting sales in next 12 months is over $75,000.
www.ato.gov.au