Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    How to Do Your Own Bas and Save Thousands in Fees
    How to Do Your Own Bas and Save Thousands in Fees
    How to Do Your Own Bas and Save Thousands in Fees
    Ebook180 pages1 hour

    How to Do Your Own Bas and Save Thousands in Fees

    By Renelo Peque

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    How to Do Your Own BAS and Save Thousands in Fees is the first of Accounts Unpluggeds accounting series. Renelo believes in helping people to the best of his abilities by giving you the tools and resources to help you control and manage your own finances by organising your accounts. As the Australian Taxation Office makes it easier for businesses to comply with their BAS obligations, the middlemenBAS and tax agentswill soon become redundant. Their services will eventually focus on complex tax scenarios and strategies that target specific clientele. Matters on basic BAS and tax compliance for businesses can be handled by contacting the Australian Taxation Office directly rather than by using an agent. As you do your part in maintaining good and accurate records, you will be able to prepare and lodge your own BAS easily. In the process, you save thousands in accounting fees.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBalboa Press AU
    Release dateDec 27, 2013
    ISBN9781452512426
    How to Do Your Own Bas and Save Thousands in Fees
    Author

    Renelo Peque

    Renelo Peque is a lifelong learner. He is passionate in pursuing academic education as well as the arts such as music. He is a Certified Practising Accountant (CPA Australia). He has also been admitted to the Supreme Court of Victoria as an Australian lawyer in 2020. He holds bachelor’s degrees in accounting, information systems and law and is currently doing his master’s degree in law. He plays the drums at a Christian Church in Melbourne, Australia. He also plays the guitar. Renelo has written two books before this. His first book was about accounting and tax compliance and the second one was about his train travel diary in Melbourne. His ability to write a technical book on one hand and a comical book on the other, shows his versatility and willingness to explore his different sides. With this third book, he attempts to write another genre yet again.

    Related to How to Do Your Own Bas and Save Thousands in Fees

    Related ebooks

    Business For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Small Business Finance

      Mar 31, 2020

      Small Business Finance
      3 min read

    • Article

      Audit-Proof Your Small Business

      Aug 1, 2022

      When you’re running a business, you have a lot to manage. If there isn’t a person in your face forcing you to stay on top of a task, it can be easy to keep putting it off to tomorrow, Friday or next week … and soon you have a large pile to work throu

      2 min read

    • Article

      Startup Guide!

      Dec 31, 2019

      Startup Guide!
      4 min read

    • Article

      Tax Time

      Aug 28, 2019

      Tax Time
      2 min read

    • Article

      Entrepreneur’s Corner

      Jun 18, 2019

      How did you make the switch from employee to entrepreneur? I am an accountant with a background in the financial services industry. After completing my studies and articles, I worked for investment banks, both locally and abroad, for more than 10 yea

      2 min read

    • Article

      From Your Tax Return

      Jun 19, 2022

      From Your Tax Return
      2 min read

    • Article

      Why Tax Matters

      Jul 7, 2023

      Why Tax Matters
      5 min read

    • Article

      Launching a New Venture

      Dec 24, 2020

      Launching a New Venture
      3 min read

    • Article

      Fuel Spark Success

      Jun 5, 2020

      Fuel Spark Success
      8 min read

    • Article

      5 Ways To Make A Side Hustle Work

      May 8, 2020

      NEVER mind just having one job. These days many people have two or three as they work in their free time to earn extra cash. In a poll conducted last year by the Henley Business School in Johannesburg, 27% of respondents revealed they had a side hust

      3 min read

    • Article

      Should You Do Your Own Taxes or Hire a Professional?

      Jan 30, 2020

      For some people, tax season poses little worry, and the process occurs painlessly. Simply populate the requisite fields on your 1040 with info from your W-2, claim the standard deduction, sign on the dotted line and e-file. After that, the check is

      4 min read

    • Article

      HOW TO Manage Your Money As A Freelancer

      Sep 13, 2020

      The world is changing and the traditional commute to and from an office for a 9am to 5pm day is slowly falling away. More people are exploring their talents and skills that are unrelated to traditional employment, and they must find time to acquaint

      4 min read

    • Article

      Success During and After COVID-19

      Sep 28, 2020

      Success During and After COVID-19
      9 min read

    • Article

      What To Know About Filing Your Tax Returns

      Sep 15, 2023

      Send suggestions for topics and requests for info to yourmoney@you.co.za. We may answer your questions in this column but won’t reply personally. DO YOU need help with your tax return? Not everyone’s taxable income is complicated, but even regular sa

      3 min read

    • Article

      Max Your Tax Return

      May 19, 2021

      Max Your Tax Return
      4 min read

    • Article

      This Month

      Oct 27, 2021

      Now in its 28th year, Top Stocks has become one of Australia’s most popular stock-picking books. Martin Roth provides the most up-to-date data on public Australian companies to help you determine where to put your money. The book includes company inf

      2 min read

    • Article

      Tips for TAX TIME

      Jul 9, 2023

      TAKE CONTROL AND GET SMART WITH YOUR FINANCES When it comes to taxes, many people procrastinate at the end of the financial year. My advice is to take action now and get your tax-deduction money back sooner. Remember, your tax return is your money,

      1 min read

    • Article

      How Much Can I Make?

      Jan 10, 2023

      How Much Can I Make?
      19 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for How to Do Your Own Bas and Save Thousands in Fees

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      How to Do Your Own Bas and Save Thousands in Fees - Renelo Peque

      Copyright © 2014 Renelo Peque CPA.

      All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

      Balboa Press books may be ordered through booksellers or by contacting:

      Balboa Press

      A Division of Hay House

      1663 Liberty Drive

      Bloomington, IN 47403

      www.balboapress.com.au

      1 (877) 407-4847

      Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

      Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

      Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

      ISBN: 978-1-4525-1241-9 (sc)

      ISBN: 978-1-4525-1242-6 (e)

      Balboa Press rev. date: 12/10/2013

      Disclaimer

      The information in this book does not constitute advice. The material in this publication has been derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate such as www.ato.gov.au and www.fairwork.gov.au. It is of a general nature only and is not designed to take the place of a professional advice. While care has been taken in writing this book, the author, his practice Accounts Unplugged, the publisher and Renelo Peque Consulting Pty Ltd and its owners take no responsibility for its accuracy or completeness. Please seek competent professional advice before making any decision. The author makes no representation or warranty as to the reliability, accuracy or completeness of the information nor accepts responsibility arising in any way for errors in, or omissions from, the information. MYOB and Xero are separate accounting software companies and are the main software products used by the author and Accounts Unplugged.

      Contents

      1.   What is this book about and why do you need it?

      2.   What is your business or industry?

      3.   BAS-related obligations and other business matters

      4.   Accounting software packages and online accounting

      5.   How to record income, expenses and other uncommon transactions

      6.   GST – what to watch out for

      7.   How to record and reconcile salaries and wages, PAYG withholding, PAYG instalment

      8.   How to record depreciation and motor vehicle expenses

      9.   How to reconcile your accounts and prepare month-end adjustments

      10.   How to prepare and lodge your BAS

      11.   Important resources and websites

      THANK YOU

      To my Creator – for the opportunity to make this contribution

      to all business owners including my clients

      To my family and friends –

      with your support and encouragement

      I was able to complete this book

      Renelo Peque CPA

      Chapter 1

      What is this book about and why do you need it?

      There are over two million small businesses that are actively trading in Australia as of June 2012, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. However, there are only 52,000 tax professionals in Australia including over 14,000 Business Activity Statements (BAS) agents and other professionals according to the Tax Practitioners’ Board 2012 annual report. The ratio of BAS agents to the number of small businesses is negligible at 0.007. It basically means that the number of BAS agents is not enough to service small businesses with their BAS compliance. The shortage of BAS agents will cause their fees to increase and many small business owners particularly those who are starting out will try not to incur these fees. As more small business owners try to save costs getting a BAS agent is at the bottom of the list. Or worse not on the list at all. This trend impacts the perception on BAS agents by small business owners and the value they provide. This book is an attempt to change that perception by educating and showing that there are many things involved towards preparing and lodging Business Activity Statements (BAS). This book also serves as a guide to those who want to manage the whole process involved in preparing and lodging Business Activity Statements (BAS) to save some BAS agent fees.

      On the other end of the spectrum, there are business owners who wait until the last minute to get help. Or even worse some completely ignore anything tax related. Then they receive ATO notices and reminders that they do not attend to. A few weeks later they receive a letter from the ATO advising them of the penalty being charged. All these happened because of neglect. And your accountant cannot remind you all the time. As a business owner you control your business and that includes managing your books and tax deadlines. If you neglect your accounts, you will lose track on how your business is performing. You do not know if you are making money or not until one day you will realise that you cannot pay your suppliers because the sales that are coming in are not enough. You are suddenly on a hot seat and do not know what to do. Then you decide to get help. By then, it would be too late and the suppliers come knocking at your door. It is like driving a car without a thermostat until right in the middle of your journey, you notice some smoke coming out of your bonnet. A simple issue that could have been fixed but because of neglect resulted to more problems. Same as with a business, you are ultimately responsible for the accuracy of your business accounts.

      Concept of ‘safe harbour’

      In tax administration there is a concept they call ‘safe harbour,’ where the taxpayer may not be liable to certain administrative penalties if they provide all the relevant tax information to the registered agent and that agent does not take reasonable care and makes a false or misleading statement that results in a shortfall amount or if the agent takes reasonable care or lacks reasonable care and fails to lodge the document by the due date. Safe harbour only applies to a false or misleading statement penalty and that statement was made on or after 1st of March 2010 or a failure to lodge on time penalty where the document has a due date for lodgement of 1st of March 2010 or later. For more information about safe harbour contact the ATO on 13 28 66 or check the ATO website. It is vital that business owners need to know and understand their rights as well as their obligations with their accounts and tax affairs. This book is not intended to replace BAS or tax advice nor does it contain exclusive information about Business Activity Statements as individual circumstances may vary. This book explains the basic concepts and practical ways you need to know about Business Activity Statements and what happens in practice. In this way, you will be able to adjust your existing ways of doing things or put a system in place if you do not have one in your business so that you capture the correct and complete information needed to be included and declared in your Business Activity Statements. This book will also show you to access tools from government websites, for example the Australian Taxation Office’s small business assist website which is a great search tool that not many people know about.

      The author is a partner of both MYOB and Xero online accounting. In our examples we use MYOB AccountRight Plus Version 19.9 and Xero online accounting. The ‘How to…’ chapters which are from 5 to 10 will be using screen prints and diagrams to assist you on how to actually do things in MYOB or Xero online accounting. In Chapter 4 we cover accounting software programs. The rest of the chapters will be mainly concepts and may use diagrams if necessary to facilitate comprehension. We also include practical tips on how to capture information that you need for your BAS reporting obligations. The idea is to have a mix of both theory and practice in all chapters as much as possible.

      This is your first step towards educating yourself on how to keep your accounts in order. If you notice repeated information in some of the chapters it probably is. As what they say in professional development seminars, ‘repetition is the mother of skill.’

      Economy and social trends

      According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, unemployment increased from 701,600 to 706,900 an increase of 5,300 in a month from June to July 2013. That’s 176 jobs every day for 30 days. We hear massive job cuts at both big and small companies. Although as a whole it is not good for the economy, for some it is a blessing in disguise because they were inspired to start their own business.

      Our societies underwent and are still undergoing transformation. The Agricultural Revolution continued until the end of the 19th century while the Industrial Revolution started in the late 18th century. The Industrial Revolution marked an unprecedented sustained growth that increased the living standards of the masses.

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1