Tax Advice

• Sale of Assets in Australia
• Sale of Property
• Restructures
• Small business CGT concessions
• CGT Rollovers

Walsh Accountants can provide comprehensive advice on CGT issues and legislative requirements as well as planning for payments of CGT by understanding how it applies to your circumstances and helping you with record keeping for capital assets.

Relevant issues include determining if a CGT event has occurred, the timing of the event and whether there are any exceptions or concessions which may reduce your liability.

All assets acquired since capital gains tax started in 1985 are subject to CGT unless specifically excluded. This includes assets you have purchased, inherited, or a business you started yourself. The sale of an asset to a third party will trigger CGT but there can also be CGT events where you restructure your holding of an asset (even though you retain the underlying ownership).

There are a number of specific exemptions and rollovers that may allow you to reduce, defer or disregard your capital gain, however the rules around concessions and exemptions can be complicated. You can rely on the dedicated team at Walsh Accountants to provide comprehensive advice and assist you with determining whether an exception exists, or work with you to provide guidance on any applicable small business concessions that you are entitled to.

Contact us today if you need assistance and advice in relation to your CGT matters.

• GST exemptions
• GST on Property transactions
• GST on imports
• Margin Scheme

In Australia, GST is a tax of 10% on most goods, services, and other items sold or consumed. You must be a registered for GST if your business turnover exceeds $75,000 per annum or $150,000 for a not-for-profit organization but you may elect for voluntary registration if you are below the threshold. If you are a registered business, you must charge GST on most goods and services you sell or supply.

Walsh Accountants can assist you in all GST matters, from understanding your responsibility to register for GST, preparing compliant tax invoices, preparing and lodging your Activity Statement to maximise your GST outcomes including assessing your entitlement to claim input tax credits, right through to complex GST matters such as GST on imports, Property Transactions, and Margin Scheme. In addition our health professional team is equipped to deal with specific GST rules relating to medical income which can be complicated.

Contact us today if you require assistance with any matters in relation to GST.

If you’re operating across borders, or competing in multiple jurisdictions, complying with local tax laws, reporting requirements, and statutory lodgements can be complicated.

Our resident tax specialist Ian McGinniss has vast knowledge and experience with cross border companies. He will assist you to address all international tax issues and help you to achieve your business goals, both locally and globally.

Ian can help you to understand international issues such as,

• Residency status of your company and you personally
• Advice around
  
  • Where should you locate your operations
  • The tax costs and benefits of entering into a new market
  • Structuring advice for entity establishment
• Tax and regulatory requirements
• How transactions are impacted by transfer pricing
• How operations should be financed and whether or not thin capitalisation rules apply
• Advice around the impact to the effective tax rates
• Advice around the tax impacts of bringing funds back into Australia

If you’re looking to move or expand your operations internationally, it’s imperative that you assess all your options and structure yourself correctly for the best outcome.

For personalised advice based on your specific circumstance, contact our office today to speak with our resident Tax Specialist Ian McGinniss.

ATO audits are also becoming increasingly common with the ATO focusing on data matching with banks, government agencies, and even your social media platforms!

At Walsh Accountants, our highly skilled team focus on clearly understanding our client’s business operation so we can ensure that their compliance obligations are prepared and lodged accurately. This is particularly important if we know our clients business sits within one of the ATO highlighted risk industries or they are exposed to ATO targeted areas of risk such as FBT, GST refunds, and Div 7a arrangements.

How Walsh Accountants can help you in an ATO audit

Even if you are confident that you are compliant, an ATO tax audit can be very stressful and time consuming.

If an ATO Audit should arise, seeking advice will have significant benefit for you.

We provide our clients with information so they can be on the front foot through early engagement with the ATO to ensure potentially difficult situations can be mitigated. Even if the questions asked seem to be common sense, it is always best to confirm any requests for information with your accountant to make sure you understand exactly what they are requesting.

Alternatively, our team can liaise with the ATO on your behalf. Through our experience, we know the best way to answer the ATO’s questions to give them exactly what is required.

Throughout the audit process, we will liaise with you to point out any unintentional mistakes you have made allowing you to voluntarily disclose that information to the ATO which can result in a significant reduction in administrative penalties.

In addition, if you believe that the ATO is incorrect in relation to the undisclosed income or compliance error, or disagree with the amount of penalties, you can object their decision.  Engaging Walsh Accountants to represent you will give you the best chances of success because we know how to deal with the ATO and put your best case forward.

Contact us today if you require assistance with any matters in relation to ATO Audit.

A Private Ruling is a binding one off decision from the ATO based on a singular set of circumstances and will provide confidence as to the interpretation of legislation when you are considering a complex tax matter.

In cases where your tax affairs are unique, complicated, or unusual, or in a case where there are no existing policy, legislation, or precedents that have been published and established by the ATO, it may be advantageous to apply to the ATO for a Private Ruling.

The private ruling can be used to ‘test drive’ a tax arrangement that you may be considering and only applies to the specific applicant (i.e. you cannot rely on a private ruling of someone else, even if your circumstances sound very similar).

Walsh Accountants can assist by reviewing your position and advising if there is sufficient grounds to proceed with the request for a Private Ruling and how the process works. Our tax specialist can also prepare the submission on your behalf, providing all relevant information and legislation required to support the desired position or outcome you are wishing to confirm.

Contact us today if you feel you have a unique situation you want to discuss and we can ascertain if a Private Ruling is an option for you.

At Walsh Accountants, we understand the passing of a loved one can be an emotional and stressful time. We work with you to ensure the burden of tax compliance does not make this situation more difficult.

Upon the passing of a loved one, there may be income and capital transactions which mean the preparation of a tax return is necessary.

The deceased person’s assets can pass directly to a beneficiary or could pass to their legal personal representative (e.g. their executor) who may dispose of the assets or pass them to the beneficiary.

As well as a final tax return being required for the deceased person, there may also need to be a tax return prepared for the Deceased Estate. This will be required each year until the estate is fully administered (i.e. until all of the assets have been distributed to the beneficiaries) and no longer deriving income.

The tax on income from a deceased estate can be complex; particularly if there is a property that was a main residence, where a business is involved, or when superannuation death benefits are involved.

Walsh Accountants Estate Administration team can help you with

• Tax effective advice around the transfer of Property and Superannuation to the estate, or directly to the beneficiaries
• Final tax return for the deceased individual
• Application for Trust Estate TFN
• Preparation of Trust Estate tax return while the estate is being administered and wound up

The loss of a loved one is one of the hardest things you will ever have to endure. Let us help lift the burden of your tax and compliance obligations by taking care of everything and making this process as hassle free as possible.

Contact us today to discuss our Estate Administration services.

Everyone in business is carrying a level of risk as things can, and often do, go wrong. What you need to understand is that there are steps you can take to isolate and limit these risks.

There are a number of options and steps that can be taken to protect assets and ensure that they are not exposed to the risks of the business failing or other events.

Ensuring the correct set up for your business and assets is key to building a solid foundation for your future. Your structure should balance your short and long term objectives,  taxation laws, and likely future developments, regulatory considerations, and business risk.

Walsh Accountants assist you to choose the optimal structure by getting to know you and learning what you want to achieve so that we can tailor a plan specific to your needs.

Issues to consider include:

• Is this structure cost effective in terms of compliance costs
• Does the structure allow ease of transition of ownership in the case of family business succession, introduction of non- related investors, or sale of business/ shares
• Does the structure provide risk minimisation and asset protection
• Is the structure allowed for your particular industry licencing requirements or insurance policies.
• Is your business structure tax effective in both the short and the long term

We also realise that most businesses go through a period where there objectives change. At this time, consideration should be given as to whether a restructure would be beneficial for you. If it is we also help to manage the CGT consequences of any transaction.

If you feel you need to have a discussion with our team in relation to the set-up of your new structure, or a review of your current structure, contact us to speak with our Business and Entrepreneur Support Team.