| In This Issue
· Provisional Tax
· Recession hits the West
· PAYE Changes
· GST Transition
. Ir Changes
· Going the Extra Mile
- Tax Dates.
- Tax Facts
- IRD Website
Budget Reporting.
I am doing a 6 month special on preparing personal or business SMART budgets for $250.00 plus GST as long as you are prepared to meet at least 4 times a year to review actual performance against budgeted performance. It is the review process that is very important to achieve success in budgeting. click here to book an appointment with Michelle.
ACC Cover
If you are interested in finding out more about different ACC covers click here and contact us with your questions.
Debt Management.
The worst thing you can do is to hide from the problem –Make an appointment and seek our professional help.
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Provisional Tax due 28 August
Last week we sent by email and mail reminders to every client that we believe needs to pay the 1st instalment of Provisional Tax. If you don't receive any mail from us this week and you think you should be paying some tax this month please do not hesitate to email or phone us - leave your details with the receptionist and she will look into your files and if necessary check with an accountant and come back to you. Click here to send an email now.
It was George Bernard Shaw show observed; "If all economists were laid end to end, they would not reach a conclusion."
It is a recession, no it's a crash, no recovery is in sight. We are bottomed out, business is improving, banks have stopped lending, dole queue sours, stocks are growing, profits fall, profits recover.....
One thing is certain: economies do run in cycles. The current economic morass WILL come to an end. And we here at Tax and trust are planning to be one of the businesses that will survive and flourish - will your business?
I know many west clients are finding this year significantly harder than last year, new work is harder to get, people are finding it harder to pay for work and goods ordered and there is more competition around especially for those in trades that may compete with "cowboys" who do not appear to be giving out receipts and do work for cash only at far cheaper prices than those that pay tax can work for. It's a tough time to have ethics in business and survive, yet I believe sincerely it is the only way.
I would like to encourage you who are tempted to absolutely refuse to do work for a price that is low and only profitable because tax is being evaded, this is illegal trading.
The penalties if you are caught is 150% of the legal amount of tax plus interest and late payment penalties. I mentioned this in my July newsletter, then in this week's Sunday Herald on Aug 8, there was an article reporting that the Ir are spending approx $40 million this year and annually for at least the next 5 years for investigation activities on tracking under-the-table earnings. The staff have now been hired, and the Ir are saying that they plan to make use of a number of different data sources to identify suppressed income.
For example: Group Manager Martin Scott says "a painter would buy his raw materials from a certain place that offers a discount. Depending upon the paint company record's we can determine broadly speaking what the painter's income should be."
The same article discusses how the Ir are constantly getting anonymous information and it is always followed up on by contacting the taxpayer directly.
If you are asked by a potential client "how much for cash?" - say simply "it's the same price - I bank all cash given to me". Lose a sale rather than risk your whole business via an investigation let alone a prosecution by the Ir.
The Ir have launched an online demonstration to encourage all employers to file the PAYE schedules electronically. It is easy to view with lots of screen shots.
So if you are not registered for this service already and you do file a monthly PAYE schedule please register for a "Secure Online Services" log-on and move to this fully automated system.
The Department of Labour have also launched a new website to help new employers meet their obligations - it is worth a detailed read if you want to hire anyone even part time or casually. It seems easy if you have heaps of work to just hire someone you know - but you must do it right by all the different employment laws or again the failure to deduct PAYE, Kiwi Saver, give an employment contract and discuss health and safety may come back to you in the form of stiff fines and penalties.
Click here to go to the website.
There will be a new flyer; Completing your GST Transitional Return (GST 107) which will help you prepare for this return, you can see it online now. Click here for more details.
The Ir now allow you to use either your credit card or your debit card to make all online payments. A 1.42% convenience fee will apply to all credit card or debit card payments. This being the case obviously don't use a debit card (what is the point in being penalised when you have the funds for online payment anyway).
We also will say only use your credit card under extreme emergencies for very short term debt problems. Interest rate on credit cards are around 19%. The interest rate on Ir debt currently is 8.9%, not including penalties. You can avoid penalties if you go on an arrangement, so if you are struggling to pay tax as mentioned in the newsletter please call us or the Ir and don't simply use your credit card - the problem can still compound very quickly.
To find out more go to the Ir site and type Credit Cards in the search box.
In every economic cycle there are some businesses that continue to trade well. As an accountant I am in a very privileged position to see the results of good businesses and talk with their proprietors and become a better business advisor as a result of participating in truly successful businesses.
What do you do above and beyond what is expected?
It's tough to beat customer expectations, it's even tough to write about here for I am so conscious of my own failures in this area. Yet it remains true that an outstanding commitment to superior customer service results in loyal customers.
Going the extra mile leads to greatness, rendering more and better service than promised, giving better value, tolerating personal inconveniences, paying attention to detail, assisting others in their work, being enthusiastic and passionate in your attitude, maintaining this positive attitude working hard as a daily life long habit.
It is not easy to do this day after day, week after week especially when at times your efforts are not noticed or even you find your customers now expect "superior service" and so are not easily pleased. Maybe your motives are questioned and your ability to lead others around you is knocked by their or your own failure. Being in business for yourself is not the easy path to riches.
Go the extra mile for your customers anyway - do more than you are paid to do with a willing smile on your face. Constantly try to add value to your customer's experience of your business. Try to help your clients, company and others around you succeed in their endeavours.
Behaviour never lies and in the end your business will have a much stronger chance of surviving and flourishing the recession and you will earn and enjoy the reward of business success emotionally and financially and your children and employees may even emulate you as well.
Many people get paid to do their work that's the common path and most employees and business owners fall into it, not so common are the few that work harder and with a better attitude than they are paid for. What do you do that is giving beyond what you are paid to give?
Thanks for subscribing and reading this newsletter and best wishes for the future - which is right now!
For more real life stories on this topic and it's value in business click here
"if we all did the things we are really capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves." - Thomas Edison
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