Accounting

Small businesses struggling with debt have been offered a lifeline through reforms to small business insolvency rules. The changes to Australia's insolvency rules were designed to assist with restructuring and relieving the debt burden of small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The changes, including a new debt restructuring process and a simplified liquidation process, will apply to incorporated small...

Experts have been sounding the siren for months, warning about a sharp increase in the number of business insolvencies and bankruptcies when Federal Government support and subsidies end. JobKeeper has been a lifeline for many businesses but RSM partner Jon Colbran says the decrease in rates on 28 September will take businesses one step closer towards the precipice. Mr Colbran...

There is no doubt that good businesses have been hit hard in 2020 but once this recession is behind them they will likely emerge leaner and ready for a new business cycle. But what about the businesses that were battling before COVID-19? RSM Canberra Partner Jonathon Colbran says there are many companies operating today that were sick before COVID-19 and...

Chris Oates first started in the finance industry as a client service officer in a financial planning firm. Although he grew up on a farm in Orange, and had the option of becoming a farmer, the world of numbers took him down the financial path. He has never looked back, but still enjoys returning to the family farm when he...

It's July, time to drag out those boxes of receipts and prepare to lodge your tax return. Whether you do it yourself or use an agent, there are a few things that will make tax time a little different for many people this year, and some things you may need to be extra careful about claiming. For a start, employers...

If the days of a straight career path, moving from school to uni to work, seem long gone, RSM's Thomas Skeffington's career path is best described as full circle. Growing up in a country town, Thomas went to university in the city and travelled the world but then returned to university and ended up back where he came from. And...

Justin Wong is a numbers guy. He loves crunching them, and helping clients understand and use them to full advantage in business. That’s why Justin opened PAQ Group, a bookkeeping and payroll solution that has designed its services especially for small business. “The benefits of understanding your financial position are enormous,” says Justin. “It lets business owners focus on their...

Tax season is well and truly upon us, and the question on every Canberran’s lips right now is... how do I pay less tax? With so many enticing ways to spend our money, paying more tax than we need to certainly isn’t one of them. A few weeks ago, the Federal Government’s plans to increase the low and middle-income tax...

Chasing unpaid invoices isn’t fun, or an effective use of time for any business. Yet cash flow is king for businesses to grow and be sustainable. Bradley Allen Love (BAL) Lawyers is the legal partner of a new debt recovery website to help businesses get fast payment from debtors. Enforce Recoveries will be officially launched at BAL’s Business Breakfast Club...

On 1 January 2019, a new standard for lease accounting came into effect, affecting any organisations that lease buildings, offices, retail spaces, cars, equipment and even intellectual property, from a lessor. The new standard, AASB 16 Leases, is being implemented globally by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). It requires calculating the entire cost of a lease agreement (from the...

You’re an executor and are thinking that the easiest and most efficient way to administer a deceased estate is to sell the assets and divide the proceeds among the beneficiaries. You’re also feeling a bit of pressure from the emotions and financial need of beneficiaries. But is selling the assets the way to go? Ellen Bradley, Senior Associate at Bradley...

Women who raise children and care for ailing members of their family are often left with the least amount of superannuation for their retirement. Across Australia, most women have on average about $157,000 in their superannuation fund when they retire. According to RSM Australia, this is woefully inadequate and well below the recommended amount of $545,000 required for a single...

We’re fast approaching the busiest time of the year for accounting firms—tax time! Whether you view the end of the financial year as an opportunity to reconcile, review and reflect on the year that’s been, or you simply view it as a pain in the backside, most of us are focused on one thing—to avoid paying any more tax than...