Martin runs a building company in the Macedon Ranges and employs several staff. Recently Martin fell behind on payments of his employees superannuation guarantee obligations.

A disgruntled employee who recently left the business checked his super fund statements to find that Martin had not paid his superannuation.

The former employee notified the ATO who conducted an audit of all of the company’s superannuation obligations and found that Martin had not been paying for the past few years.

As a result of the audit, Martin was ordered to pay the outstanding super amounts, an administrative penalty as well as interest accruing on the outstanding balance.

The ATO also advised Martin that if the superannuation is not paid by the company he could be liable personally as a director of the company and face further penalties.

Further, Martin should be aware of the increased compliance by the ATO as a result of legislative changes expected to be coming during the 2018 financial year.

Should you wish to discuss your payroll needs please feel free to contact Andrew Marshall or Janine Orpwood on 5427 8100 for an initial consultation.

Mavis currently earns $253,000 gross earnings per year as an office manager, her superannuation guarantee that is paid by her employer is 9.5% up until the maximum superannuation contribution base which comes to $20,049.

The new concessional contribution cap for 2018 is $25,000 which means Mavis has the ability to salary sacrifice up to this amount. As a result Mavis can salary sacrifice an additional $4,951 to be within the concessional superannuation contribution limit.

Mavis will need to consider Division 293 taxation consequences as her income (including reportable super) exceeds $250,000. Division 293 tax of 15% applies to concessional contributions when the $250,000 threshold is exceeded. As Mavis is $3,000 over the threshold she will pay an extra 15% tax on these superannuation contributions, equating to $450.

Should you wish to discuss your payroll needs please feel free to contact Andrew Marshall or Janine Orpwood on 5427 8100 for an initial consultation.

After speaking with their accountant they are aware of the need to complete a Special Withholding Form for non-resident employees. This enables them to withhold tax at 15% for the first $37,000 of income earned by each employee. If any employees earn over $37,000 tax would need to be withheld at ordinary rates.

Superannuation is required to be paid for all eligible employees, as such Brent and Jane need to ensure their new employees have superannuation paid at 9.5% on gross earnings. Foreign employees may apply to the ATO to release their superannuation (less tax) after departing Australia.

Brent and Jane should also consider whether their current WorkCover insurance covers the new employees.

Should you wish to discuss your payroll needs please feel free to contact Andrew Marshall or Janine Orpwood on 5427 8100 for an initial consultation.

Roy approached our office to get an understanding of the new generation of online or cloud based bookkeeping systems available. His current system is extremely time consuming and inefficient.

Benefits of using an online system:

– Ability to receive bank feeds which directs bank transactional data each day to the accounting system, no need to key in bank transactions.

– Improved debtor and invoicing control, which assists in cash flow.

– Access anywhere technology, from a computer, laptop, tablet or phone.

We assisted Roy with a trial version of a suitable product and after completing his first Business Activity Statement he was amazed at the time saved not only at month end but also during the period.

Should you wish to discuss your administration needs please feel free to contact Andrew Marshall or Janine Orpwood on 5427 8100 for an initial consultation.

If Jenny has employees in different states then she may have payroll tax liabilities in each state. Monthly wage thresholds vary from state to state.

The Victorian Budget announced an increase in the annual Payroll Tax threshold from $575,000 to $625,000 from 1 July 2017. The payroll tax rate is 4.85% and is collected by the State Revenue Office (SRO), therefore any amount in excess of $625,000 will have tax levied at this rate.

Payroll tax is based on but is not limited to the following:

• Ordinary times wages
• Superannuation
• Reportable FBT

Should you wish to discuss your Payroll Tax obligations please feel free to contact Andrew Marshall or Janine Orpwood on 5427 8100 for an initial consultation.