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Business Services

Accounting and tax responsibilities that come with running a business

ASAP Accounting & Taxation can help you navigate the accounting and tax responsibilities that come with running a business.

We can advise you on the best structure to set up your business. We can also assist you in the setting up of a Company, Partnership, Trust or Self-Managed Super Fund.

Our team is experienced and dedicated to providing timely and proactive solutions for all your accounting, taxation and business needs. In fact our experience covers the whole realm of tax and associated accounting and business advisory, from compliance to growth and tax-effective strategies.

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Josie Taylor

Practice Principal, Josie Taylor is CPA qualified and has a Bachelor Degree in Accounting. She is also a Registered Tax Agent and has been in the taxation industry since 1997.

Amanda Foster

Amanda Foster holds a Diploma in Finance and Mortgage Broking Management. With extensive experience in the finance industry, Amanda has been dedicated to helping clients navigate their mortgage and finance needs. She is also a Registered Tax Agent and has been in the industry since 2009. She stays current with industry standards and practices through continuous professional development.
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Reducing Tax by Maximising Tax Deductions

What is a tax deduction?

The ATO criteria and definition of a tax deduction is:

  • It must be spent
  • It must be necessarily incurred in earning your income.

A definition we use is:

  • A tax deduction is an expense that is related to your income.

No matter how complex the system becomes with new taxes and different laws, fundamentally the basic formula applies; whenever you spend money to make money that's a tax deduction, but only if you were making money first!

"Willingness to look outside the box is required by both you and us."

The size of your tax deductions is directly related to your ability to know and track all your expenses.

Using our definition of a tax deduction, you can easily determine if an expense is a tax deduction or not. If you're unsure, then by all means ask us. A proactive accountant is one who works with you to really maximise your deductions, but it is up to you to first make sure you've tracked and included all possible expenses. If you don't tell ASAP Accounting & Taxation that you spent $100 on tolls or include it in your bookkeeping, how will it ever be deducted?

The simple act of seeing how an expense could legitimately be related to your income producing activity is the key and it also, incidentally, gives you a great index as to the pro activeness of your accountant. ASAP Accounting & Taxation are willing to try and see how an expense can be related we don't just dismiss the "tricky" ones without regard.

For example, if your job entailed a considerable amount of time working outdoors then safety sunglasses could be a related expense. But you'd have a tough time relating sunglasses to an office job!

Therefore, willingness to look outside the box is required by both you and ASAP Accounting & Taxation.

The first step, however, is to record the sunglasses as an expense. If you're ever in doubt as to whether an item is an expense or not, include it in your bookkeeping and nut it out with ASAP Accounting & Taxation at tax time. If you fail to record it in the first place then you've lost the opportunity to claim it altogether.

So part of being an investor or business owner is making that extra effort to record and claim all that you legitimately can. After all, you've worked for the money and by organising your paperwork you'll be able to keep that little bit extra in your back pocket!

So don't forget to stop and ask yourself "How can this expense be legitimately related to my income?"

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2026 Hot Spots

The 2026 compliance landscape reflects heightened ATO data matching, targeted audits, and systemic monitoring.

Taxpayers and need to be diligent in reporting all income accurately, substantiating deductions, clearly separating business from personal assets, and understanding industry-specific risks to minimize exposure to penalties or audits.

Work-related expenses: Overclaimed or undocumented deductions remain under scrutiny. Proper substantiation is mandatory.

Omitted income: Side hustles, rental income, and bank interest must be fully declared. Cross-checking from employers, banks, and digital platforms is increasingly automated.

Work from home claims: Fixed Rate Method (70 cents/hour) and Actual Cost Method require accurate record-keeping.

Correction of past mistakes: Amendments for prior overclaimed deductions or missed income are viewed favorably.

Instant Asset write-off

Australian small businesses can immediately deduct eligible assets costing up to $20,000 in the 2025–26 financial year, helping reduce taxable income and improve cash flow. 

  • Per-Asset Limit: Each asset costing $20,000 or less is fully deductible; multiple assets can be claimed. 
  • Business Eligibility: Must be a small business with aggregated turnover under $10 million and using simplified depreciation rules. 
  • Timing Requirement: Asset must be first used or installed ready for use between 1 July 2025 and 30 June 2026. Delivery alone does not qualify.
  • Eligible Assets: Most business depreciating assets such as office equipment, tools, computers, furniture, fit-outs, and non-passenger vehicles like utes, vans, and trucks. Mixed-use assets are deductible only for the business-use portion.

Benefits: Applying the instant asset write-off accelerates deductions, reduces taxable income immediately, and improves cash flow compared to standard depreciation over multiple years.

Future Outlook: From 1 July 2026, the $20,000 threshold is planned to become permanent, removing previous year-by-year uncertainty, though this is not yet legislated.

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Australian Business Number (ABN)

ASAP can help register you for an ABN or re-Activate an old ABN with one simple phone call to (02) 4578 6088.

Your ABN is a unique 11-digit identifier that makes it easier for businesses to interact.

You will need an ABN to:

  • Operate in the GST system, including claiming GST credits
  • Avoid Pay as you go (PAYG) tax on payments you receive
  • Confirm your business identity to others when ordering & invoicing

Do You Need to register for GST?

You need to register for GST if you run a business or enterprise and your GST turnover is $75,000 or more ($150,000 or more for non-profit organisations).

If you're not registered for GST, check each month to see whether you've reached the threshold, or are likely to exceed it. If you're turnover exceeds the relevant threshold, then you must register within 21 days of reaching it.

ASAP Accounting & Taxation can help you register when you first register your business or at any later time.

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Single Touch Payroll is here!

What is STP?

STP works by sending tax and super information from your STP-enabled payroll or accounting software to the ATO as you run your payroll.

You will:

  • run your payroll
  • pay your employees as normal
  • give them a payslip.

Your pay cycle does not need to change. You can continue to pay your employees weekly, fortnightly or monthly.

Your STP-enabled payroll software will send a report to the ATO which includes the information they need from you, such as:

  • salaries and wages
  • pay as you go (PAYG) withholding
  • super liability information.

The employer reporting guidelines from ATO contains a full list of payments that must be reported through STP.

Super funds will also be reporting to the ATO. They'll let them know when you make the super payment to your employees' chosen or default fund. This is an important step toward making sure employees are paid their correct entitlements.

ATO systems will match the STP information to our employer and employee records.

If your employees have a myGov account linked to ATO online services, they will be able to see their year-to-date tax and super information in their Income statement. Their data is updated every time you report. For most employers, this will be each pay day.

At the end of the financial year you'll need to finalise your STP data. This means you are making a declaration that you have completed your reporting for the financial year.

Once you finalise your data, your employees' Income statement in ATO online services will be marked as 'Tax ready'. They, or their registered agent, will use the Income statement to lodge their tax return.

You won't need to provide the ATO with a payment summary annual report for the payments you report through STP.

If you currently lodge an activity statement you will continue to do so.

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Payday Super: What Employers Need to Know for 1 July 2026

What is Payday Super?

Payday Super is a major change to Australia’s superannuation system that takes effect from 1 July 2026. Under the new rules, employers must pay superannuation at the same time as wages, rather than quarterly.

What Employers Need to Do

To be ready by 1 July 2026, employers should:
  • Review payroll software to ensure it supports payday super
  • Confirm super clearing house processing times
  • Update internal payroll workflows
  • Ensure funds are available each pay cycle
  • Train staff responsible for payroll and super

What Is Changing

  • Super contributions will be due on payday, not at the end of each quarter.
  • The rule applies to all businesses with employees.
  • Reporting will become more frequent and more closely monitored through Single Touch Payroll (STP).

Consequences of Non-Compliance

Late or missed payments may result in:
  • Super Guarantee Charge (SGC) liabilities
  • Additional ATO reporting obligations
  • Administrative penalties and interest