I realise the hurdles small businesses face particularly when you start to expand and take on more staff.
One such hurdle is coming to grips with payroll tax.
There is so much government compliance work to do these days. And sometimes things can creep up on you without expecting. Take payroll tax for example. When you start a business you generally won’t pay payroll tax because you will be below the Government’s threshold. However, as you expand and employ more staff you (should) realise that you now have payroll tax to pay.
That’s when you need a payroll tax specialist.
Even though payroll tax is a State based tax it applies throughout Australia because every State and Territory in Australia charges payroll tax.
Payroll tax has far reaching consequences for business. It has been described as the unfairest tax of all because it has nothing to do with a business’s profitability, only the number of staff you employ. Sometimes the tax also applies to payments made to contractors. Unfortunately, the more staff you employ, the more payroll tax you pay. That doesn’t make sense, does it? You are penalised for providing more jobs to people and because of that you must pay more payroll tax.
Payroll tax also applies to superannuation payments, long service leave, overtime payments and directors’ fees. It applies to almost all payments made by employers to employees including directors.
As payroll tax specialists we have found that the two most overlooked payments when taxpayers lodge their returns with the Office of State Revenue are superannuation payments and directors’ fees.
At Tobin Partners we have a payroll tax specialist team that does nothing but advise businesses on the legal aspects of payroll tax. We are not accountants. We are payroll tax lawyers.
The Payroll Tax legislation is complex and at times difficult to comprehend. But because we specialise in payroll tax we can guide you through the maize and help you understand your payroll tax obligations. We are also focused on not just giving advice to business, but trying to find solutions for our clients.
