Tax Compliance and Consulting (Income Tax, GST, CGT, FBT, and Indirect Taxes)

The Australian taxation system comprises of a large number of Commonwealth and State and Territory based tax laws. Navigating your way through each of the taxation systems can be an enormous task that requires a deep understanding of the laws. At Nexis Accountants we have the specialist skills and technical experience to ensure all your compliance obligations are dealt with efficiently whilst minimising your fiscal obligations.

Our compliance service includes the following tax systems:

  • Preparation and lodgement of income tax returns for all types of entities including:
    • Individuals
    • Companies
    • Unit Trusts
    • Discretionary Trusts
    • Hybrid Trusts
    • Testamentary Trusts
    • Partnerships
    • Self Managed Superannuation Funds
    • Deceased Estates
  • Preparation and lodgement of Business Activity Statements
  • Preparation and lodgement of Fringe Benefits Tax Returns
  • Small Business Capital Gains Tax Concessions advice and planning to ensure all your years of hard work is not taken by the tax man
  • State based payroll tax forms and advice.
  • Provision of technical advice for those complex tax issues regarding
    • Income Tax
    • Capital Gains Tax
    • Goods and Services Tax
    • Fringe Benefits Tax
    • Foreign Income and Investment
    • State based taxes. E.g. payroll tax, stamp duty, land tax

Personal tax and planning advice including:

  • Negative gearing advice and tax impact analysis
  • Managing tax related matters

We also have extensive experience in providing consulting services to a range of clients including:

  • On-site assistance with completion of compliance obligations
  • Onsite / on-call assistance with tax technical issues, particularly with Government clients
Compliance Accounting including Management Accounts
  • Financial statements preparation to fulfill your compliance accounting needs for taxation reporting.
  • Management style accounts
    • In most cases the accounts prepared for income tax purposes do not provide accurate information for management decision making. We can prepare reports to assist managers on getting a clearer picture of business so that they can improve the business. This includes getting a clearer picture of fixed and variable costs, and the drivers that effect the business.
Accounting Information Systems Implementation and Support:

At Nexis Accountants we don’t restrict our clients to just one accounting system. We understand that there is not one accounting system that is perfect for everyone. For that reason we have, and are able to support, a wide range of accounting products. The main accounting systems we support are:

  • MYOB setup and support
  • Xero setup and support
  • Quickbooks support
  • Cash flow Manager
  • Banklink setup and support

We are also able to work with specialist industry based packages.

Business Improvement Services and Outsourced Financial Controller Service

Have you ever wondered why it is that some businesses keep going from strength to strength while others keep struggling despite their best efforts.
One of the reasons for this disparity is due to understanding your numbers. Typical financial reports include a profit and loss statement and balance sheet. These two reports can contain a lot of numbers which can appear daunting. Knowing which numbers to focus on to improve your business can become a nightmare and lead to frustration.

At Nexis Accountants we can show you how to interpret your numbers and discover the financial and non financial drivers required to improve your business. We liken this service to being your businesses financial controller. For most small and medium sized businesses, finding and retaining a qualified and suitably experienced financial controller may be unfeasible. A financial controller is a person who is not only across the accounting function of the business but also provides advice regarding:

  • Asset acquisitions
  • Managing Cash-flow
  • Preparing Forecasts and budgets
  • Project Evaluation

The benefits of our outsourced financial controller service include:

  • Cost effective advice to improve your business
  • Diligent follow up of action points to ensure your strategic plans are implemented
  • Access to a qualified and experienced team
  • Objective advice
  • Continuity of knowledge regardless of changes to book keeping personnel
  • A greater ability to advise you and to manage your taxation obligations.

Some of the tools we use to assist in improving your business include:

  • Business health check
    • This is an analysis of your business which gives you a snapshot of what your business’ strengths and weaknesses are so that you can address areas of concern.
  • What if scenario testing
    • Would you like to see the financial impact of a business decision before you make it? At Nexis we can prepare what if scenarios before you go spending your hard earned dollars
  • Key performance indicator analysis or (KPI’s)
    • KPI’s should and need to be used to determine how to best improve your business’ Growth, Profit and Liquidity
  • Break-even analysis
    • Do you know how much income you need to cover all variable and fixed expenses. A break-even analysis provides management and sales staff with the absolute minimum turnover targets the business needs to achieve each year, month and week
  • Identifying the key drivers of your business
    • Understanding the key financial drivers of your business will enable you to focus on the areas which can deliver the biggest gains to the business. Understanding what drives your business will not only assist in improving the business but should also improve the business’ value. Click here to learn more about our valuation services.
  • Preparation of a cashflow plan and monthly budgets
  • Preparation, review and updating Business Plans
Budget and Cashflow Projections

It is our opinion that all businesses should have both a budget and cashflow projection prepared, reviewed and regularly updated to reflect changes. We consider these tools essential to creating a profitable business as they require the business owner(s) to think ahead, and make changes to outcomes before it’s too late. They are also key reports in any business plan which can be used to support the business’ financing commitments and growth plans. The differences between a budget and a cashflow projection are often confused, so we have tried to explain them in the simplest way possible.

Budgets

A Budget is a forward projection of expected profit from sales less the costs of running the business during the year, or for a given project. Budgets are shown in terms of profit and loss in a similar way to the end of year compliance accounts are prepared. These often take into account debtors, creditors, stock levels, accruals and depreciation, but do not consider cash levels in the bank account at any point in time. A well prepared budget is essential to creating an accurate cash flow plan.

A budget also provides the business and its employees with a target to aim for. Preparing a budget and notifying your employees of the actual versus the budget may also improve employee productivity as employees often want to meet budget and see the business move forward. A strong business gives employees confidence and job security which in turn should assist the business by having lower staff turnover.

Cashflow plan

A Cashflow projection on the other hand is a plan that shows you how and when your income goes in to your bank account. It also shows you when and if you are able to pay for purchases from suppliers, GST and PAYG to the ATO, and other overheads such as rent and wages. Why can business fall short with cash? Because depending upon your business, often businesses order and pay for purchases or pay wages for work performed well before they raise the invoice and/or receive payment from customers. A well prepared cashflow projection will show you if this will be the case.

One of the most common questions we accountants are asked is “where has all the profit gone, as it’s not in the bank account?” The answer more than often lies in debtors, creditors, debt repayments, stock on hand, depreciation and private drawings.

A well planned cashflow forecast allows the business owner to see the effect the above items have on cashflow in advance.

At Nexis Accountants we use specialised software to assist in quickly preparing a profit and loss budget, a forecasted balance sheet and cashflow analysis. This software is far superior to spreadsheet modelling as it enables changes to flow through all reports accurately without the fear that not all the spreadsheet formulas are linked correctly.

Both budgets and cashflow projection are often requested by banks when being approached for loans and to meet loan covenants.

Benchmarking Analysis

Benchmarking is a process where “best practice” processes, operations and products are identified, created and delivered. The objective of benchmarking is to understand and evaluate the current position of your business in relation to best practise. This can be used to identify strengths and weaknesses, highlight opportunities and eliminate threats to the business. Once found, we can advise you on how to improve the performance of your business to assist you to become the market leader within your industry.

Key Performance Indicators

Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) are quantifiable measurements that reflect the critical success factors of your business. They help a business to define and measure progress towards achieving its goals and objectives and provide insight on which to make informed and appropriate decisions.

KPI’s are different from business to business and need to be customised for your business. They must be monitored regularly and improved so that you can achieve your goals. At Nexis we can create a KPI report that will enable you to monitor the performance of your business. Through the knowledge gained from this report and constant improvement, you will reap the rewards of achieving your goals and objectives.

Business Health Check

A Business Health Check is a crucial two page report that highlights where your business is healthy and growing and where your business needs serious attention because it is failing. This easy to understand report will highlight every area of your business that needs improvement to help your business thrive. It covers all the areas of a business including profitability, debt and interest coverage, efficiency, return, leverage and cash measures. By identifying the key areas of your business that need attention, we can immediately work together to ensure your business continues to grow.

Succession Planning

This is essentially planning for your retirement. Do you sell the business, leave it to the children, or put managers in place? Whatever the result, this is the most poorly planned strategy of most small business owners. We can assist you by discussing your options and formulating a plan to maximise the return on your hard work. By implementing a succession plan strategy well in advance of the estimated exit time you will:

  • Avoid the decision being imposed on you, meaning that you can exit on your terms and in your time period;
  • Make changes to the business to increase its value;
  • Protect yourself with correctly written shareholder agreements
  • Engage staff during the transition period to assist in retaining those staff
  • Implement a transition system which will educate, align strategies, and provide advice and support to new owners or managers.
Business Valuations and Acquisitions

Our valuations provide a fast, reliable, cost-effective and scientifically proven approach to valuing businesses. By working through a number of key factors which influence the value of a business, we can provide both formal and informal valuations which give you an accurate value of a business. Whether your valuation needs are due to an impending sale or purchase, due to a relationship breakdown, or simply for information, we can provide a valuation which suits your needs. In addition, we can analyse the valuation result to provide you with clear advice and a structured plan as to how the value in your business can be improved

Click here to learn more about our valuation services.

Staff Value Program

Do you want to retain the best staff in your business? Suffering from a high staff turnover?
Our Staff Value Program addresses the need of a business to attract, retain and motivate its brightest and most talented staff. By marrying the needs of the business owners with the needs of staff, we develop a tailored, comprehensive program that establishes an effective staff incentive program and improves staff performance, productivity and attitude. This program has been proven to increase staff motivation and retention and it has been successfully implemented in various businesses of different industries across Australia and New Zealand with great results.

Click here to learn more about our staff value program.

Business Life Program

Are you Growing or Going? Have you considered how to Grow your business? Have you started to prepare your business for you to Go? Do you have a set of prioritised goals for your business and yourself?
Our Business Life Plans address these questions and more. Business Life Planning is a proven process which enables you to develop clearly documented strategies and action plans taking into account all aspects of your life. By attending a one-on-one workshop and considering your past, present and future position, a detailed report is developed which documents your journey, life changing events, financial performance, comparisons to best practice, growth and succession goals, action plans and time lines. Our Business Life Plan will also ensure you have adequately considered succession and/or transition plans for your business.

Click here to learn more about our business life program.< /p>

Business and Investment Structuring

One of the most important decisions to be made regarding your business is determining which structure will work best for your business. A number of important factors need to be considered and weighed-up to ensure you get a business structure that is right for you. By choosing the right structure, you can minimise your tax bill, provide flexibility to grow your business and protect your assets.
Choosing a structure is not only relevant for businesses in the start up phase, but also for established businesses. A business structure should be regularly reviewed to ensure that the current structure is not holding your business back.
Nexis can assist with a review of your current structure and growth plans ensuring appropriate changes are made to your structure as required.

Asset Accumulation and Protection

If you have assets and run a business you need to protect them from potential creditors and threats. We can assist in protecting assets from the reach of others.

Superannuation Tax Advice

Superannuation is arguably the most tax effective way of saving for retirement. We can advise on how superannuation could be incorporated into your overall wealth creation strategy.

Self Managed Superannuation Fund Administration

Do you have a SMSF? We can help you keep it compliant and prepare the books on our specialized superannuation software.

Research and Development Tax Concessions

Eligible R & D expenditure qualifies for accelerated tax deductions. Our team will ensure you don’t miss out on these generous concessions.

Company Secretarial Services (registered office, ASIC compliance)

We are happy to be your company’s registered office. We ensure your ASIC obligations are kept up to date

Financing Advice

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In addition to these services, we have developed key strategic alliances with related professional services. Theses relationships give our clients confidence that their interests are at the forefront of any advice.

These services currently include:

  • Financial planning and investment advice
  • Business insurance
  • Personal risk insurance
  • Investment property sourcing
  • Estate Planning Legal services
  • General Legal services
  • Business banking
  • Mortgage broking services