Small Business Help During Help During GFC
Two measures that help Small businesses with less than $2 million in annual turnover.
- You can apply for a GIC or General Interest Charge free payment on BAS debt until the end of June, 2010. The ATO handles these arrangements.
- A BAS payment due date deferment of 1 month can be requested if you pay monthly and a deferral of up to 2 months can be requested on those that pay quarterly or annually. You won’t be charged interest during the deferral period, but you will still need to lodge your BAS on time.
Small Business and General Business Tax Break
If you are eligible, you can take advantage of a depreciation deduction that would be 150% of the purchase price over the life of an asset. The tax break only applies to small businesses with an annual turnover of $2 million or less. Additionally it applies to new depreciable assets or enhances the current assets that are purchased by 31 December 2009. The depreciation has been increased from 30% to 50% on assets that cost more than $1000 and are installed or are ready for use by 31 December 2010. If this criteria is met, you will be able to claim 50% of the purchase price on your tax return in the year it was installed, ready for use or first used.
A 10% tax deduction is available for businesses that have an annual turnover of $2 million or more.
Research & Development
In the tax year 2010-2011, the new and simplified R & D Tax Credit will replace the current R & D Tax Concession. For businesses with an annual turnover of less than $20 million, a tax refund of 45% of your R&D expenditure will be applied when your annual return is filed. Additionally, for small businesses with a tax loss, this refundable tax credit still applies and the level of R&D expenditure has no limit. This is equal to a tax allowance of 150%. You will receive a 40% non-refundable credit, if you have an annual turnover that exceeds $20 million under the new system, which is 133% in tax allowances.
