The clock is well and truly ticking for the 2019/20 financial year, are you aware of the legal changes impacting your business? Avoid making costly mistakes and take a look at our checklist to make sure you are up-to-speed.
People & Payroll
Age pension
From 1 July 2019, the qualifying age for the age pension is 66 years. This will continue to increase by 6 months every two years. Click here for more information.
Minimum wage increase
The national minimum wage has increased by 3%, effective from 1 July 2019. Now 740.80 per week or $19.49 per hour, it has increased be $21.60 per week. Click here for more information.
Payment Summaries
From this financial year, payment summaries have been replaced with an income statement. This change comes following the introduction of Single Touch Payroll and means that employees will log into their my Gov account at the end of the financial year to access their income statement. For persons who use a registered tax agent to lodge their income tax return, the agent will receive a copy directly from the Australian Taxation Office. Click here for more information.
Single Touch Payroll
Single Touch Payroll extended to small employers with 19 or less employees from 1 July 2019. There is a three-month transition period so you can start reporting any time from 1 July – 30 September. Click here for more information.
Whistleblower protections
New whistleblower laws are now in place to allow people to make protected disclosures about a range of misconduct. Protection now extends to include third parties, penalties apply for breaching confidentiality, victimising and threatening whistleblowers, and mandatory requirements now apply for public companies and most large private companies to have a whistleblower policy. Click here for more information.
Superannuation
New regulations have been imposed to superannuation funds from 1 July 2019. These include an opt-in measure for insurance provided through your fund, a fee limit of 3% per annum for account balances less than $6,000 and inactive measures for accounts not accessed for 16 months or with a balance of less than $6,000. Click here for more information.
Tax & Assets
Instant asset write-off
The threshold for the instant asset write-off has increased to $30,000 and has been extended to 20 June 2020.It now includes businesses with a turnover from $10 million to less than $50 million. These businesses can claim a deduction of up to $30,000 for the business portion of each asset (new or second hand), purchased and first used or installed ready for use from 7.30pm (AEDT) on 2 April 2019 until 30 June 2020. Click here for more information.
Land Tax
Companies and trusts with combined landholdings of $5 million or more will face increased land tax rates from 30 June 2019. For landholding of more than $5,000,000 but $10,000,000 or less land tax rates will increase from 2% to 2.25%. For landholdings of more than $10,000,000, land tax rates will increase from 2.5% to 2.75%. Click here for more information.
Large proprietary company threshold
*Large* company thresholds have been extended, meaning that proprietary companies who no longer meet two of the following criteria will not be required to comply with financial reporting and audit obligations.
o $50 million in consolidated revenue
o $25 million in consolidated gross assets
o 100 employees
Click here for more information.
Payroll tax
The tax-free threshold for Queensland businesses having to pay payroll tax has increased from $1.1 to $1.3 million. For large businesses with a payroll above $6.5 million, the payroll tax rate is now 4.95%. From 1 July 2019 to 30 June 2023, regional employers may be entitled to a 1% discount on the rate. Click here for more information.
Do you need some legal help understanding or implementing any of the above changes? Contact Jeremy and Noel on (07) 4632 0480.
