Happy new financial year! All you need to know for the new year

Over the weekend we’ve clicked over to a new financial year, which means a lot of changes that you need to get on top of.

Forget diet and exercise resolutions in January, make July the month you get on top of the carbon tax and all the other legal and tax changes the new financial year has brought in.

This is our guide to getting your new financial year off to a flying start.

Carbon tax

The carbon tax came into effect on July 1, but many businesses are unsure about what the tax actually means for them.

The tax does not directly impact SMEs but some businesses will be indirectly affected by the tax. We prepared a list of six things you should have considered before the advent of the carbon tax.

Didn’t get to it? There’s still time to address the response of your business to the carbon tax.

• Renegotiate your energy supply contract
• Double check any price increases by suppliers
• Reassess your prices
• Consider whether you need specialist advice
• Investigate government funding
• Look for the opportunities

Legal

It’s another financial year and another set of tweaks to the legal system.

Every time July 1 comes around, it seems there’s an avalanche of legal changes to wade through with regard to workplace, financial or personal law and this financial year is no different.

• Change to the unfair dismissal threshold
• Fee rise for IP Australia
• In three months, new FOFA laws will come into effect
• Credit card reform with new regulations 
• Trade license registration changes
• Road transport remuneration legislation with increased costs
• Minimum wage increase
• Paid paternity leave comes in
• Skilled migration changes
• Changes to the Australian Apprentices Incentives System
• Reduction in the solar rebate scheme
• Requirement to reporting on contractor payments in the building industry
• Changes to health funding
• A new system for aged care

Tax

Just as the new financial year brings a heap of legal changes entrepreneurs need to read up on, the tax system is also set for a refresh.

And it’s a big change coming this year. New tax brackets, two massive industry-wide taxes and a whole heap of new assistance means there’s a lot to get your head around.

Here are the key tax changes to familiarise yourself with:

• End of the flood levy
• Brand new tax brackets – including carbon tax assistance
• The instant asset write-off threshold has increased
• There are changes to the private health rebate
• A new research and development tax scheme
• Changes to employee termination payments
• Changes to tourist charges
• The end of the entrepreneurs’ tax offset
• Revised loss carry-back scheme
• Reductions in the living away from home allowance
• Increased building industry reporting
• Changes to fuel tax credits
• The mining tax starts
• Superannuation changes