Harris Black, Author at Harris Black

Meet the Staff: Taylor Dicken

10 October, 202210 October, 2022 by Harris Black

Harris Black welcomed Taylor Dicken to our team back in March 2022. Taylor has proven himself to be a valuable member of the Harris Black team and is to be congratulated for his recent promotion to Supervisor! Taylor enjoys going on weekend adventures with his family and recently trekked out to Stanthorpe for a getaway. When he is not busy with his wife and two young children, Taylor enjoys playing adventure style video games (his favorite franchise being the Dark Souls series).

Taylor’s dream place to live would be in a penthouse on the edge of Bondi beach. An ideal dinner party for Taylor would include the company of Warren Buffet, Lionel Messi, Queen Elizabeth II, and his Grandma Sarah.

In the unlikely case that he is stranded on a deserted island, Taylor would bring a water-powered generator, a wide-brim hat and a pocketknife. His Nan kindly taught him the skill of knitting and he wishes he could master the art of cooking dinner.

Taylor is looking forward to getting married in October and will be celebrating by enjoying a few glasses of his favourite beverage.. Bundaberg Rum & Coke. We pass on our well wishes to Taylor and his fiance Jacinta.

See a snippet of Taylor’s interview below:

Important Tax Date

10 October, 202210 October, 2022 by Harris Black

21 October 2022

Lodge and pay Quarter 1, 2022-23 PAYG instalment activity statement

Lodge and pay September 2022 monthly business activity statements

31 October 2022

Lodge tax returns for all entities prosecuted for non-lodgements of prior year returns and advised of a lodgement due date of 31 October 2022

21 November 2022

Lodge and pay October 2022 monthly business activity statement

25 November 2022

Lodge and pay quarter 1, 2022-23 activity statements if you lodge electronically

Having Trouble Finding Staff Right Now?

31 August, 2022 by Harris Black

by Renee Bettenay

When I filmed this video 12 months ago, I never thought it would be an even more critical issue for businesses. There is no doubt our clients are having trouble finding staff to fill roles within their business. This leads to the business owner and remaining staff picking up the slack and working in an unsustainable way which inhibits the business’ ability to grow.

Given this is such a topical issue, I thought I should repost the video to remind ourselves on possible ways to combat these staff shortages.

New Electric Car Discount

31 August, 202231 August, 2022 by Harris Black

The Government has introduced legislation into Parliament to implement an electric car discount.

The discount will involve:

Exemption from Fringe benefits tax (FBT) – a 47% tax on electric cars that are provided by the employer for private use

Import tariffs – a 5% tax on some imported electric cars

A car benefit is an exempt benefit for a year of tax if:

the car is a zero or low emissions vehicle

the value of the car at the first retail sale was below the luxury car tax threshold for fuel efficient vehicles (2022-23 threshold is $84,916), and

the car is first held and used on or after 1 July 2022.

Zero or low emissions vehicles are cars that are:

battery electric vehicles;

hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles; and

plug-in hybrid electric vehicles.

The new exemption will only apply to electric cars that are first held and used on or after 1 July 2022.

The exemption will not apply to hybrid electric vehicles that are not plug-in.

It will not apply to electric cars that employers have provided to employees for their use before 1 July 2022. This measure is yet to enter the Senate and is not yet law, however, will be retrospective when passed.

What Should My Business Focus On For The Financial Year Ahead?

31 August, 202231 August, 2022 by Harris Black

by Renee Bettenay

Growth and Profit are two key outcomes of a successful business. But to achieve a successful outcome a number of key factors must come together to create a winning business. At any point in time businesses have strengths and weaknesses in these key success factors and it is important that businesses identify these areas so that strategies can be put in place to help the business succeed. Harris Black, in conjunction with Mindshop, have created a Growth and Profit Diagnostic to help you identify the strengths and weaknesses of your business. Watch this video as Renee Bettenay, a Director of Harris Black, walks you through the diagnostics and the detailed reporting you will receive specific to your business.

HB Tech Space – Cryptocurrency

31 August, 2022 by Harris Black

In the past year, there’s a very high chance that you may have witnessed the surging popularity of crypto-currencies. According to finder.com.au, 22% of Australians possess cryptocurrency holdings, boasting one of the highest adoption rates in the world. Currently, the market capitalisation of all cryptocurrencies is AU$1.67 trillion, which is greater than that of the entire Australian share market! The rapid growth of cryptocurrencies within the past two years has caused it to emerge as a mainstream asset class. However, if you decide to invest there are several important considerations which you need to be aware of.

Firstly, if you purchase or sell cryptocurrencies, you may have tax obligations to fulfill. Similar to shares or property, cryptocurrencies are considered a capital asset and any profit on trading will need to be reported in your tax return for capital gains tax (CGT) purposes (even if you made a loss). This is often further complicated as one cryptocurrency can be traded for another, which results in two CGT events occurring for one transaction! For these reasons, it is important to maintain strong records of your trading activity for tax purposes. Most major trading platforms are able to generate detailed reports of your transactions containing key information (cost base, proceeds, quantity, transaction dates, etc…).

When compared to more traditional investment assets, cryptocurrency is extremely volatile and can be difficult to understand. The value of a cryptocurrency can also fluctuate widely based on market speculation and media coverage. Investors should perform their due diligence before deciding to invest. In addition, due to the low regulation, there is a looming danger of theft from scammers. The digital and relatively anonymous nature of cryptocurrencies also means it may be difficult to recover your assets in the case of theft. Investors should also be wary of scammers promising get-rich-quick-schemes promising unrealistic returns.

To conclude, cryptocurrencies present vast opportunities for investments however potential investors should ensure that they perform adequate research before investing. If you have any queries or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact your Harris Black team member and we will provide as much support as necessary.

Harris Black

Author: Harris Black