GST, or General Sales Tax, is a goods a services tax that is levied on most goods and services sold for domestic consumption. The tax is absorbed into the final price of a product or service and paid to the government at the end of the financial year by the business selling the goods or service. It’s a term you will have heard often, although it’s not something consumers actively need to consider due to the tax included in sale prices, making it easily forgotten.

You may think every business is required to pay GST, and while this is mostly correct, this isn’t always the case. Any company that is turning over less than $75,000 is not required to include GST in the price of their goods and services. This means if your small side gig or your new business venture does not anticipate turning over this much in its first year, or ever (if you want your side gig to remain just that), GST will not apply to you.
However, suppose your small business gains some traction and sales begin to pick up (congratulations!), which sees your turnover exceed $75,000. In this case, you are now under a legal obligation to register for GST.

You can apply for GST through the ATO or through your tax agent, which will ensure everything has been completed correctly and there are no discrepancies with information. If you don’t already have an Australian Business Number (ABN), this can be done here, too; however, you can still register for GST retrospectively if you already have an ABN.
Once you are registered, you will be required to add goods and service tax on most goods and services you sell, which is then collected by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) when it is due. This tax is an additional 10 percent of your goods and service price.

From here, you can pay your GST quarterly or annually, depending on what works best for you and your business. However, there is a fair bit of work to retain all of your sales and purchasing information from here. Until now, you might have kept an enormous draw full of business purchase receipts and a desk full of accounting information and invoicing, which is now overflowing. It can get pretty overwhelming, and as your business grows, so does the paper trail.

How can bookkeeping service Brisbane help you keep on top of your business books and support you? We have the perfect small business bookkeeping package from $38 a week, but this can be tailored depending on your required services. If you’re on top of most things but need extra assistance at the end of the financial year, not a problem, we have a service for that. Or, if you would like bookkeeping support all year round, outsourcing the maths headache and reducing your paper clutter, we can arrange this for you. In fact, any bookkeeping need for your small business is the name of our game. Our small business bookkeeping package is designed specifically for small family-run businesses with five or fewer staff or contractors. We have a range of software programs that make invoicing, pay staff, and contribute to their Super streamlined and straightforward.

So, if this is your first financial year as a business registered for GST, and you’d feel more at ease with some assistance to get all your books in order before you complete your tax return or send them off to your accountant, don’t stress! Call Everest Business Solutions today for all your bookkeeping services Brisbane. We’ll be ready to help!