BAS Agents are now a very important part of the tax compliance landscape. They have been floating around since 2010 when the first group of agents became registered with the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) after the passing down of TASA 2009. TASA 2009 is legislation that makes it illegal for anyone to charge a fee for providing tax and BAS Services without first being registered. Unfortunately, who BAS Agents are and what they do, has not been widely publicised by the TPB and as a result, many business owners have either never heard of them or certainly aren’t aware of what they do. Today’s blog, therefore, is about educating business owners about what BAS Agents can do for them in terms of their tax compliance and other related tasks. To this end, I have created a list of 20 tasks BAS Agents can do for business owners, of which perhaps they may not be aware. See below:
1. Prepare and lodge your Business Activity Statement (BAS)
2. Prepare and lodge your Instalment Activity Statement (IAS)
3. Register your business for Goods and Services Tax (GST), Income Tax Instalment PAYG (ITI PAYG) and PAYG Withholding (if you are going to employ staff)
4. De-register your business for GST, PAYG ITI, luxury car tax, fuel tax credits, and Wine Equalisation Tax (WET)
5. Assist with cash flow by downloading and providing you with your current Integrated Client Account statement (shows how much BAS debt has been paid or not paid), so that you always know how much you owe to the ATO
6. Make paying the ATO easier by downloading and providing you with a payment slip so that you have the B-pay details at your fingertips
7. Prepare and lodge your Payment Summary Annual report (for those who are employers)
8. Assist you when you cannot lodge your BAS on time by applying to the ATO for a deferral on your behalf
9. Provide you with advice on all aspects of GST matters, WET, fuel tax credits, luxury car tax, GST and property sales, payment of Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT), PAYG ITI, Taxable Payments Annual reporting system and the superannuation guarantee system
10. If a mistake has been made on a previous BAS, your BAS Agent can review the error and if needs be, revise and relodge that BAS
11. If you disagree with a judgement the ATO has handed down to you regarding your BAS or any aspect relating to BAS provisions, your BAS Agent can lodge an objection on your behalf
12. Download and provide you with a report showing year-to-date interest charges you may have incurred from the ATO
13. Apply for a private ruling on your behalf should events in your business operations not be covered by the current ATO rulings
14. Apply for a replacement cheque on your behalf should you lose a refund cheque from the ATO
15. Lodge your Taxable Payments Annual report (if your business is part of the building and construction industry)
16. Ascertain and advise you about your superannuation guarantee liabilities, including providing reports and lodging employee contributions in a superannuation clearing house on your behalf.
17. If you have paid your superannuation guarantee contributions late (or not at all), a BAS Agent can complete the superannuation guarantee charge statement and lodge it with the ATO on your behalf
18. Lodge Tax File Number declarations on your behalf
19. Prepare your BAS figures on your behalf so that you can lodge the BAS yourself
20. Speak with the ATO on your behalf if required
So there you have it – 20 jobs your BAS Agent can do for you! This list isn’t exhaustive and other BAS Agents may chime in here with other tasks they do for their clients but it does give you an idea of the types of services BAS Agents provide on a daily basis.
If you are a business owner reading this, I hope you have had your eyes opened a little and now have a better understanding about BAS Agents and some of the things they do. Perhaps you didn’t know that we could provide any or all of the above services and are now contemplating finding a BAS Agent to assist you. The TPB has a complete list of all registered BAS Agents that you can search to find someone who may be suitable. Of course, e-BAS Accounts is a registered BAS Agent and we would be very happy to assist you and your business.
Already engaging a BAS Agent to assist your business operations? Good for you! Perhaps you have seen a task on my list that you didn’t know he/she could do for you; ask the agent to add it to the list of services already provided to you and make your business life a little easier 🙂
