Hi all,
The end of financial year is just around the corner in Australia and EOFY experts have revealed the most common slip-ups SME clients make around this crucial time of year. These include miscoding bank transactions and no contact with their accountant over the financial year.
In an Institute of Public Accountants (IPA) member survey conducted in partnership with MYOB, 56 per cent of respondents said their clients were almost prepared with submitting their EOFY statements but just needed to finalise a few things. 40 per cent said their clients try but need much more preparation, while 4 per cent said their clients weren’t prepared at all. No respondents said their clients were completely prepared.
The survey suggests a growing proportion of business operators are not making contact with their accountant over the financial year and are not making the most of their accounting software functionality. However, business operators are making inroads into their accounts and record keeping:
- Miscoding bank transactions (65%) – on par with last year's survey
- Not keeping accounts and records up-to-date throughout the year (58%), slightly down on 62%
- No contact with their accountant over the financial year (58%), up from 42%
- Does not provide enough detailed or supporting information (49%), down on 64%
- Not fully trained up on accounting software functionality (46%), up from 39%
When asked about the most important steps business operators could take to prepare for EOFY, accountants ranked “advise on any major transactions throughout the year as they happen (sale of land, shares etc)” first (91%). Second equal was “responding to requests for additional information in a timely manner” (84%) and “clarity and consistency of information provided in support of their financial statement” (84%). Third was “ensure all documents sent through are labelled/organised”.
IPA chief executive officer, Andrew Conway encourages small businesses to draw on the expertise of their public accountant beyond compliance reporting and income tax returns. "Engagement with their accountant during the course of the year can be very beneficial, as they can access strategic business and planning advice to help them become more profitable. They can also be provided with a more holistic service including assistance with sales and growth forecasts, cash flow management, accessing funds and succession planning."
MYOB General Manager, Accountants Division, Adam Ferguson said while it was always tempting to “put the books on the backburner” a lack of preparation is often the reason why June 30 fills business owners and their loved ones with dread. “64% of SMEs use an accountant to help them with EOFY compliance. The small businesses who work closely with an accountant and also use trusted online accounting solutions are significantly reducing time-consuming errors.”
You can visit http://myob.com.au/taxtime for a summary of major tax changes, helpful tips, resources and more.
As we gear up for EOFY in Australia, it’s been another very busy week on the Community Forum. There were again over 1000 posts, including 400 from MYOB staff.
Our top contributors this week were The_Doc, Mike_James, Julie_A_C, DuncanS and CloudMindAcc. Many thanks for all your hard work assisting other community members.
Thank you to all those community members who have recently shared their expertise on the Community Forum. Please let me know if you ever need any assistance in getting the most from the forum.
Love your work,
Jason Hill
Community Manager
