SMEs optimistic, but without plans
Australian small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are optimistic about the coming year, despite many lacking a formal business plan.
Research from the Commonwealth Bank released in July 2014 found that 45 per cent of SMEs anticipated an increase in revenue, whereas only 28 per cent anticipated a decrease. Furthermore, 40 per cent expected an increase in profit and 33 per cent expected a decrease.
However, over half of the respondents (51 per cent) did not have a business plan in place for the coming financial year. 507 SMEs participated in the survey and all the businesses had an annual turnover of less than $10 million.
Understanding e-Conveyancing in Queensland
Lodgement of mortgages and discharges with the Queensland Land Registry can be completed electronically through Australia’s first national online e-Conveyancing platform, Property Exchange Australia (PEXA).
E-Conveyancing is the process of completing property transactions online, this includes electronic lodgement of the transaction with Land Registries and settlement of funds.
Over one million property transactions are completed in scope in Australia every year, according to PEXA. The aim of PEXA is to create an online business environment that provides users with time and cost benefits. This will be delivered through two releases.
Employers can now opt-in to SuperStream
The federal government’s new standard for making superannuation payments, SuperStream, is now available for employers.
SuperStream enables employers to make super contributions to employees’ super funds electronically by using linked data and payments. Employers were able to opt-in to the service from July 1 2014.
All payments towards employees’ super funds are to be treated the same way no matter what type of fund the employee has set up – a self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF), an Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) fund, a default fund or a super fund of their choice.
Debt agreements in Queensland reach a new high
Insolvency in Queensland
What is a Debt Agreement ? A debt agreement (also called a Part IX agreement) is a binding agreement under Part IX of the Bankruptcy Act 1966 between a debtor and their creditors whereby creditors agree to accept a sum of money (which is usually less than the outstanding amount) but which the debtor can afford to pay.
Debt agreements in Queensland reached an all time high in the June quarter 2014, however the level of bankruptcies and personal insolvency agreements decreased over the quarter.
Queensland has Australia’s lowest average workers’ compensation premium
WorkCover Queensland has reduced the rate of workers’ compensation premiums by 17 per cent, which is the lowest average rate in Australia. Premiums for employers have been reduced from $1.45 to $1.20 for every $100 paid in wages.
WorkCover Queensland Chairman Glenn Ferguson explained the Queensland Government workers’ compensation reforms and good financial management have transformed the organisation.
“Queensland’s workers’ compensation scheme is the best and fairest in Australia,” Mr Ferguson said in the June eSAFE newsletter.
Senate supports changes to financial advice laws
On July 15 2014 the Australian senate voted in support of amendments to financial advice laws legislated for in the Corporations Act 2001.
The changes will remove “unnecessary and costly red tape” for small business advisers, while still maintaining protection for consumers, according to a statement from the Minister of Finance’s office.
The statutory requirements that outline that financial advisers must act in the best interests of their clients and there must be no conflicted remuneration will remain in place. However, changes will be made regarding best interest duty, advice, fee disclosure and the resigning of contracts.
What is intestacy?
In Queensland an intestacy arises when a person dies but does not leave behind a valid will or does not effectively dispose of their property in the will.
Provisions for how assets are to be divided under state law are laid out in Part 3 of the Succession Act 1981. Distribution of the estate is passed on through next of kin. The immediate next of kin can be a spouse, a de facto partner or children and grandchildren.
Is my intellectual property protected?
Whether you are buying a business, buying a franchise, acquiring a licence connected to goods and services, or entering into a commercial agreement it is important to consider intellectual property (IP) ownership.
What is IP?
IP includes various intangible property rights including (among others), copyright, patents, trade marks and registered designs. Unlike common notions of property, IP is an intangible asset – but that makes it no less valuable. It is borne out of creative or innovative work undertaken by a business or an individual.
IP can be owned, leased, licenced, sold and transferred or given away just as physical property can.
What type of trust is right for me?
Financial and property matters can be a cause of stress when planning a will. A trust acts as a mechanism to bequeath your possessions how you want. An executor holds or distributes your money or estate according to your wishes.
A trust is a form of division of assets between one of more beneficiaries and a settlor. The settlor is the person who creates the trust. The assets are transferred to the beneficiary.
New Office of the Public Guardian protects children and adults
As of July 1 2014, the functions of the adult guardian and child guardian will be in the scope of a new statutory body, the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG).
The OPG is a new independent statutory body responsible for protecting the rights of young people in the child protection system as well as vulnerable adults found to have impaired decision making capacity.
Previously, the responsibility for protecting vulnerable adults and children came under two different independent bodies, the Office of the Adult Guardian (OAG) and the Commission for Children and Young People and Child Guardian (CCYPCG).
