What is Return?

Every Australian resident, whether he is an individual or a business is required to file a tax return to the Australian Government.

The statement includes all the particulars of profit and loss earned or lost by the assessee during the accounting year.

What is Company Tax Return?

The Australian government have imposed a self-assessment liability over the corporates, to assess the true profits or losses of the business.

The term company includes all kinds of companies such as:

• Public Companies
• Private Companies
• Non-Profit Companies

What Company Return Doesn’t Include?

The company tax return is accompanied by all the particulars, such as Statement of profit and loss, Balance Sheet, Cash Flow Statements, etc. Apart from the financials, a return of the company doesn’t include:

• Records
• Statements
• Minute Books
• Notices, etc.

What is Accounting Year For Companies?

Accounting year for the corporates or the companies is the same as the accounting year for the individuals, i.e. 1st July to 30th June every year. By default, it is same for every business.

The above mentioned financial year is divided into 4 Quarters having 3 months each. These are as follows:

1.Quarter  1 – 1 July to 30 September
2.Quarter 2 – 1 October to 31 December
3.Quarter 3 – 1 January to 31 March
4.Quarter 4 – 1 April to 30 June

Note:

• A different financial year from 1 January to 31st December, can also be chosen.
• The return of the current financial year is to be filed in the next financial year on 30th October.

Consequences of Non-Filing or Mistakes in Return

The firm or the company that fails to comply with the norms or fails to lodge the return in the prescribed time period is subject to penalties and fines by the taxation department.

The assessment of company return has a huge impact on the business, as the way the taxation department looks at the company tax return is completely different from the individual return.

The income tax commissioner is deemed to have assessed the particulars on the date of lodging of tax return of the company.

Note: In case of any discrepancies, the commission may also call for a special audit of Accounts by an independent Qualified Accountant.

Conclusion

However, filing a corporate return in Australia is a simple process, but you need to closely monitor the process of record-keeping and account maintenance. The company accounts needs to be presented as per the global frameworks of Standards.

If you are unsure about the various standards to follow, you can hire some professional services from Taxgain to increase the credibility of the accounts and avoid any inconvenience in the future.