One of your earliest business decisions should be whether you want to look after your invoicing, paying and record-keeping yourself or whether you want to pay a bookkeeper or registered agent to do all or part of this work.  This decision will affect how you set up your systems.  Some common business activities you may be required to perform are;

• issuing invoices and paying your bills
• making wages and super payments
• preparing cash books (paper or electronic)
• preparing activity statements
• preparing financial accounts, for example, profit and loss statements and balance sheets.

If you decide to engage professional help, ask what record-keeping system is best for you.

Note:  Only Registered BAS Agents are entitled to charge you a fee for preparing activity statements.

Regardless, regardless of who records and reports information, you are still legally responsible for the accuracy of the information.

You can check if a tax or BAS Agent is registered with the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB)

Bookkeepers

Bookkeepers provide a range of accounting services for employers or clients and may be responsible for tasks and functions such as;

• payroll entry
• data entry
• petty cash
• record-keeping
• reconciling bank accounts
• accounts payable and receivable

Bookkeepers cannot charge you to prepare and lodge activity statements unless they are also registered as a BAS Agent with the TPB.  However, if your bookkeeper is your paid employee, they may do this work for you and do not need to be registered.

Registered BAS Agents

BAS Agents provide advice and services on the following tax and super issues;

• GST
• fuel tax
• luxury car tax
• wine equalisation tax
• fringe benefits tax (collection and recovery only)
• pay as you go (PAYG) withholding
• PAYG instalments

Agents must follow strict regulations that ensure they act in a professional manner.  Make sure you ask the agent about their fees and their expertise with the type of service you need, before you decide who to use.