Company

Registering for an ABN and applying for GST refunds when you don’t own a business or are not eligible is fraud.

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has identified a significant number of GST refund fraud attempts, totalling an estimated $850 million to around 40,000 individuals. This fraud involves predominantly participants inventing fake businesses to claim false refunds.

Sophisticated risk models deployed by the ATO, coupled with intelligence received from banks including through the AUSTRAC-led Fintel Alliance and the Reserve Bank of Australia, identified a recent spike in suspicious refunds. Currently, the ATO has stopped $770 million in payments from being issued.

The fraud involves offenders inventing fake businesses and Australian Business Number (ABN) applications, many in their own names, then submitting fictitious Business Activity Statements in an attempt to gain a false GST refund.

Currently, this fraudulent activity has been circulating as online advertising and content, particularly on social media and their platforms.

Reminders For The Community

• The ATO does not offer loans. If you see someone advertising a way to get a loan from the ATO, it’s not legitimate.
• The ATO does not administer COVID disaster payments.
• If you are not operating a business, you do not need an ABN, and you don’t need to lodge a GST return.
• Backdating your business registration so you can apply for a refund will flag you as high risk in our systems.
• False declarations may impact eligibility for other government payments.
• The ATO possess the data matching ability to detect these patterns and stop fraud.
• If something seems too good to be true, seek independent advice from an adviser who has no connection to the arrangement before taking any action, or phone the ATO.

What This Means For Businesses

• Legitimate businesses may face extra steps to receive their refunds as extra controls are put in place.
• To prevent people from lodging fraudulent claims, the ATO have engaged tighter controls around ABN and GST registration.

Were You Involved?

The ATO is urging anyone already involved to come forward now on a voluntary basis rather than face tougher consequences later. They will be recouping the funds, and there will likely be a better outcome for you if you approach them first.

People who have participated in this fraud may have unwittingly followed the advice they have read online, claiming to help access a loan from the ATO, or receive other financial government support such as a disaster payment.

However, for others where there was nothing accidental or unintentional about setting up a fake business in their own name and seeking an unearned refund, harsher penalties could be faced.

If you become involved in this arrangement, you need to speak with the ATO now. They will be able to support you with a range of self-help options. You may be able to correct it yourself, the ATO may be able to assist you, or you may be referred to a trusted advisor like a tax agent to help you.

As you grow older, your aim may be to live a long, happy and healthy life. This is hopefully with the mental capacity to make your own financial and lifestyle decisions, and the appropriate superannuation to fund it.

But not everyone is always able to do this as they grow older. In the worst-case scenario, you may find yourself unable to make those choices yourself due to a diminished mental capacity (such as from mental deterioration, illness etc). If you can’t make your financial decisions, this could be bad.

There is often a misconception that people who lose their capacity to make, for example, financial decisions will simply be able to have their partner or spouse step in to make those decisions on their behalf. This is not the case.

Even f you are in a relationship with someone or own property jointly with them, they do not automatically have the power to make those financial decisions for you. This is where estate planning comes into play.

An estate plan records what you want to be done with your assets after your death. It can include documents such as:

• your will
• a testamentary trust (as part of your will)
• superannuation binding nominations

It also covers how you want to be cared for — medically and financially — if you can no longer make your own decisions. This part of your estate plan may be in documents such as:

• any powers of attorney
• a power of guardianship (giving someone the right to choose where you live and to make decisions about your medical care)
• an advance healthcare directive (your needs, values and preferences for your future care)

You may also choose to create an Enduring Power Of Attorney, which is a substitute decision-maker on your behalf. An EPOA is essential for clients who have their own Self-Managed Super Fund (SMSF).

The SMSF regulations require that members of the SMSF are either a trustee of the fund or directors of a company acting as the trustee. If a fund member is incapacitated, the member cannot be a trustee or a Director of a company. If that occurs, the SMSF becomes ‘non-complying’ which means it loses the tax concessions given by the super regulations.

Depending on your state of residence, powers of attorney may have different rights and obligations, particularly with respect to financial matters. Doing research and consulting with us about what your course of action could be if you were to lose your mental capacity for financial decisions could be a great start.

What is the origin story of your business? Why did it begin?

Many people might say publicly that they went into business to make a better future. Others might say that they began the business to pursue a passion. You may have simply wanted to earn money on your own terms and create a better world for yourself.

More money, more free time, and more control or flexibility around your own work are often the reasons that people go into business. In a perfect world, you would have that control over your own work, be working fewer hours and have more money while pursuing your dream job and career goal. This may sound perfect, but it is rarely the outcome that people get from their own business.

In most instances, people may find that their hours increase, their income drops and though they now possess control, may also find that their business now also has control over them. The amount of work that may need to be done as a business owner can be overwhelming, but it must be completed. Instead of having one boss to answer to, all your customers are now your boss.

Owning a business can grant you more control, but it also comes with these heavier responsibilities and obligations. Being prepared is why consulting with a trusted business adviser can allow you to take the fear out of ‘impossible situations’ for the business and give you choices.

There are many tasks that now require your focus to keep your business in operation – but to everyone else, it probably seems like you are living the high life as a business owner, answering to no one (if only they knew).

Your business probably started with a dream – a dream that probably did not include becoming a slave to your business or earning less than what you did in your previous job. What was that dream? What was your motivation?

Take stock of the situation you have found yourself in with the business. Relax, reflect, and consider what direction you want it to move in. Where do you want to go? Once you have a general idea, you need to put a little bit of time into planning how you are going to get there. Determine where you want your business to be in five years, or even ten years’ time.

It does not matter what stage of the business you are at as revisiting the business planning stage, even midway through the business, can be a useful strategic tool. Every business needs regular planning. This cannot be stressed enough. The chances of achieving your business goals are improved dramatically if there is a formally noted business plan.

A good business plan outlines your strategy for the next couple of years. It may be used to help support an application for business finance or business grants. Or it could be just for your own use as a roadmap for the growth of your business.

The components of a business plan explain your objectives and the actions required to get your small business from where it is now, to where you want it to be.

The process of creating your business plan will help you focus, crystallise your ideas and identify priorities, saving both time and effort. Your business plan will give you a clear sense of direction and a benchmark enabling you to measure progress.

In the approach to the end of the financial year, the best time to prepare a plan
to use for your business over the next twelve months is now. Developing your five- and ten-year plans is also highly recommended. For assistance in preparing or developing your business plans, you can come and speak with us as trusted business advisers.