What’s In Budget 2018 For Small Businesses?

The Turnbull government has continually championed innovative startups and SMBs as the lifeblood of the Australian economy. So what’s in the 2018 budget for the smaller end of town? Let’s take a look.

In his 2018 Budget address, Treasurer Scott Morison said that the continued backing of small and medium sized businesses was crucial to creating more jobs and further strengthening our economy.

However, there’s actually not that much in the budget for small businesses to get excited about; especially when it comes to new initiatives.

[referenced url=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2018/05/how-budget-2018-will-affect-your-wallet/” thumb=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2016/11/spendingmoney-410×231.jpg” title=”How Budget 2018 Will Affect Your Wallet” excerpt=”It has been billed the ‘burger-and-milkshake’ budget, with up to $10.19 coming to Australian workers per week in personal income tax cuts. There’s a lot to unpack, so let’s get stuck in!”]

Once again, businesses with a turnover of less than $10 million will be able to access instant tax write offs for equipment purchases of up to $20,000. This allows you to immediately deduct the cost of any individual asset purchased as long as it cost less than $20,000 and has a legitimate business purpose.

The extension of this tax break is a welcome boon for SMBs even if it was an expected one. You can find some tips on how to take advantage of the $20,000 instant tax write-off here.

[referenced url=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2017/06/how-to-take-advantage-of-the-20000-small-business-tax-break/” thumb=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2015/09/Projects-410×231.jpg” title=”How To Take Advantage Of The $20,000 Small Business Tax Break” excerpt=”Newsflash. not many things cost over $20,000, which leaves you with genuine carte blanche. What does your business need? Might as well pick it up now while the going is good.”]

In a bid to combat age discrimination in the workforce, the government will be providing wage subsidies of up to $10,000 for employers who hire older Australians. Payments are made by employment services providers to businesses over six months.

Elsewhere in the budget, the government has promised to lower energy prices, which translates to reduced operational costs for small businesses.

Changes are also coming to Business Activity Statements (BAS) which will see the number of compulsory questions reduced from 20 to three. The government reckons this will save small businesses an average of $590 per year.

On the downside, the R&D Tax Incentive has been capped at $4 million for companies with annual turnover of less than $20 million. (Amounts in excess of the cap will be classified as a non-refundable tax offset.)

This is expected to negatively impact small businesses that rely heavily on the tax concession to compete with larger rivals.