Hi, my name is Uri and I'm a recovering paperwork phobic!

Time was that whenever I got a bill, a form, or something I needed to attend to, I'd take it, read it and then file it in a pile on the kitchen counter. Then I'd forget all about it! The sad consequence of this was a parade of late fees, administration fees, cancellation fees and other goodies. Sound familiar?

When I started my small business I had to change. As a business owner I had more responsibilities and obligations such as the dreaded Business Activity Statement (BAS). Not all small/micro businesses need to fill out the BAS, but many do - either monthly or quarterly  and you definitely don't want to be late! For each delay of 28 days, or part thereof, there is a minimum late fee of $110.

The Australian government, aware of the burden BAS reporting has placed on businesses, has introduced an initiative - called Standard Business Reporting (SBR) - to lighten this BAS load.

What does it mean for you?

There is now a central place for businesses to submit all their government forms. The technical details are tedious but in essence it uses a secure web service that allows you to submit all kinds of forms to the different government agencies.

Since BAS submission is the most relevant form for the micro and small business community, and because my business is ne of several that have developed software to support this form, I want to explain how the SBR-BAS submission process works.

How to take advantage of SBR

To use SBR you need an AUSkey. This is a login pass that allows easy access to online government services by replacing the multitude of user IDs and passwords needed previously. One AUSkey will work for all government agencies. You can apply for one online here: www.abr.gov.au/auskey.

Once you have an AUSkey you need SBR-enabled accounting software that supports the BAS form submission. There is a list of SBR supported products list on this website. So how do you choose which product is the best for your business? My advice is to download a trial version and test drive it and ask yourself the following questions:

1. How easy is it to set up?
2. Do I have to fill in duplicate information or can I use already entered data?
3. Does it support the SBR process for BAS and other government forms such as TFN Declaration submission?
4. Is the process of BAS submission simple ¢â‚¬" e.g. no more than four steps, allows pre-fill and pre-lodgement ATO checks.
5. Will it automatically select the correct BAS form for my business? ( 20+ types of BAS forms in existence.)
6. And last but not least how responsive is the support system? i.e. do they answer my queries quickly and fully?

 

BAS is here to stay so take advantage of this government initiative and streamline your reporting. The ATO's eRecords is now defunct and many small businesses have been forced to look for new accounting software anyway so it makes sense to choose one that makes your life easier and lightens the BAS load.