Blog

April 2020 | Jonathan Harris In view of the outbreak of COVID-19, more and more office employees are being forced or encouraged to work from home where possible. As such, office employees must not forget to claim the tax deductions hiding in their home offices. On Tuesday, 7 April 2020, the ATO announced that taxpayers working from home could now claim 80 cents per hour for all of their running expenses (Shortcut Method), rather than calculating specific costs under

April 2020 | Kieran Kelly The JobKeeper wage subsidy announced by the Federal Government last week was greeted with open arms by businesses and employees across Australia. Affected businesses will qualify for the subsidy if: they have a turnover less than $1 billion and turnover has decreased by at least 30%; or they have a turnover greater than $1 billion and turnover has decreased by at least 50%. Employees will be eligible if they: were employed by an eligible business

March 2020 | Kieran Kelly As businesses grind to a halt we have received many enquiries in relation to the rights of commercial landlords and tenants as the payment of rent becomes either difficult or impossible. The unprecedented measures introduced by the government to stem COVID-19 have already had a catastrophic impact on Australian businesses. The most sharply affected are those whose doors have already been ordered shut. They include pubs, restaurants, cafes, cinemas and gyms. As the economy

March 2020 | Scott Freidman On 22 March 2020, the Morrison government announced that it will relax the insolvency and bankruptcy laws to keep businesses alive. We understand these measures will last for 6 months and will be passed by Parliament urgently. Here’s what you need to know: The government will increase the threshold at which a creditor can issue a statutory demand from $2,000 to $20,000. The threshold for the minimum amount of debt required for a creditor

March 2020 | Scott Freidman The constantly changing conditions in which Australian businesses are operating are difficult to keep up with and it may be hard to see light on the other side of the coronavirus crisis. However, with correct and appropriate advice at an early stage you can take steps to be in the best possible position to rebound. Harris Freidman has long established relationships with a wide range of insolvency professionals who will: analyse your business and

October 2019 | Alex Shdidi When business owners are in the initial phases of building a business one aspect often overlooked is the protection of intellectual property (IP). This is understandable as the business owners are often thinking about cash-flow, increasing their customer base, marketing and the like, all of which are vital for the business. However, neglecting the IP needs of your business could prove costly in the long run. One such situation may occur when a  prospective