5 Cash Flow Mistakes Small Businesses Make (and How to Fix Them)
Cash flow kills more small businesses than lack of customers ever will. Poor cash flow management is the leading cause of business failure in Australia. The pattern is common: a business has plenty of work, revenue looks healthy on paper – but there’s never enough money in the account when bills come due. The problem isn’t usually income. It’s how money is managed between earning it and spending it. Here are five cash flow mistakes that freelancers and sole traders make repeatedly, and how to fix each one.
Read MoreTax Deductions for Etsy Sellers: The Complete 1099 Guide
You spent Saturday morning at the craft store with a cart full of vinyl sheets, ribbon spools, and cardstock for gift tags – $84 on the receipt, shoved into a tote because there wasn’t a free hand for a wallet. That receipt joins the ones already crumpled in the car’s cup holder, and eventually a shoebox that used to hold shoes. By the time an Etsy shop crosses a few thousand dollars a year, the math gets uncomfortable – a listing fee here, a transaction fee there, shipping that costs more than quoted – and somewhere in the pile of unsorted receipts is a nagging question: is this a real business for tax purposes, or just an expensive hobby with a storefront?
Read MoreGST for Small Business: When to Register and How to Track It
GST registration is one of those decisions every Australian small business owner faces eventually. Some businesses must register, some choose to, and some are better off waiting. Getting it wrong – either registering too late or not registering when you should – can mean penalties from the ATO or missed opportunities to claim back GST on your business purchases. This guide walks you through the registration threshold, the pros and cons of voluntary registration, the registration process itself, and how to track GST properly once you’re registered.
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Australian Federal Budget 2026-27: Every Tax Change for Sole Traders, SMBs and Accountants
The 2026-27 federal budget small business announcements landed in Canberra tonight, and they reshape how sole traders, SMBs, and accountants will run their books from 1 July 2026 onwards. This guide walks through every tax measure published in Budget Paper No. 2 — what changes, when it starts, who’s affected, and what to do about it. We’ve translated the Treasury press release into plain English so you can decide what matters for your business this week, this quarter, and over the next two financial years.
Read MorePermanent $20,000 Instant Asset Write-Off Explained
The permanent instant asset write-off 2026 is now law — or at least, it will be once the Budget delivered on 12 May 2026 passes Parliament. The Australian Government confirmed in its 2026-27 Federal Budget that the $20,000 instant asset write-off (IAWO) will be made permanent from 1 July 2026, ending the annual cycle of extensions and sunset clauses that has made planning difficult for small businesses since the scheme was expanded during COVID. If you’ve been using the IAWO for years without thinking much about it, not much will change day-to-day. But if you’ve ever delayed an equipment purchase because you weren’t sure whether the scheme would still exist next financial year, that uncertainty is now gone.
Read MoreInstant Asset Write-Off: What Small Businesses Can Claim in 2026
With the end of the financial year approaching, now is the time to think about whether you can use the instant asset write-off to reduce your tax bill. This scheme lets eligible Australian small businesses deduct the full cost of an asset immediately – rather than depreciating it over several years. If you’ve been putting off buying that new laptop, piece of equipment, or work vehicle, understanding the instant asset write-off could save you thousands before June 30.
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