Banks, landlords and suppliers can sometimes ask you for a personal guarantee on a contract. Unfortunately, that could mean that if something goes wrong, you have put your house at risk. Here are a few ways to protect your home and your other personal assets from potential business problems. Personal Guarantees Banks, landlords and suppliers might
A common decision that business owners need to make is whether to lease or buy equipment for running their business. This dilemma happens when first starting up a business, during phases of growth or expansion, and periodically when equipment needs to be upgraded or replaced. So how do you decide which is the better
On 24th July 2021, the minimum number of sick leave days employees are entitled to increased from 5 to 10 days. Employees get the additional days on their next entitlement date (either after being employed in their job for six months or on their sick leave entitlement anniversary). Employees who already receive 10 or more
Most New Zealand banks are phasing out the use of cheques in favour of other payment methods. Kiwibank was the first major bank to stop issuing and accepting cheques on 28th February 2020, and estimated that less than 1% of their customers were still using cheques at that time. The exact dates after which the
If your business received the Covid-19 Resurgence Support Payment (RSP) these funds must have been used to cover business-related expenses, such as wages and fixed costs. It is not subject to income tax, and the expenses funded by the RSP are not deductible. For GST-registered businesses, the RSP is subject to GST and needs
The IRD has reminded businesses that they still need to file their company’s tax return if they have not already done so. For companies without a tax agent’s extension of time, the due date was 7 July so although the Covid-19 disruptions have been taken into account, this does still need to be actioned
The government’s Small Business Cashflow Scheme (SBCS) has been extended to remain open for applications for another three years until 31st December 2023. No interest is payable if the loan is repaid in full within two years (this was previously one year), and there are now fewer specified restrictions on what the money can
If you are one of the many New Zealand businesses who are looking at changing the way you do business to survive the COVID-19 crisis there is help at hand. Business.govt.nz has a number of tools and tips to help businesses who need to change direction. These include a 4-step plan consisting of identifying
If you are planning on taking on a new staff member you might have the option of choosing between hiring an employee and hiring a contractor. It’s important to understand the differences between these two options because your obligations as a business owner will be substantially different. Essentially, an employee works for you, while a
Changes have been made to the Government’s Business Finance Guarantee Scheme to make it much more user-friendly for businesses. Finance Minister Grant Robertson has admitted that the uptake on the original scheme was much lower than expected, with $150 million lent to 780 customers as at 20th August. This has prompted an expansion and simplification
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to put pressure on the economy, some of our clients are considering options such as restructuring and/or making staff redundant in order to stay afloat. As an employer, if you are in this difficult situation there are proper processes you are obligated to follow. Restructuring is the process of changing
A New Zealand Business Number (NZBN) is a unique 13-digit number for all New Zealand businesses, including companies, sole traders, partnerships, registered charities, trusts and government agencies. It is designed to make it easier for businesses to connect and interact with each other as well as government agencies. In recent times, a NZBN has become
New privacy laws to replace the Privacy Act 1993 are passing through Parliament. Digital technology has progressed so much that it is necessary to provide new measures of privacy protection for businesses that collect, store or use personal information about their employees and/or customers. This Privacy Bill is likely to come into effect by the
Being a self-employed contractor presents its own unique benefits and challenges. You can elect to work under your own name as a sole trader, or set yourself up as a company. Benefits Of Being A Contractor As a contractor you are essentially your own boss, and have control over how, when (and sometimes where) to
