How does your small business compare with those like yours?
The ATO can see from your Industry Benchmarks if you might be participating in the Black Economy, and there is no time limit on how far they can go back if they suspect tax fraud or tax evasion as per King Lawyers: If the ATO has issued your notice of income tax assessment for the 2010 financial year on 1 August 2010, but the ATO has recently formed an opinion you have committed tax fraud or tax evasion, the ATO can audit you at any time. For example, the ATO can audit your tax affairs for the 2010 financial year in the 2020 financial year.
If you are not running all your income legitimately through your business BUT claiming for the expense, it will put your ratios out. On sale of business a buyer may need a bank loan, the bank needs to see the business can make the loan repayments before they will provide the lender money. You decided you want to sell your business, you start declaring income legitimately to help obtain the best possible sale price, usual by a buyer requiring a loan. Now you are providing the ATO information to compare prior year trading, and your figures ring alarm bells of internal audit inside the ATO. Be honest from the beginning; you lie, you lie to yourself. There are legitimate ways to increase your net income without being part of the Black Economy.
The Australian Taxation Office provides small business benchmarks which are financial ranges to help compare your business’s performance against other businesses in your industry in just 3 steps.
- Step 1: Get your information ready
- Step 2: Start calculating
- Step 3: Check your results and take action if required
- Other tools
Check out the ATO Small Business Benchmarks on:
- Types of Benchmarks
- Small Business Benchmarks Methodology and Ratio Calculations
- Benchmarks by Industry
- How Industry Benchmarks are Calculated
The ATO’s Small Business Benchmarks A-Z
- A-C
- Air conditioning, refrigeration and heating services
- Alarm systems installation – fire and security
- Architectural services
- Automotive electrical services
- Bakeries and hot bread shops
- Barber and mens hairdressing
- Beauty services
- Blocklaying services
- Book retailing
- Bottle shops and liquor retailing
- Bricklaying services
- Cabinet makers
- Cake shops and patisseries
- Carpentry services
- Carpet laying services
- Catering services
- Cement rendering
- Chicken shops
- Child care services
- Chiropractic and osteopathic services
- Cleaning services – building and other industrial
- Cleaning services – carpet, rug and furniture upholstery
- Clothing retailing
- Coffee shops
- Computer retailing
- Concreting services
- Confectionery retailing
- Courier services
- Craft shops
- D-F
- Delicatessen
- Delivery services
- Dental specialists
- Dental surgeons – general
- Discount and variety stores
- Domestic appliance repair and maintenance
- Driving schools and instructors
- Electrical and electronic product retailing
- Electrical services
- Entertainment media retailing
- Fence construction
- Fish and chips shops
- Fish and seafood retailing – fresh
- Floor covering retailing
- Florists
- Footwear retailing
- Fruit and vegetable retailing
- Fuel retailing
- Furniture removalists
- Furniture retailing
- G-K
- L-Q
- Landscape construction
- Laundry and dry-cleaning services
- Lawn mower retailing
- Lawn mowing and garden services
- Machinery and equipment repair and maintenance
- Manchester and other textile goods retailing
- Meat and poultry retailing – fresh
- Motor vehicle parts and batteries retailing
- Motor vehicle retail – new and used
- Musical instruments retail
- Newsagents
- Painting services
- Panel beating and smash repairs
- Pest control services
- Pets and pet supply retailing
- Pharmacy
- Physiotherapy services
- Picture framing retailing
- Pizza shops – takeaway
- Plastering and ceiling services
- Plumbing services
- Printing
- Printing support services
- Pubs, taverns and bars
- R-Z
- Restaurants
- Road freight transport services
- Roofing services – includes roof tiling, guttering and metal roofing
- Sports, camping and fishing retailing
- Sports and physical recreation instruction
- Stationery goods retailing
- Takeaway food services
- Taxi drivers and operators
- Tiling services – floor and wall
- Timber floor sanding
- Tobacco retailing
- Towing services
- Toy and game retailing
- Tutoring and coaching
- Tyre retailing
- Veterinary services
- Video and other electronic media rental and hiring
- Watch and jewellery retailing
