Business mentor: How to get advice on tax problems

How is the Inland Revenue Department supporting small businesses?

The IRD replies: Inland Revenue offers an advisory service for new business operators.

The service is based in each of our offices nationwide, but advisory officers also travel to other areas on a regular basis if business taxpayers cannot get to one of the main offices.

Our specialist advisers include business tax information officers and Maori community officers, who give tax education and advice to a range of new businesses and smaller organisations.

People can use the advisory service to find:

* The taxes they need to know about.

* What records they need to keep.

* How to complete GST and employer returns.

* When to file returns and make payments.

Who can use the service?

Our service is available, free, to any individual or organisation setting up in business - or even to those just considering setting up a business.

It is also available to sports clubs, kohanga reo or other non-profit bodies. The service is particularly useful for organisations where people in voluntary positions, such as treasurers, frequently change.

How does the advisory service help?

It helps businesses keep better records, which may reduce the cost of completing year-end accounts.

It gives businesses the chance to plan their tax requirements in advance, and it can save valuable time by helping them to get things right from the start.

As well as giving individual advice, advisory officers often conduct group seminars on topical tax matters aimed at smaller businesses. These can include legislative changes or specific areas of taxation with which businesses have difficulty.

When a business registers for GST, or becomes a new employer, advice can be requested on the registration form simply by ticking the appropriate box.

If the business is already registered (or if there is uncertainty about whether it should be registered) it can phone us for more information.

We also have a range of useful booklets and a Smart Business kit to help set up record keeping.

If a business would like to arrange an advisory appointment or to know more about any of our Smart Business products, it can phone us on one of our business numbers.

These are: Income tax and general inquires, 0800 377 774; employers 0800 377 772; GST 0800 377 776.

What products and newsletters are available?

Once a business is registered with Inland Revenue for GST purposes or as an employer, an information pack explaining tax obligations will be sent out.

Regular newsletters covering issues relating to GST or payroll taxes directly affecting a business will also be sent.

* Send your Mentor questions to: Ellen_Read@nzherald.co.nz. Answers will be provided by Business in the Community's Business Mentor Programme.