Author: CaroATO(Community Support)Community Support 28 June 2023
Hi @Kimeli,
The first year you lodge a tax return with both employee and business income as a sole trader we'll work out your taxable income and ask you to pay tax on it. Keep in mind there isn't anyone in the community to withhold tax from your business income during the financial. You're like to have a debt. To help prevent this you've a couple of options. You can make voluntary payments into your income tax account during the financial year so when you lodge your tax return the credits will offset the debt. Another option is you can work out how much tax you'll need to pay on a weekly, fortnight or monthly basis on your business income and put it aside in a separate bank account ready to pay. You might want to have a think about adding compulsory HELP, (HECS) payments to.
As a sole trader you can choose to make what's called personal super contributions to help grow your super. This is an option rather than compulsory.
When you do lodge your tax return we'll look at where you got your income from. If you meet the eligibility criteria, we'll automatically put you into the pay as you go instalment system. This is an opportunity for you to put aside tax during the financial year to help reduce the debt when you lodge your next tax return. You can choose to voluntarily enter as well.
Remember, we're here to help you. All the best for your new adventure!