Home About Us Our Services Testimonials Latest News Client Resources Contact Us Make an Enquiry
"Ajen is an accountant who is down to earth and genuinely interested in their clients prospering."
"As a trusted advisor you guided our business back on course when the outlook was far from positive and we look forward to your continued assistance into the future"
"His attitude towards his work and my portfolio has been exemplary. He always finds time for me at short notice and is a benefit to all."
"Ajen always has a high standard of professional manner. He continued to give me good advice and is a reliable person, helpful in sorting out problems and finding solutions easily."
"Ajendra has made himself available sometimes even after normal business hours, to assist us with any questions we have, even when sometimes they may have seemed silly or simple, he has answered in full and easy to understand terminology, at no point has he ever made me feel silly for asking."
"He is always accessible to speak with and even calls me to ask if I need help with anything."
"Ajendra's willingness to dedicate "caring time" to his clients sets him apart from others."
"I am confident to refer friends and family to his team because I know they are in the most capable hands. Ajendra’s honest, caring and upbeat nature has been an absolute godsend and I am so thankful that our paths crossed"
"Ajendra’s speaks with you in a language that you can understand and comprehend easily which assists in equity and partnership with your tax agent."
"We find you have a personal approach to your accounting practice, which makes everyone feel like number 1. This is a rare and special trait, and leaves us knowing we are in good hands."
"He is very astute, and at the same time down to earth and really interested in his clients prospering. For people like us who are new to small business this is an absolute god sent."
"He shows a genuine interest and I never feel rushed. He has created a warm and friendly environement."

Businesses ghosting the ATO targeted in debt collection blitz

Share this article:

Clients failing to engage must “act now” or face rapid escalation of enforcement action, the Tax Office has warned agents.

.

The Tax Office has run out of patience with businesses that repeatedly ignore payment reminders, vowing to pursue them with aggressive enforcement measures in a new approach to debt collection.

Issuing a warning to tax agents on Wednesday, the ATO said business clients that refused to engage or company directors with multiple debts needed to “act now” or face swift penalties.

“We're changing our approach to collecting unpaid tax and super,” the ATO said.

 

“We are now focusing on businesses who refuse to engage with us and continue to ignore our SMS and letter reminders.”

“This approach may impact some of your business clients who have not responded to our past engagement attempts.”

For those that failed to engage or set up payment plans for unpaid GST, pay-as-you-go (PAYG) withholding or employee super, the ATO would rapidly escalate to director penalty notices (DPNs) and garnishee orders regardless of a business’s size.

Directors of multiple companies who allowed tax and super to go unpaid and likewise failed to engage with the ATO “can expect us to look at their debts more holistically”.

“These directors can expect to receive DPNs capturing the total value of these amounts across all related entities,” the ATO said.

“If these directors don’t take action, we can recover these amounts directly from them, putting their assets at risk.”

The step-up in enforcement action comes at a time when DPNs are at historically high levels, with 26,702 notices worth $4.4 billion issued last year.

It is a 50 per cent jump from the 2022–23 income year which saw 17,459 DPNs issued for $2.87 billion in debts.

Experts have told Accountants Daily that DPNs have become increasingly common as the ATO pursues its book of collectable debt, which ballooned from $26.4 billion in 2019 to over $50 billion after the COVID-19 pandemic.

The ATO said its new focus on unresponsive taxpayers was a “deliberate and targeted approach” to level the playing field for businesses that did the right thing.

“As we change our approach to collecting unpaid tax and super, we’re making it fairer for compliant businesses that do the right thing and fulfil their tax obligations,” it said.

“Not paying tax affects everyone, and it’s important we take action to help prevent businesses from putting other small businesses and employees at risk.”

It urged practitioners to assist it in its recovery efforts, encouraging clients to pay on time or set up payment plans before enforcement actions began.

“The key message we would like to ask you to pass onto your clients is, if they can pay, please do and if they need more time to pay, don’t ignore it – act now to check if you can put in place a payment plan online or reach out to us early for help.”

“If your clients are experiencing genuine financial hardship, additional options are available, including deferring payment due dates, interest remissions and access to compassionate release of their super.”

 

 

 

Christine Chen
25 October 2024 
accountantsdaily.com.au

Want to know more?

Do you have a question about something you've read in this article? Need more information? Want to book an appointment? Simply let us know below and we'll get back to you ASAP.

Share this article: