Tax Time Checklist for Christian Business Owners
17 Apr, 2024For business owners, the End of Financial Year (EOFY) season is quite busy – reconciliations, profit/loss statements, taxes, assessing liabilities and assets, superannuation. Not to mention the relentless marketing of EOFY sales on consumer goods.
There is a lot of noise and decisions to be made.
As you prepare for tax time this year, here are a few things to keep in mind.
1. Reflect and review
Alongside reviewing your finances from an objective standpoint, take the time to slow down and reflect on how you feel about them from a personal perspective.
What do you feel were your biggest financial wins? What activities contributed to them?
Which areas of your business do you feel unsatisfied by? What led to this feeling?
Did you achieve your financial goals for the year? Why or why not?
ACTIVITY: Take our free heart check quiz to start your personal reflection.
2. Consider who is responsible for your success
We are all prone to what psychologists call the ‘self-serving bias’ – we are likely to attribute our success to our own effort and skill, and our failures to external factors outside of our control.
The reality is much more nuanced. We bring our effort and skills, but there are many things that fall outside of our control.
As followers of Jesus, we believe the biblical claim that God is the creator and sustainer of all things. Ultimately, our opportunities and successes are in his sovereign hands. Every good and perfect gift comes from the Lord, who loves to give good things for His glory and the good of our communities.
This fundamental belief keeps us from pride – rather, we can take a posture of thankfulness for the opportunities we had throughout the year and for the skills that God has given us to use.
ACTIVITY: Write out a list of things you are grateful for in your business this year – keep going until you run out of things to write, then pray a prayer of thanks for each point on your list.
3. Remember the poor
Generosity is at the heart of the Christian faith. Those of us who have been blessed materially and have managed this gift wisely have the joyful duty to care for the needs of the vulnerable in our communities.
Whether you choose to give to a charity (which comes with a brilliant tax incentive) or take on a project in your local community, you have an opportunity to do more than just gift money away – you can build a meaningful partnership.
ACTIVITY: Prayerfully consider how you could give back (to a charity or vulnerable group in your community) this year.
4. Fulfil your tax obligations
Your tax obligations as a business can be complex – so it’s important to stay on top of them to ensure nothing is missed.
ACTIVITY: Alongside personalised advice from an accountant, check out these great resources to get you started:
Words by Stuart Sampson and Claire Ince.