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We’ve just finished some of the “tasks” in our “sprint” to update the Xero Payroll Training Course for STP Phase 2

STP-Phase-2-Xero-Payroll Training Course

Did your eyes glaze over with my last blog post about Huddles and Sprints!? It gets easier to understand with each read and is easy to relate to when you compared it to getting tasks done around the home!

EzyLearn Online Course Updates & Additions for latest versions of Xero, Excel & MYOB courses

Online Accounting software like Xero goes through a continuous update process because they are regularly adding new features that compete against QuickBooks Online and MYOB, but also because the software needs to keep pace with changes in regulation.

That is why we offer our Updates and Additions Service.

There have been regular changes to Single Touch Payroll and that means that Xero have gone through several STP 2 changes too. In this latest case Xero have changed their Payroll screens to adapt to the changing requirements of the ATO with regard to Single Touch Payroll (STP).

You can enrol into our Payroll training courses separately here or see everything that is included in our Xero COMPLETE training course package here.

See our other updates regarding Single Touch Payroll

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STP Phase 2 Training Added to Xero Payroll Course – Learn ALL Payroll Courses Across Multiple Software in Advanced Certificate in Payroll Administration

STP-Phase-2-Xero-Payroll Training Course

EzyLearn had added Single Touch Payroll (STP) Phase 2 Training to our Xero Payroll Administration Training Course.

As Xero continues to be one of the leading accounting program for Aussie small businesses, we’ve been updating our courses to stay up to date with changes.  We’ve also recently added Xero My Payroll content to this course.

The Australian government launched STP in 2016, where employers with over 9 employees must report their payroll information for each pay run to the ATO.  When the ATO introduced STP Phase 2 earlier this year, some of the reporting obligations changed.

Here’s what you need to know about STP Phase 2 reporting in Xero, and how EzyLearn’s got you covered with the training.

Continue reading STP Phase 2 Training Added to Xero Payroll Course – Learn ALL Payroll Courses Across Multiple Software in Advanced Certificate in Payroll Administration
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Are You Complying With Your Fringe Benefits Tax Liability of up to 47% (especially COVID-19 related ones)?

Do you provide your employees with gym memberships or concert tickets?  Or maybe you work for a company that provides you with a vehicle or accommodation? There are lots of perks that business can provide to their employees outside of salaries and wages – and these are called fringe benefits and they may apply to you if you worked at home due to COVID-19.

FBT is not as simple as handing out freebies.  Employers have to pay tax on these benefits they provide, and the amount can depend on the type of fringe benefit they’re providing. 

We’ve written before about how fringe benefits tax is important to consider when you engage a new worker, but let’s look more in-depth into what fringe benefits are all about, and how to ensure you comply with your liabilities:

Continue reading Are You Complying With Your Fringe Benefits Tax Liability of up to 47% (especially COVID-19 related ones)?
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Engaging a New Worker? Here Are The Things You Need To Do, particularly if you’re classified by the ATO as a withholder:

There’s lots to do when businesses engage a new worker.  As an employer, you’ll be busy going through the onboarding process and showing your new employee the ropes, but there are other important things to do when you add a new member to your team.

Keeping accurate records complete with the right information is essential for businesses to maintain, and that means updating and adding data when engaging a new worker.  Here are some things to keep in mind as you go through this process:

Continue reading Engaging a New Worker? Here Are The Things You Need To Do, particularly if you’re classified by the ATO as a withholder:
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Xero Announces New Product Features – EzyLearn Offers 12 months Course Access and Support!

New year, new Xero features! 

Xero has recently announced its updated product features, and they include improvements to integrations, interfaces, and information.

We updates our Xero Training Course content regularly and every student gets 12 months course access and support – this includes access to all updated and additional course content. Here’s a rundown of recent changes Xero have made to their software.

Continue reading Xero Announces New Product Features – EzyLearn Offers 12 months Course Access and Support!
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NEW Advanced Certificate In Payroll Administration Includes ALL Payroll Courses Across Multiple Software

Advanced Certificate in Payroll Training Course includes MYOB, Xero, QuickBooks, Square Team, Deputy, TSheets

Knowledge of payroll is an important skill for bookkeepers, accountants, business owners, and BAS agents.  EzyLearn has payroll courses in multiple accounting software, but now we’re introducing a course that covers all of these payroll training courses in one place, and under one fee.

Our new Advanced Certificate in Payroll Administration Combination Training Course Package has you covered with everything you need to know about payroll in all the major accounting software.

Continue reading NEW Advanced Certificate In Payroll Administration Includes ALL Payroll Courses Across Multiple Software
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ATO Announces Changes to Single Touch Payroll & EzyLearn has New STP Phase 2 Training Materials

In 2016 the Australian government launched Single Touch Payroll (STP) as part of the Budget Savings (Omnibus) Act 2016.  It’s a mandatory obligation for employers with over 9 employees to report their payroll information for each pay run to the ATO. 

The idea is to reduce the burden on employers having to report information to multiple government agencies.  With STP, employers can report all this information to the ATO through their approved accounting software (like QuickBooks Online, Xero, and MYOB).

But now the rules have changes… AND our Payroll Courses have already been updated!

Continue reading ATO Announces Changes to Single Touch Payroll & EzyLearn has New STP Phase 2 Training Materials
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Behind in your ATO Payroll requirements for STP (Single Touch Payroll)

Payroll Administration Courses in Xero, MYOB & QuickBooks for $99 - EzyLearn - Start Now, Learn Fast

One reason I love online training and how it offers exceptional value for students who are looking for work as well a those who are currently working is that they can ask questions and have them answered using EzyLearn ANSWERS.

We had a recent student who enrolled into our Xero Payroll Training course because she needed to get up to speed on Single Touch Payroll (STP) but she was already behind in her obligations. This is what we did for her. Continue reading Behind in your ATO Payroll requirements for STP (Single Touch Payroll)

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Single Touch Payroll (STP) the new accounting software battleground for $10/month

We’ve been inundated with questions about STP now that it is mandatory for small businesses with 1-9 employees – unless you’re a closely-held employee. 

Is that you? Are you closely held? Here are

  • some providers of FREE STP software,
  • great software features (like invoice signing), and
  • links to the ATO website where you can dig deeper. 

Continue reading Single Touch Payroll (STP) the new accounting software battleground for $10/month

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Xero In for a Reckoning from Tradies

EzyLearn CEO shaking hands with Reckon One representative

I RECENTLY HAD the pleasure of visiting the Reckon head office in Sydney to learn more about their new Reckon One product — and it’s quite a compelling offer.

To start with, Reckon, a listed company, was not allowed to sell its accounting practice management software (APS) to its competitor, MYOB, because Xero HQ wasn’t much chop.

Yes, that’s right, Xero HQ was deemed so “insufficient and unsophisticated” that it wasn’t viewed by the ACCC as offering any competition in this marketplace whatsoever and therefore they wouldn’t allow MYOB to hold the monopoly.

This made me, and no doubt, many others, realise just how powerful Reckon could be in the online accounting market if it had the right software offer — and now it does.

Continue reading Xero In for a Reckoning from Tradies

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MYOB Launches Single Touch Payroll Trial Product

LAST WEEK, MYOB LAUNCHED a beta trial of its single touch payroll (STP) product, as it gears up for the July 1, 2018 compliance deadline.

Businesses with 20 or more employees need to have transitioned to the ATO’s Single Touch Payroll initiative by July.

Businesses with fewer than 20 employees have until July 1, 2019 to be compliant but for these small business owners and contractors the ATO has a new free app.  Continue reading MYOB Launches Single Touch Payroll Trial Product

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Is Single Touch Payroll Really Dead?

For a while there it looked like the ATO would introduce single touch payroll for all Australian businesses by July 2016, but after feedback from the businesses community that original plan has been shelved – for now. With SuperStream simplifying the way businesses manage the superannuation contributions for their employees, it’s highly likely that we’ll be seeing some form of the single touch payroll model in the near future.

Single touch payroll was an initiative developed to simplify the payroll process for Australian businesses. Currently, most businesses are burdened with a number of tax and superannuation reporting obligations, which single touch payroll would have put an end to.

What exactly was single touch payroll?

Single touch payroll, like SuperStream, was a proposed interactive tool that would allow a business’s accounting software to automatically report payroll information for their employees to the the tax office, eliminating the need for businesses to report pay-as-you-go withholding (PAYGW) in their activity statements throughout the year, as well as end-of-year employee payment summaries.

There was also a proposed digital service that would have streamlined tax file number declarations and Super Choice forms, which would obviously reduce a lot of the red tape and paperwork associated with employing staff.

Single touch payroll would have integrated with nearly all accounting packages in Australia, including MYOB, Xero and Quickbooks, just as SuperStream does now, so why was it shelved by the ATO until further consultation with the business community?

Single touch could have caused cash flow problems

The main concern for many businesses was that single touch payroll would impact their cash flow by requiring employers to pay the tax withheld from wages and super guarantee payments at the same time they paid their employees’ wages. There were also concerns about whether compliance by July 2016 was realistically achievable for the majority of businesses, especially when the SuperStream changeover is still ongoing.

For businesses with a substantial number of employees, single touch payroll could have been a godsend. Unfortunately, the original proposal alienated smaller businesses by making it necessary to pay both tax and super guarantee payments at the same time as employee wages, when most employers currently make those payments to the ATO each quarter.

But that doesn’t mean the single touch payroll system has been scrapped altogether. The ATO, in consultation with industry groups and the Minister for Small Business, is working on developing another single touch payroll scheme that will make real-time payments for withholding and super guarantee payments voluntary, which will be tested with small business owners before it’s rolled out across the board.

There’s still life in single touch payroll yet

What single touch payroll really highlights is how important it is for small businesses to make sure that they’re using a current accounting software package – and there are many on the market, developed especially for small businesses – that supports SuperStream and will also support any other ATO initiatives, like single touch payroll.

If you’re not using an accounting package for your small business, it’s wise to choose one of the major accounting software providers, which Margaret Carey of Business EEz also suggested when we spoke to her not so long ago about SuperStream.

You can read more about SuperStream and the new measures the ATO has introduced to make payroll and superannuation compliance easier for small businesses by subscribing to our blog. Alternatively, if you’re a small business owner using either Xero or MYOB and you’d like to know how to properly setup and use payroll in your accounting software, enrol in one of our MYOB or Xero training courses today.