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Editor Writes - Institute of Chartered Accountants of...
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Dear Professional Colleagues, Welcome to the Fourteenth edition of the Melbourne Chapter of ICAI Newsletter. It is a busy time of the year for all of us in Australia focusing on tax and year end. During the month, we had an extremely timely and informative session by CA Chandrakumar S Jain on Transfer pricing and International tax providing insights into areas where we need to be mindful as professionals in complying with the requirements of this very complex and fast evolving global requirement. For those who have missed the session, CA Vishal Chopra has covered key takeaways from the session. The newsletter has important articles on requirements of Single Touch Payroll (Page 4) affecting all businesses effective July 1,2019 by CA Vishal Chopra and Effective Story telling with Data(Page 6) by CA Sangeetha Muralidharan. We encourage all members to listen to recommended Podcasts (Page 5) and provide feedback on topics which you would like to focus so we can tailor it more to your requirements. A family event is being organized on the 22 nd of June, 2019 by the Chapter. Please mark this date in your calendar. It is a nice way to take time out of your busy schedule to interact and network with the CA fraternity here in Melbourne and get some insights from established as well as new members in the Chapter. We have invited Speaker Alan Cameron a Corporate educator during the family event to share his knowledge and insights into where we struggle as Accountants to bridge this gap. Alan Cameron is a keynote speaker who aims at making finance staff better business partners. His natural Irish story telling ability has the reputation of making even dull topics engaging and entertaining. Editor Writes The Melbourne Chapter of ICAI May 2019 Newsletter 1 The managing committee in a bid to help new migrants settle more easily in Australia are introducing a BUDDY PROGRAM (Page9) More information about the program is in the newsletter. We encourage members to send their expression of interest to join the program and provide feedback at newsletter@icai .Melbourne. Felicitations to CA Amar Dutia for being invited in Bangalore Chapter of ICAI to speak on Opportunities for Indian CA’s – In Australia and Offshore services from India. The event will take place on 7 th of June and we will be watching the consequent developments with the CPA marketing team with interest. In line with the Digital transformation and process re-engineering strategy of ICAI, the ICAI portal has become fully functional from May22, 2019. Transactions will be OTP based and it should now be easier to access services from anywhere in the world. We are still looking for volunteers to help with updating our website and invite expressions of interest from members at newsletter@icai .melbourne Thanks to our newsletter team and as always, please email your feedback/suggestions to newsletter@icai .melbourne so we can address any issues. We look forward to seeing you at the CPD sessions. Thank you once again for your continued support. Editor CA Anbu Mohan Newsletter team: CA Vishal Chopra, CA Sangeetha Muralidharan, CA Sameer Manduskar, CA Anand Agarwal, CA Pankaj Damle, CA Harsha Vardhan Singh, CA Anbu Mohan
Transcript of Editor Writes - Institute of Chartered Accountants of...
Dear Professional Colleagues,
Welcome to the Fourteenth edition of theMelbourne Chapter of ICAI Newsletter.
It is a busy time of the year for all of us inAustralia focusing on tax and year end.During the month, we had an extremelytimely and informative session by CAChandrakumar S Jain on Transfer pricing andInternational tax providing insights into areaswhere we need to be mindful as professionalsin complying with the requirements of thisvery complex and fast evolving globalrequirement. For those who have missed thesession, CA Vishal Chopra has covered keytakeaways from the session.
The newsletter has important articles onrequirements of Single Touch Payroll (Page 4)affecting all businesses effective July 1,2019by CA Vishal Chopra and Effective Story tellingwith Data(Page 6) by CA SangeethaMuralidharan. We encourage all members tolisten to recommended Podcasts (Page 5) andprovide feedback on topics which you wouldlike to focus so we can tailor it more to yourrequirements.
A family event is being organized on the 22nd
of June, 2019 by the Chapter. Please mark thisdate in your calendar. It is a nice way to taketime out of your busy schedule to interact andnetwork with the CA fraternity here inMelbourne and get some insights fromestablished as well as new members in theChapter. We have invited Speaker AlanCameron a Corporate educator during thefamily event to share his knowledge andinsights into where we struggle asAccountants to bridge this gap. Alan Cameronis a keynote speaker who aims at makingfinance staff better business partners. Hisnatural Irish story telling ability has thereputation of making even dull topicsengaging and entertaining.
Editor Writes
The Melbourne Chapter of ICAI May 2019 Newsletter
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The managing committee in a bid to help newmigrants settle more easily in Australia areintroducing a BUDDY PROGRAM (Page9) Moreinformation about the program is in thenewsletter. We encourage members to sendtheir expression of interest to join theprogram and provide feedback [email protected].
Felicitations to CA Amar Dutia for beinginvited in Bangalore Chapter of ICAI to speakon Opportunities for Indian CA’s – In Australiaand Offshore services from India. The eventwill take place on 7th of June and we will bewatching the consequent developments withthe CPA marketing team with interest.
In line with the Digital transformation andprocess re-engineering strategy of ICAI, theICAI portal has become fully functional fromMay22, 2019. Transactions will be OTP basedand it should now be easier to access servicesfrom anywhere in the world.
We are still looking for volunteers to help withupdating our website and invite expressions ofinterest from members [email protected]
Thanks to our newsletter team and as always,please email your feedback/suggestions [email protected] so we can addressany issues.
We look forward to seeing you at the CPDsessions. Thank you once again for yourcontinued support.
EditorCA Anbu Mohan
Newsletter team: CA Vishal Chopra, CA SangeethaMuralidharan, CA Sameer Manduskar, CA Anand Agarwal, CAPankaj Damle, CA Harsha Vardhan Singh, CA Anbu Mohan
The Melbourne Chapter of ICAI May 2019 Newsletter
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Photos from the extremely informative CPD session conducted by CA Chandrakumar S jain on Transfer Pricing and International Tax in May 2019
Vice Chairman CA Harsha Vardhan Singh introducing CA Chandrakumar S Jain
CA Chandrakumar S Jain conducting the session
Interaction at the session Vote of thanks by Chairman CA Anand Agarwal
Momento presented to CA Chandrakumar S Jain by CA Niranjan Deshpande
After the session
The Melbourne Chapter of ICAI Apr 2019 Newsletter3
MANAGING COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Position Member
Chairman CA Anand Agarwal
Vice Chairman CA Harsha Vardhan Singh
Secretary CA Pankaj Damle
Treasurer CA Foram Sheth
Public Officer CA Prity Sarda
Committee member CA Sameer Manduskar
Committee member CA Anbu Mohan
Committee member CA Kumar Somya
Committee member CA Anirudh Misra
Committee member CA Ambuj Goel
PAYMENT OF MEMBERSHIP FEES
An email will be sent out shortly for renewal of membership fee for the next year 2019-20.
Accounting Humour
Single Touch Payroll – A Primer
employee records and also with the detailsof payments received by Super funds toensure payments are made as per thecorrect entitlements.
The tax and super information will beavailable to the employee in ATO onlineservices accessible through his MyGovaccount. This way, the employer will not berequired to provide a payment summary tothe employees at the end of the year. Theemployer will furnish a declaration with theCommissioner to state that he hascompleted his reporting for the financialyear.
It is essential to be prepared for the STPwell in advance. In order to be fullycompliant, every business would need toreview its business processes. Check withyour payroll staff if they are aware of theupcoming developments in terms of STP.Further, it would be a good idea to revisitthe calculations, even if you are sure theyare correct. Check the salary packages ofthe employees, their super entitlementsand PAYG withholding. Also check that thetreatment of overpayments, if any, iscompliant with the applicable rules. Lastbut not the least, check your staff’spersonal details (name, address, date ofbirth, TFN, etc.).
As an employer, it would be pertinent tospeak to your payroll software provider toensure that it is ready for the STP, your BASagent/payroll service provider (your payrollstaff, if it is in-house), to ensure thatnecessary arrangements are in place, andapply for deferral if you think that thecompliance might take you some time.
The ATO prescribes the following StartReporting Checklist:
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Single touch payroll will apply to all small employers employing less than 19
employees with effect from 01/07/2019. CA Vishal Chopra’s article provides insights
on compliance with this tax provision for small businesses
Single Touch Payroll (STP) refers to thenew system of reporting the employees’tax and super information to the ATOimmediately at the time of theirprocessing. Apart from stringent reportingrequirements, the new system is designedto reduce the year-end task of reconcilingand providing these details to the ATO andthe employees. Do note that there is nochange required in the payroll run on thepart of the employer.
The system is being implemented inphases. It is already implemented fororganisations with 20 or more employeessince 1 July 2018 and will apply for smallemployers with 19 or less employees witheffect from 1 July 2019 (with someexceptions available for closely heldpayees, that is, family members, directors,shareholders, trustees or beneficiaries of atrust who are not paid regular salary orwage). The latter will have to ensurecompliance by 30 September 2019, unlessan extension is requested and granted.Almost all major payroll softwaresolutions have ensured compliance withthe new requirements and have started toadvise their clients. As for smallbusinesses, compliance software solutionsare available for as less as $10 a month.
The STP information can be sent to theATO either directly through the payrollsolution, or through a third-party sendingservice provider integrated to the payrollsoftware, or through a third-party sendingservice provider outside the payrollsoftware. The details so received by theATO will be tallied with the employer and
Single Touch Payroll – A Primer (Contd.)
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• Determine who will authorise your STP reports each pay cycle• Determine who will send your STP report.• Ask your software provider how your software will connect to the ATO: Generally, you
can directly connect your software to the ATO using AUSkey or using a software service ID (SSID). In case of the latter, provide the SSID to the ATO (one-time task), failing which the ATO will not be able to accept your STP report. Another option is your software may connect to the ATO through a sending service provider (SSP). If this is how your software connects to the ATO, you do not need to contact the ATO to set up a connection. Your SSP will do this for you.
• Assign someone to contact in case the ATO has any questions about your STP matters• Start STP reporting and check your data was sent correctly
PODCAST recommendations
Whether you are a busy professional feeling unproductive during your daily commute towork or are just sick of staring at your laptop and smartphone screens for all yourcontent, podcasts are a great 'bite size' media to keep you on top of your area ofinterest. This new section will feature some great podcasts relevant for today'sprofessionals! You can listen to them on podcast apps like Castbox, Overcast, Spotify orjust on Google Podcasts on your phone.
This month's recommendations:Planet money podcast (EP. #407): 'A Mathematician, the last supper and the birth ofAccounting' is a quintessential listen for those who have never heard of Luca Pacioli! It'sthe story of an innovation that changed the way the world works - through modernaccounting as we know it.
WorkLife with Adam Grant: 'Networking for people who hate networking' whereOrganisational Physchologist Adam Grant talks about some effective, less awkwardstrategies for building our professional connections.
CA Sangeetha Muralidharan
Source: ATO website (www.ato.gov.au). For complete information about single touch payroll, go to www.ato.gov.au/stpConnect with the author on LinkedIn
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not represent the views of the Melbourne Chapter of ICAI
Story telling with Data
The quote above really resonates with me.Nothing brings people together or presentsideas like a good story & we all have theinnate talent to craft one! Yet, ascustodians of data, how many of us feelconfident to build a good story using data?I, for one, am someone who gets lost in thetrees sometimes& struggle to see the forestthat I am in! So, when I saw what a greatjob a colleague was doing at deliveringinsightful data in a simple story, I soughtinspiration from her. I would be eternallygrateful to my colleague for introducing meto one the most resourceful books I’ve everread! It’s called ‘Storytelling with data’written by former Googl’er’ ColeNussbaumer Knaflic. Not only has Colewritten this spectacular book to rid us ofbadly made slideware but she continues toembed her methodology throughStorytelling workshops all over the world &a personal blog(http://www.storytellingwithdata.com/).
I have gained an incredible wealth ofknowledge, tips & tricks on representingdata better & would love to share a fewouttakes with you (#SWD style).
Context before content
Think about who your audience is. What doyou want to communicate to them? Whatdo you want them to do? This is a greatstarting point for any story as it thendecides how much information/detail needto be included (Love Presentation vs.written e-mails), tone to be used & how tostructure the presentation. So, contextpretty much dictates your WHOLE story!
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“Inside each of us is a natural-born storyteller, waiting to be released.” Robin Moore(Author) CA Sangeetha Muralidharan shares her inspirations from the book Story telling with data by author Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic
Less is more
This is often so important especially when itcomes to presenting to senior stakeholderswho are often time poor & don’t have muchtime for details. As the storyteller, YOU arethe subject matter expert. So, it’s crucial tokeep all the details either in the power pointslide as Notes or just in your head! There area few examples in the book that illustrateshow to declutter your charts, label datapoints directly & use chart title wisely todrive your narrative.
Colour is a powerful tool
The book goes over some pre-attentiveattributes like size, colour & position as toolsto draw your audience towards importanttrends you want them to see. While thethickness of your line chart is probably notfront of mind when it comes to building yourbusiness story, a sub-optimal choice cancreate clutter, change the tone of your story& consequently take your audience’sattention away.
Use text wiselyUse text sparingly but make them pointy!Your most powerful tool while deliveringyour story is your audience’s attention.That’s why we should use text to give formto the data without cluttering. Make yourstory about ONE number/trend (rather thana set of data), one number that tells thestory, one number that takes your audienceby surprise & one number, that makes themwant to act!
Story telling with Data (Contd.)
Have fun with your story!
Once I read the book & equipped myself with the tools to create a powerful story, I couldn’t help but feel excited about how I could mould my data heavy presentation into a compact story. The point of storytelling is to have fun, YOU know your data, YOU know the story, wouldn’t it be great to have your audience see it through your eyes?
If you would like to learn more about Storytelling with Data & about Cole, please visit her blog (http://www.storytellingwithdata.com/). There is a lot of resource & videos available to read through & quite a few examples to emulate what you’ve learnt!
CA Sangeetha Muralidharan
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The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not represent the views of the Melbourne Chapter of ICAI
CPD sessions will take place at the Multipurpose room, Docklands Community HUB, Melbourne onthe 3rd Saturday of every month. The CPD event for the month of June will take place on the 22nd ofJune 2019.
CPD Sessions
Month Date
June 19 22nd Jun 2019
July 19 20th Jul 2019
A family event is being organized on 22 June 2019 from 4pm to 8 pm. This sessionwill be accompanied with a presentation from speaker Alan Cameron on FinanceBusiness Partnering- the family edition. This session will be activity based and canbe enjoyed by all family members. The session will cover:
Improved conversationsManaging up and acrossFocusing on what is importantGiving effective feedback andProblem solving
Members will receive 2 CPD hours credit for attending the session. Please markyour calendar for the date. More details will be follow closer to the date
Transfer Pricing and International Tax by CA Chandrakumar S Jain– The Highlights by CA Vishal Chopra
The figure has grown from just 14countries in 1980 to 124 countries in2019. The transfer pricing regulationshave gained teeth with tax havens likeSingapore agreeing to share theirinformation in this regard.
There are various documentationrequirements for entities operating indifferent jurisdictions and some of theinformation about the entities isexchanged between the tax authorities ofdifferent jurisdictions to ensure correctassessment and resultant tax liabilities ofthe entities on various transactions.
The Australian ATO has taken up majorinitiatives on the issue of transfer pricing.The Diverted Profits Taxes (DPT) has beenintroduced for income years after 1 July2017, which imposes a penalty rate of taxof 40% plus interest, with no double taxrelief nor arbitration mechanisms. Theonly avenue to object beyond the ATO isthe Australian Federal Court, and DPTmust be paid in full before the assessmentcan be contested or a settlement reachedwith the ATO.
In addition, ATO now has more than 1,000officers dedicated to examining andoverseeing multinationals and large publicand private groups operating in Australia.As against a funding of $679.9 millionGovernment funding, the ATO hascollected over $5.6 billion in the first twoyears and have raised $10 billion in taxliabilities. With no more possibilities of“Google Tax”, several companies, notablyGoogle and Facebook, have decided toreconsider their supply chain.
The Melbourne Chapter of ICAI – May 2019 Newsletter 8
CA Vishal Chopra covers an extremely informative CPD session in May 19 on Transfer
Pricing and International Tax delivered by CA Chandrakumar S Jain
The session of 25 May 2019 saw CAChandrakumar, Manager Transfer Pricingwith PWC, introducing the members ofthe Melbourne Chapter to the transferpricing regulations and their developmentthe world over in the recent times.
Simply put, transfer pricing refers to theprice at which goods, services orintellectual property are transferredbetween related parties. Such transfershave for long been used to transfer theprofits of a multinational entity to alocation (jurisdiction) whereby the entitycan keep its tax burden to the minimum.While this may seem to be an allowableactivity, it deprives the governments ofjurisdictions where the entity operates,from their fair share of the revenue. Thishas been recognised the world over andas such, the OECD has come up withtransfer price regulations (BEPS initiative)to prevent creative transfer pricing andenable the jurisdiction to have its share oftaxes, or at least obtain the necessaryinformation that can help it decide on thetransfer pricing activities that the entity isengaged in.Some major corporates that have beensubjected to transfer pricing are Coca Colain the US, Glaxo (Canada), Starbucks (UK),Apple (Ireland), Shell (India), Chevron(Australia) etc. The importance of transferpricing has grown in recent times, withmore and more countries adopting thetransfer pricing regulations.
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The Melbourne Chapter of ICAI May 2019 Newsletter
Introducing the BUDDY PROGRAM
Transfer Pricing and International Tax by CA Chandrakumar S Jain– The Highlights by CA Vishal Chopra (Contd.)
Key takeaways were:• Increasing importance of Transfer Pricing –Globally• The OECD / G20 -BEPS initiative• ATO and other tax authorities increasing the workforce• Aggressively targeting tax avoidance arrangements• Focus on whether the profits earned by related party is right?• Compliance facelift–CbCr, Master File, Local File approach• Increasing TP compliance in Australia (TP docs, IDS, RTP, PCGs etc.)• TP beyond compliance (MAAL, DPT, Hubs etc.)• Review your transfer pricing arrangements / perform risk check• Consider revising your transfer pricing policies / documentation approach (if necessary)
All of our members are migrants who have completed the CA Program in India. We have all done thehard yards and achieved the proud distinction of being a Chartered Accountant. Yet when we arrive inAustralia, it is a culture shock for most of us.
Although we are members of this Elite profession, we face difficulties in getting our first job. Themanaging committee acknowledge this difficulty faced by our fellow members and in a bid to helpnew members overcome some issues if not all and to fast track their job ready skills and settlement inAustralia, we are introducing a BUDDY PROGRAM.
Through this program, we invite established members of the Chapter for expression of interest to jointhe program. The new members will be paired with members who express their interest to help with• Reviewing resume’s• Providing any information required to settle in Australia
This program is not designed to provide direct employment to a migrant but is designed to be amentoring activity- to guide the members especially those facing challenges getting a job. It is also anavenue for more of the new members to network with established members of our profession and ameans for established members to give back something to our profession.
The program will be tweaked as we go forward and feedback from all members are welcome.
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not represent the views of the Melbourne Chapter of ICAI
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The Melbourne Chapter of ICAI May 2019 Newsletter
New Members Welcome
New Members joining in the month of April are:
• CA Shahnaz Gill
• CA Priyanka Khemka
We look forward to seeing you in our future CPD sessions.
Website
Require volunteers to help with updating the Melbourne Chapters website. We are looking for anyone who has a passion for web development and the ability to keep the website updated on a regular basis. Interested persons please contact [email protected] or [email protected]
