Common GST mistakes

Despite the Australian Tax Office’s education campaign on GST reporting, many small business owners continue to make errors when claiming GST credits in their GST returns or Business Activity Statements.

The vast majority of errors are easily unavoidable and relate to the over-claiming of GST credits. Here are the top ten common GST mistakes:

Residential rental property: Incorrectly claiming GST credits on expenses relating to residential rental properties where the entity is registered for GST.

Bank fees: Generally, annual fees, monthly fees and loan establishment fees are input-taxed, and therefore, there is no GST to claim. However, GST is charged on credit card merchants’ fees and therefore can be claimed.

Private expenses: GST is not claimable on private expenses such as personal loans, director fees and drawings etc.

Interest: Interest paid on loan or chattel mortgage repayments or credit card payments does not incur GST, and cannot be claimed.

The total cost of a business insurance policy: Insurance policies usually include stamp duty (which is GST-free), however, the rest of the policy is subject to GST. A GST credit cannot be claimed on the stamp duty portion of the policy as no GST is paid.

Government fees: GST is not charged on government fees i.e. council rates, land tax, ASIC filing fees, motor vehicle registration and water rates, and therefore, GST credits cannot be claimed.

GST-free purchases: Incorrectly claiming a GST credits on purchases without GST, such as basic food items, exports and certain health services is a common mistake. Remember not all suppliers are registered for GST, so check the tax invoice before claiming a credit.

Entertainment expenses: Claiming the entire GST credits on entertainment expenses where the business has elected to use the 50/50 split method for fringe benefits tax is incorrect. Only 50 per cent of the GST credits can be claimed.

Wages and superannuation payments: Both of these do not attract GST and cannot be claimed. Wages are not an expense to be included in G11; they are to be reported in W1 in your BAS. Superannuation is not included in BAS.

Sole traders and partnerships: When claiming expenses that are used for private and business use, you must apportion the expenditure to exclude private usage.