The impact of the pandemic has increased the rate of digitalisation by an estimated seven years within a two-year period. An additional tax deduction of 20% for business expenses and depreciating assets that support digital uptake, introduced in the 2022 Budget for a limited period, will greatly assist in the digitisation process. The ability for small businesses to claim the costs of new equipment such as laptops, payment systems, cyber security software and subscriptions to cloud-based services will be critically important. As we continue to rebuild the economy post-COVID-19 we are looking for innovative ways to help small businesses.
Small businesses that are digitising or may have had to pivot their business model in recent years now have a need for additional skills and training. To do this, they may need financial support to do so via tax relief from our government. The training and skilling of staff is a considerable financial burden for small businesses, and an additional 20% tax deduction for staff to undertake this will provide a much-needed incentive to invest in skills. The tax deduction bonus should be extended to sole traders who also need to upgrade their skills.
With our fellow state chambers of commerce and industry around Australia and ACCI, we believe that these two programs should run side-by-side for at least three years initially, and, if they are successful, should be extended indefinitely.
For more information on the pillars of the ACCI Back Australian Business campaign, please visit www.backaustralianbusiness.com.au.
