2015 Compliance Focus Document out now for your enjoyment
For the past few years Inland Revenue has been releasing an annual Compliance Focus Document, which advises what their areas of concern are and where they will be putting their time and effort over the next year. You can read the document online here
The document starts with the "basics that everyone needs to get right", so pretty key things to remember – Get an IRD number and keep it safe, use the right tax code, tell IRD when your details change, pay tax on all your income, and file and pay on time. Pretty easy really when you boil it down to that! The document then goes on to further key basics for businesses which come under the headings: Responsibilities as an Employer, GST, FBT, Record Keeping, and Contractors. Each section has points on how you can get it right, common mistakes that IRD sees, and online tools that can help you. We recommend a look - it's a pretty brief summary over 3 pages.
Then on to IRD's key focus areas for 2015 which are as follows: everyone files and pays on time, people with high wealth or high income, property transactions, trusts, fraud and identity theft, under-reporting income and operating outside the tax system, and aggressive tax planning. In respect to everyone filing and paying on time, IRD advises they will be focusing on getting overdue returns filed - in particular employer monthly schedules (EMS's).
If you are a high wealth or high income individual IRD has a dedicated team for this area looking out for tax issues. Examples of things being looked for include; unusual transactions, unexplained losses, mismatches between tax paid and net wealth, structures, financing, and mixed business/private use of assets.
For further information on the other areas listed please check out the Compliance Focus Document at the link above. And remember to get in touch with the friendly Accounted4 team if you have any queries/concerns about the topics covered in IRD's compliance document.
