Johnston Associates Chartered Accountants

Masterminding Brighter Tomorrows

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Business Capabilities Funding

Johnston Associates is proud to be a registered firm, delivering key support services to New Zealand business owners and managers under the Regional Business Partner Network Scheme.

With our range of registered support services, we help businesses not only recover from the impacts of COVID-19 but stay ahead.  So whether you are a Johnston Associates client or not, and if your business qualifies, you may be eligible to receive funding for our registered COVID-19 support services, below.

Business Continuity Planning – Create contingency plans to help your business get through the next few months and build team readiness and resilience. Even discover how to delegate when an owner is incapacitated.

Finance and Cashflow Management – Undertake a high-level financial analysis of the key numbers in your business such as cash flow, payroll and accounts receivable/payable.

With the additional Government fund of $40 Million recently made to the network, there is more support available for more New Zealand Businesses.

How do I register?

It’s a quick and easy process, and a step by step guide is below:

  1. Register for RBP 
  2. Tick the box to confirm this is COVID-19 related advice, answer key information about your business and accept the T&Cs.
  3. You will then receive a call from one of the RBP advisors to confirm the fit for COVID-19 funding for initial screening.
  4. Once screened you will then be assigned to a local advisor who will have a discovery assessment (zoom or phone call), up to a maximum of 30 minutes. You will then find out if you have been approved.
  5. Voucher issued.
  6. Select the required Course with Johnston Associates as provider (links below)

https://app.regionalbusinesspartners.co.nz/MarketPlace/MarketplaceService/13588

https://app.regionalbusinesspartners.co.nz/MarketPlace/MarketplaceService/13589

This is a great initiative you should be taking advantage of, and will ensure your business will be in the best possible shape post Covid-19!

If you have any questions or need assistance on any of the above please don’t hesitate to contact me or any of the Team here at Johnston Associates.

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Invest in your future TODAY!

The Government wants to give you an extra $521.43 every year into your Kiwisaver for FREE! It’s called the annual Government Contribution.

If you’re eligible, for every $1 you put into your Kiwisaver, the government will contribute $0.50 up to a maximum of $521.43 each year. If you do not contribute $1042.86 in the year, the government will still contribute 50 cents for every dollar you save. For example, if you contribute $50 you will get a government contribution of $25.

If you tick every eligibility box on this list for the year 1st July to 30th June, you’ll automatically receive the full contribution;

  • You’re a member of a Kiwisaver Scheme,
  • You’re 18 years or older,
  • You mainly live in New Zealand, 
  • You can’t make Kiwisaver retirement withdrawals yet, and 
  • You’ve contributed at least $1042.86 into your Kiwisaver account.

If you turn 18 during the year, become eligible for retirement withdrawals or join KiwiSaver part way through a year, you’ll still earn the annual Government contribution for the days that you’re eligible.

There is no application needed, no paperwork, no process. Your Kiwisaver provider will make the claim on your behalf, and the contribution will appear in your Kiwisaver account within a month.

By making sure you contribute at least $1,042.86 into your Kiwisaver account each year you could be looking at up to an additional $20,000 for your retirement!

Invest in your future TODAY, by setting you and your family up for Kiwisaver. 

Check your contributions by visiting your “MyIR Login” here https://www.ird.govt.nz/kiwisaver

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Unsure about your ACC? We can help!

business advisory nelson marlborough

Here at Johnston Associates, we offer clients the option of being your agent for ACC purposes. ACC invoices may not always be correct and therefore you can end up paying more for your ACC levies than you need to.

The types of errors that we find are:

  • Wrong classification rates used, resulting in incorrect charging
  • Incorrect liable earnings information
  • Being double charged on PAYE and Shareholder salaries
  • Incorrect charging of levies where changes to the business structure have been made

We have also found, where a recommendation has been made to clients to consider alternative ACC products, that some clients have not followed up on that advice and are therefore not maximising the opportunities offered by the ACC legislation.

One of the services our firm offers clients is an ACC Administration and Advisory service. This involves our firm acting as your agent for all your ACC related matters. The advantages to you are:

All ACC related information will come to us on your behalf

  • We will review the invoices and ensure they are correct
  • We will advise you immediately of payments due
  • You can rest assured in the knowledge that your levies are correct, and have been minimized
  • We will advise you on the best options available to you for your ACC cover
  • We will keep you up to date with any changes in ACC legislation that may affect you

What is my ACC levy? 

Income that you receive from personal effort is liable for ACC earners’ levy.  This levy is charged to cover the cost of rehabilitation and compensation following non-work related injuries. [Read more…] about Unsure about your ACC? We can help!

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It’s Budget Time

Covid-19: It’s Budget Time! The Epic Review, with Westpac senior economist Michael Gordon!

We cover the 2020 Budget’s $50 billion Dollar spend grouped across the four most critical areas, how they impact on your future, and how we believe you can leverage these areas to the best immediate advantage of your business.

We look into the extension of the wage subsidy scheme, the big boost in infrastructure, new grants and subsidies, and how tourism and other job markets are impacted.

We close with Michael Gordon helping us with the hard “where to from here questions” you wanted answered! The facilitator for this event was John Maybury.

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2020 Budget – Rebuilding Together

Let’s start with funding the 50 Billion from where?

To fund the Budget, the Government has forecast bond issuance to $60 billion for the June 2021 year. Crown debt is expected to rise from 19.3% of GDP, up to a peak of 53.6% by 2023. This will surpass the level of 40% seen in 2013 after the GFC and the Canterbury earthquakes. The current Government Debt ratio is 19%, therefore we may have options other Governments don’t who’s current positions are significantly different to ours US (107%), China (50%) and even Australia (45%). Even if we balloon to over 50% by 2023, I think the trouble will be the wont hold that figure, its aspirational.

Budget Outline

The key element is the establishment of the $50 billion COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fund (CRRF), with $20+ billion of it still to be spent over the next 4 years, with $29.8 billion of it committed through Budget 2020 – ten times that which the Government was planning to spend pre-COVID-19.

Treasury indicated that its forecasts and assumptions on Government expenditure and revenue given the current environment are highly uncertain.

The Budget assumes New Zealand’s borders remain closed to international visitors until the end of March 2021 – three months sooner than forecast in the earlier Treasury’s economic scenarios. The scenario relies on a vaccine being developed and distributed by this time.

[Read more…] about 2020 Budget – Rebuilding Together