Almost every new business asks the same first question, usually before they've asked anything else: "what structure should I use?" There's no single right answer — but there is a right way to think about it, and it comes down to four things: liability, tax, cost, and how much admin you're willing to carry.

Most businesses lodge their BAS quarterly, and the due dates follow a predictable pattern, with one exception that trips people up every single year. Here's the current calendar (2026–27 financial year), plus the pattern to remember so you're never caught guessing.

The rules around claiming working-from-home expenses have changed more than once in the last few years, and the record-keeping requirement in particular catches people out. Not because it's complicated, but because it's stricter than most people assume.

"I bought a new laptop for the business, can I just write the whole thing off?" Usually, yes, and the instant asset write-off is exactly the rule that lets you. Here's what it actually covers, because "instant write-off" gets thrown around a lot more loosely than the real rule allows.

Selling an investment property is one of the bigger financial moments most people go through, and the tax side of it often only gets thought about after the contract's already signed, which is a shame, because a couple of the rules below only help if you know about them in advance.

Plenty of businesses start out doing their own books, and there's nothing wrong with that. When things are simple, it's often the right call. The question isn't really "should I ever outsource," it's "has my business changed enough that DIY is now costing me more than it's saving me?" Here's how to actually tell.

Selling shares feels like it should be simple — you bought at one price, sold at another, and the difference is the story. Tax-wise, that's mostly true, but a few details trip people up every year, usually around timing and what actually counts as "selling."

"I only sold it for Australian dollars once — surely that's the only bit that counts?" It's one of the most common misunderstandings we see, and an easy one to have, because crypto doesn't feel like a normal investment. It lives on an app, it moves in seconds, and half the time you're swapping one coin for another rather than touching real money at all. But the ATO's view is straightforward once you know it: almost every time you do something with your crypto other than just holding it, that's a taxable event.

End of financial year sneaks up every year, and most of the useful moves need to happen before 30 June, not after. Once the date passes, several of the better options are off the table until next year. Here's the checklist version of the conversation we have with clients every May and June.