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You must keep all the records, receipts and other documentation you have used to prepare your tax return. If you are claiming deductions, you must keep written evidence to verify your claims for those deductions.
If you are an individual, you must keep proper records relating to your tax affairs for at least five years from the date you lodged your tax return.
If you are a small business, you must keep proper records relating to your tax affairs for at least five years from when the business record is prepared or the transaction is completed, whichever occurs later.
If at the end of the five year period, you are involved in a dispute with the Commissioner (an audit, for example), the five year period is extended.
If you use information from your records in a later tax return, you may have to keep records for longer. So, if you carry forward a tax loss, you must keep the records until the end of any period of review for the income tax return in which the loss is fully deducted.
If you own an asset which will be subject to capital gains tax on disposal, you will need to keep records covering the entire period of ownership until 5 years after lodgment of the tax return recording the disposal of the asset.

Australian businesses with an annual turnover of $75,000 or more are required to register for GST. If your business has a lower turnover you are not required to register, but you may do so if you wish. You will only be required to charge your customers GST if you are registered.

If a taxpayer carries on all or part of their employment activities from home and has an office set aside to do the work, some portion of the running expenses can be deducted. A diary should be kept for a minimum of 4 weeks stating hours the office was used for work related purposes. The Commissioner’s rate of 45 cents per hour can then be claimed for the hours the home office is used.  Only running expenses (electricity, heating and depreciation of office equipment) can be claimed for home office unless the home is being used as a place of business.

Where a home is a place of business (and is easily identified as such – for example a separate entrance, signage, clients/customers coming to set area of your home etc.), deductions can be claimed on occupancy and running expenses including:

• mortgage interest
• rent
• house insurance
• council rates
• insurance
• repairs
• cleaning
• pest control
• maintenance
• decorating
• telephone
• heating
• lighting
• depreciation.