Compliance Centre

Tax awareness

Registration, records and returns. This is awareness of the framework a business sits in - it is not tax advice, and rates and deadlines change.

EducationalCompliance topicLast reviewed 2026-08-14No named reviewer yet

What it covers

The scope of this area, in general terms.

Registering the business with the relevant tax authority and obtaining a taxpayer identification.
Understanding which taxes attach to your activity - company income tax, value added tax and personal income tax on employment income among them.
Withholding and remittance duties that fall on the business as a payer.
Keeping books and supporting records adequate to prepare and evidence a return.

When it becomes relevant

Circumstances in which this area usually matters. This is not a test of whether an obligation applies to you — that depends on your specific situation and should be confirmed with the relevant authority.

The business is registered and trading in any form.
You employ people, or pay contractors from whom deductions may be required.
You sell goods or services that may attract value added tax.
You are expanding into new states, new activities or across borders.

Good practice

Practices businesses commonly put in place. Educational, not prescriptive.

Register when you start trading rather than when you are first asked.
Keep bookkeeping current monthly - a return is only as good as the records behind it.
Separate business and personal spending completely.
Retain invoices, receipts and remittance evidence for your retention period.
Use a qualified tax professional for filings, and confirm current rates and dates with the tax authority directly.

Common gaps

How this area usually goes wrong — rarely through bad faith, and almost always through nobody owning it.

Trading for a period before registering at all.
Deducting withholding tax or pay-as-you-earn and not remitting it.
Books reconstructed once a year from a bank statement.
Personal expenses run through the business with no records.
Relying on a rate or deadline someone remembered rather than confirming it.

When to involve a lawyer

When to speak to a lawyer

You have received an assessment, an audit notice or a demand you dispute.
You are restructuring, selling the business, or moving assets between entities.
You are operating across borders and unsure where profits are taxable.
Historic filings are incomplete and you need to regularise them.

Find a lawyer Describe your problem

What it covers

The scope of this area, in general terms.

Registering the business with the relevant tax authority and obtaining a taxpayer identification.
Understanding which taxes attach to your activity - company income tax, value added tax and personal income tax on employment income among them.
Withholding and remittance duties that fall on the business as a payer.
Keeping books and supporting records adequate to prepare and evidence a return.

When it becomes relevant

The business is registered and trading in any form.
You employ people, or pay contractors from whom deductions may be required.
You sell goods or services that may attract value added tax.
You are expanding into new states, new activities or across borders.

Good practice

Practices businesses commonly put in place. Educational, not prescriptive.

Register when you start trading rather than when you are first asked.
Keep bookkeeping current monthly - a return is only as good as the records behind it.
Separate business and personal spending completely.
Retain invoices, receipts and remittance evidence for your retention period.
Use a qualified tax professional for filings, and confirm current rates and dates with the tax authority directly.

Common gaps

How this area usually goes wrong — rarely through bad faith, and almost always through nobody owning it.

Trading for a period before registering at all.
Deducting withholding tax or pay-as-you-earn and not remitting it.
Books reconstructed once a year from a bank statement.
Personal expenses run through the business with no records.
Relying on a rate or deadline someone remembered rather than confirming it.

When to involve a lawyer

When to speak to a lawyer

You have received an assessment, an audit notice or a demand you dispute.
You are restructuring, selling the business, or moving assets between entities.
You are operating across borders and unsure where profits are taxable.
Historic filings are incomplete and you need to regularise them.

Find a lawyer Describe your problem

What it covers

When it becomes relevant

Good practice

Common gaps

When to involve a lawyer

Related across the platform

What it covers

When it becomes relevant

Good practice

Common gaps

When to involve a lawyer

Related across the platform