Standard Terms of Engagement
By engaging bdjpartners ("BDJ") you are bound (as is BDJ) to the terms of the engagement as set out here unless these are expressly altered in writing by both parties.
With effect from 1 March 2010, a new regime for the regulation of tax agents has taken effect under the Tax Agent Services Act 2009 and accompanying legislation (TASA). The new regime has implications for registered tax agents and also for their clients. An important feature of TASA is the provision of a "safe harbour" protection from penalties in certain circumstances for taxpayers who engage registered tax Agents. To obtain the benefits of "safe harbour" protection, the legislation requires the taxpayer to provide the registered tax agent with "all relevant taxation information" to enable accurate statements to be provided to the Australian Taxation Office. This requirement may be important to both parties in identifying and understanding the purpose and scope of the engagement as set out below and may also affect other matters discussed below.
Purpose, Scope, and Output
BDJ will provide the agreed professional services which will be conducted in accordance with the relevant professional and ethical standards issued by the Accounting Professional & Ethical Standards Board Limited (APESB). The extent of our procedures will be limited exclusively for this purpose.
As a result, (unless it is specifically a part of the engagement) no audit or review will be performed and, accordingly, no assurance will be expressed. Our engagement cannot be relied upon to disclose irregularities including fraud, other illegal acts and errors that may exist. However, we will inform you of any such matters that come to our attention.
Our professional services are conducted and the required reports and documents will be prepared for distribution to the relevant specific organisation or party for the purpose as agreed (normally you). We disclaim any assumption of responsibility for any reliance on our professional services to any party other than as specified or agreed, and for the purpose which it was prepared. Where appropriate, our report will contain a disclaimer to this effect.
For the purpose of eliminating any doubt, we will not be held responsible should a financial institution (or any other party) rely on financial statements we have provided to you.
Responsibilities
In conducting this engagement, information obtained by us in the course of the engagement is subject to strict confidentiality requirements. That information will not be disclosed by us to other parties except as required or allowed for by law, or with your express consent.
We wish to advise that our firm's system of quality control has been established and maintained in accordance with the relevant APESB standard. As a result, our files may be subject to review as part of the quality control review program of The Institute of Chartered Accountants ("ICAA") which monitors compliance with professional standards by its members. We advise you that by accepting our engagement you acknowledge that, if requested, our files relating to this engagement will be made available under this program. Should this occur, we will advise you.
Clients are required to arrange for reasonable access by us to relevant individuals and documents, and to be responsible for both the completeness and accuracy of the information supplied to us.
Fees
Our fees are based on the time required by the individuals assigned to the engagement. Individual hourly rates vary according to the degree of responsibility involved and the experience and skill required. Hourly rates are available and can be supplied on request at any time.
Limitation of Liability
Our liability is limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation. Further information on the scheme is available from the Professional Standards Councils' website: http://www.professionalstandardscouncil.gov.au.
Ownership of Documents
All original documents obtained from the client arising from the engagement shall remain the property of the client. However, we reserve the right to make a reasonable number of copies of the original documents for our records.
Our engagement will result in the production of various documents, forms, and reports. Ownership of these documents will vest in you. All other documents (such as our working papers) produced by us in respect of this engagement will remain the property of BDJ.
BDJ has a policy of exploring a legal right of lien over any client documents in our possession in the event of a dispute.
Our Expectations
By accepting to complete the services requested, BDJ expects that its clients will:
- Maintain their records appropriately so BDJ can rely on the documentation and information provided to it;
- Not withhold information relevant to the services being provided;
- Read all documents, emails, brochures, letters, reports, etc forwarded to them by BDJ;
- Respond to all BDJ requests in a timely manner;
- Raise any issues that may occur with BDJ immediately so that they can be resolved as soon as possible;
- Agree to pay all invoices as they become due;
- Understand that BDJ processes its work on a first-in-first-out basis where possible, and as such a job may not be started for a period of time after receipt by BDJ; and
- Accept that BDJ will not accept responsibility for any penalties and/or interest resulting from the late submission of any form, document, etc where BDJ has acted reasonably when compared to industry standards.
Engagements of our Common Services
We shall now briefly outline the basis of our engagement in the context of the specific services to be provided.
Income Tax Returns
In preparing your income tax returns, we will rely on the information provided to us. In general, we will assume that we have been given all of the relevant information by you and prepare your return based on this information. During the preparation of your return, we may become aware (or suspect) that we do not have all relevant information, and at such time we will make all reasonable enquiries into that information to compile your tax return.
During the course of preparing an individual tax return, we will check the ATO's "pre-filling report" that discloses information that the Tax Office have relating to your tax file number. If an item appears on this report that BDJ believes should be included in your tax return, we will include it.
While we may make copies of your documentation, or hold some of your documentation in our files for a period of time, you are aware that you and you only are responsible for maintaining records for the prescribed period of time under Tax Law.
Upon signing the declarations included with your tax return, you are acknowledging that you have read the tax returns provided, and accept that they are a true and complete record of your taxable income.
Financial Statements
When a business engages BDJ to complete its tax return, BDJ will also prepare a set of financial statements where necessary (at the discretion of BDJ), or at the specific request of the client.
As a general guide, where a business maintains a set of accounts, BDJ will prepare a set of financial statements for the business. Where a business does not have an accounting system in place, the size of the job, and the type of information will largely determine whether or not BDJ prepares financial statements.
Fringe Benefits Returns
It is generally not possible to determine whether a FBT return is required from the information normally provided to us, therefore we shall not prepare a FBT return unless given specific instructions to do so.
It is necessary to revert to the source documentation to allow BDJ to analyse the FBT implications of any transaction, as this cannot be done from the general ledger.
Activity Statements
We can be engaged to complete Activity Statements (BAS, IAS) in one of two ways:
- To lodge a completed Activity Statement through our Electronic Lodgement Service; or
- To compile an Activity Statement from the accounting records or raw information (e.g. bank statements) of a client.
If we are engaged to lodge a completed Activity Statement, we accept no responsibility for the accuracy of the form, but reserve the right to make any enquiries we feel are necessary into the details of the form.
If we are compiling your Activity Statement from information provided to us, we will not undertake a review or audit of the information unless specifically requested. We will rely on the information provided to us, and where reasonable assume that the information provided is complete and accurate.
Company Secretarial Services
BDJ maintains electronic share registers for all corporate clients and files necessary documents with the Australian Securities and Investments Commissions ("ASIC"). We also maintain minute books for all corporate clients unless otherwise instructed.
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