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Business valuations
We offer expert valuation advice in transactions, regulatory and administrative matters, and matters subject to dispute – valuing businesses, shares and intangible assets in a wide range of industries.
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Capital markets
You need corporate finance specialists experienced in international capital markets on your side if you’re buying or selling financial securities.
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Complex and international services
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Corporate insolvency
Our corporate investigation and recovery teams can help you manage insolvency situations and facilitate the best outcome.
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Debt advisory
An optimal funding structure for your organisation presents unprecedented opportunities, but achieving this can be difficult without a trusted advisor.
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IT forensics
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Raising finance
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Relationship property services
Grant Thornton offers high quality independent advice on the many financial issues associated with relationship property from considering an individual financial issue to all aspects of a complex settlement.
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Transaction advisory
Our depth of market knowledge will steer you through the transaction process. Grant Thornton’s dynamic teams offer range of financial, commercial and operational expertise.
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Virtual asset advisory
Helping you navigate the world of virtual currencies and decentralised financial systems.
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Corporate tax
Grant Thornton can identify tax issues, risks and opportunities in your organisation and implement strategies to improve your bottom line.
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Employment tax
Grant Thornton’s advisers can help you with PAYE (payroll tax), Kiwisaver, fringe benefits tax (FBT), student loans, global mobility services, international tax
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Global mobility services
Our team can help expatriates and their employers deal with tax and employment matters both in New Zealand and overseas. With the correct planning advice, employee allowances and benefits may be structured to avoid double taxation and achieve tax savings.
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GST
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International tax
International tax rules are undergoing their biggest change in a generation. Tax authorities around the world are increasingly vigilant, especially when it comes to global operations.
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Research and Development
R&D tax incentives are often underused and misunderstood – is your business maximising opportunities for making claims?
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Tax compliance
Our advisers help clients manage the critical issue of compliance across accountancy regulations, corporation law and tax. We also offer business and wealth advisory services, which means we can provide a seamless and tax-effective offering to our clients.
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Tax governance
Mitigate tax risks and implement best practice governance that will stand up to IRD scrutiny and audits.
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Transfer pricing
Tax authorities are demanding transparency in international arrangements. We businesses comply with regulations and use transfer pricing as a strategic planning tool.
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Audit methodology
Our five step audit methodology offers a high quality service wherever you are in the world and includes planning, risk assessment, testing internal controls, substantive testing, and concluding and reporting
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Audit technology
We apply our audit methodology with an integrated set of software tools known as the Voyager suite. Our technology has been developed to produce quality audits that are effective and efficient.
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Financial reporting advisory
Our financial reporting advisers have the expertise to help you deal with the constantly evolving regulatory environment.
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Business architecture
Our business architects help businesses with disruptive conditions, business expansion and competitive challenges; the deployment of your strategy is critical to success.
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Cloud services
Leverage the cloud to keep your data safe, operate more efficiently, reduce costs and create a better experience for your employees and clients.
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Internal audit
Our internal audits deliver independent assurance over key controls within your riskiest processes, proving what works and what doesn’t and recommending improvements.
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IT advisory
Our hands on product experience, extensive functional knowledge and industry insights help clients solve complex IT and technology issues
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IT privacy and security
IT privacy and security should support your business strategy. Our pragmatic approach focuses on reducing cyber security risks specific to your organisation
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Payroll assurance
Our specialist payroll assurance team can conduct a review of your payroll system configuration and processes, and then help you and your team to implement any necessary recalculations.
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PCI DSS
Our information security specialists are approved Qualified Security Assessors (QSAs) that have been qualified by the PCI Security Standards Council to independently assess merchants and service providers.
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Process improvement
As your organisation grows in size and complexity, processes that were once enabling often become cumbersome and inefficient. To maintain growth, your business must remain flexible, agile and profitable
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Project assurance
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Risk management
We understand that growing companies need to establish robust internal controls, and use information technology to effectively mitigate risk.
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Robotic process automation (RPA)
RPA is emerging as the most sophisticated form of automation used to help businesses become more agile and remain competitive in the face of today’s ongoing digital disruption.
Budget 2014: Marketing the taxation of capital
Capital gains tax (CGT) has become a major policy difference between the two main political parties in the lead up to this year’s election, but it’s unlikely to get any air time in the government's 2014 budget this month.
On the one hand, National has clearly given further consideration to a CGT, given comments from the OECD that it’s missing from our arsenal of taxation tools. Still, they have firmly rejected it.
On the other hand, Labour has endorsed their intent to implement a full CGT regime, likely to be based on their policy from the last election. You can expect to see a standard CGT roll out at a concessionary rate of 15% (to deal with the effects of inflation), exemptions for the family home, a likely grandfathering of assets being exempt, if they were acquired before implementation date, and taxation only upon realisation.
If CGT is such a critical weapon to the collection of taxation in New Zealand (which all governments desperately need, including New Zealand’s) and an integral part of market place policy, the question remains: Why isn’t National keen to implement it, starting with this year’s budget?
National have considered the trade-off between the additional complexity to the tax system, the range of quasi-CGT regimes already in place (certain land transactions, international tax regimes and financial arrangement rules to name but a few), and the deferred nature of any potential additional tax revenue collected. They’ve concluded that a full blown CGT regime belongs in the scrap heap for now.
Despite the policy purity, it’s widely recognised that a CGT will only raise revenue of any substance after some years of being in place (estimated at 15 years). One should also read between the lines, that until Inland Revenues First Mainframe computer system is finally upgraded, such a significant policy change would likely be the last straw to a full collapse of the current computer system.
From a Labour perspective, one should also read between the lines. Despite not publicly stating this, CGT is a socialist tax which aims to tax the wealthy who own capital assets. It is, apparently, the panacea for the Auckland housing crisis, in that it will tax all the land speculators (despite the fact that true land speculators are already taxed under the land provisions of other Tax Acts) and transfer investment into productive assets.
The disturbing feature of a CGT policy, which has not been aired by either party, is the negative impact it will have on market behaviour and transactions.
New Zealand seems to be clawing its way out of the economic doldrums. Confidence is high, taxes are being collected and a surplus is being promised in this year’s Budget. The last thing we need is an almighty hand-brake on our markets. A CGT would result in people holding onto their current assets, given their preferential pre-CGT status. Assets would not be sold, until the owner really wanted to quit and shift its protected assets into CGT affected assets.
This would result in a nationwide shortage of supply in the housing market, as people hold on to property, most likely resulting in higher house prices. However, it may lead to an increase in the availability of rental properties, which may have a short term benefit to those looking for accommodation.
Despite Labour stating a CGT would shift resources efficiently into productive assets, businesses would also be subject to CGTs. This would either be levied on the owners of the businesses that are bought or sold, either directly or indirectly on the shares, and on businesses themselves which buy and sell business assets. Productive assets would therefore also be hit, and the same market slowdown would hit productive sector transactions.
And finally, the negative impact on the ease of tax administration should also be acknowledged, given a significant rewrite to our current rules that would be required, and the increased complexity and lack of understanding that would result.
There will be a time and a place for considering the introduction of CGT. However, the negative impact this would have on our current markets, business and our fragile economy mean that now is not the time. So don't expect to see any spectre of a CGT in this year's budget, or any time soon (pending election results later this year).
Further enquiries, please contact:
Greg Thompson
Grant Thornton New Zealand National Director and Partner, Tax
T +64 4 495 3775
E greg.thompson@nz.gt.com