Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland
Accountant in Mons
For the practice, the payroll and the salary package
Payroll tax, compliance and individual returns for Mons health professionals, practice owners and households, from a CPA practice.
Mons is a rural residential locality 3.5 km west of Buderim, part of the Buderim urban centre, and named after the 1914 Battle of Mons. In the 2021 Census, Professionals made up 29.9% of its employed residents. Hospitals employed 6.5% of them and General Practice Medical Services 3.3%, the first and joint second industries of employment.
Mons in brief
A school that came and went, and a locality of 1,179 people.
Buderim Road State School opened on 7 February 1916, was soon renamed Mons State School and closed in 1974. There are no schools in Mons today. The former Forest Glen Deer Sanctuary site on Tanawha Tourist Drive was redeveloped as a private mansion.
The population was 683 in 2006, 946 in 2016 and 1,179 in 2021. In 2021, 98.0% of occupied homes were separate houses and 52.6% were owned with a mortgage, at a median of $2,438 a month. Median weekly household income was $2,675, Managers made up 18.4% of employed residents, and 22.4% worked at home.
Practices and practitioners: three rules to check
GP wages and Queensland payroll tax
Why it happens
A medical practice pays general practitioners as employees or as contractors, and its total wages can pass the payroll tax threshold.
Why it matters
From 1 December 2024, wages paid by a medical practice, other than a hospital, to a contracted or employee GP are exempt from Queensland payroll tax, and the exemption has been made permanent. It does not cover other medical centre businesses, such as dental clinics or physiotherapy practices, or payments to dentists or physiotherapists. For those, the usual threshold of $1.3 million in Australian taxable wages applies.
How we help
We handle the complex rules and reporting requirements so you can stay confident that everything is under control.
Allied health and contractor payments
Why it happens
A practice that also engages dentists, physiotherapists or other practitioners may treat them the same way as its GPs.
Why it matters
The GP exemption applies only to GPs paid by a medical practice. Payments to other practitioners, and by other kinds of health business, are tested under the general payroll tax rules, including the contractor provisions.
How we help
We schedule quarterly reviews to avoid bottlenecks and keep lodgement dates on track. Keep a list of every practitioner the practice pays and how each is engaged.
Salary packaging as a hospital employee
Why it happens
Nurses, doctors and allied health staff at public hospitals may be able to package part of their salary.
Why it matters
Public hospitals, not-for-profit hospitals and public ambulance services have an FBT exemption capped at $17,000 per employee for the FBT years ending 31 March 2023 to 2027. Salary packaged meal entertainment and entertainment facility leasing have a separate cap of $5,000 per employee each FBT year.
How we help
Our approach is to explain what matters in plain language and prepare your return with care, aiming to minimise errors and avoid surprises. Bring your income statement, which shows the reportable fringe benefits amount.
Frequently asked questions
Do Mons medical practices pay payroll tax on GP payments?
Not from 1 December 2024. Wages a medical practice pays to contracted or employee GPs are exempt from Queensland payroll tax. Hospitals are not covered by this exemption.
Does the GP exemption cover dentists or physiotherapists?
No. Dental clinics, physiotherapy practices, and payments to dentists or physiotherapists fall outside it.
How much can a public hospital employee salary package?
Up to the $17,000 FBT exemption cap, plus a separate $5,000 cap for salary packaged meal entertainment and entertainment facility leasing.
What records should a practice keep for payroll tax?
Keep the agreement with each practitioner, what they were paid and in what capacity.
Where to next
Have a question?
Check your practice's position
Once required information is complete, common lodgements are prepared within agreed timelines.
Lomandra Accounting is a CPA Practice, registered with the Tax Practitioners Board and an SMSF Specialist. Emma, the Director, is a Certified Practicing Accountant (CPA) with extensive experience in commercial business management, and specialises in Self-Managed Super Funds (SMSFs).
- 07 5234 9201
- admin@lomandraa.com.au
- Sunshine Coast, QLD
- Monday to Friday, 9am to 4:30pm