There are a number of tax issues you may need to deal with if you:
• stop operating your small business
• sell the business
• wind up your company
• register a business but don’t actually start the business

These may include:
• cancelling your ABN and other registrations
• lodging and paying any outstanding activity statements and instalment notices
• making GST adjustments on your final activity statement
• lodging final tax returns

If you sell your small business as a going concern, the sale is GST-free if:
• you supply everything necessary to continue operating the business to the buyer
• you carry on the business until the day it is sold
• the buyer is registered or required to be registered for GST
• you sell the business in return for a payment
• before the sale, you agree with the buyer in writing that the sale is of a going concern.

If you are registered for GST, you may need to include GST in the price of individual business assets you sell.

Small businesses with an annual turnover less than $2 million may be able to access a range of tax concessions. This applies whether you operate your business as a sole trader, partnership, company or trust.
• Income tax concessions
• higher instant asset write-off provisions
• simplified trading stock rules and simplified depreciation rules
• immediate deductions for prepaid expenses
• two-year amendment period.

Capital gains tax (CGT) concessions
• CGT 15-year exemption
• CGT 50% active asset reduction
• CGT retirement exemption
• CGT rollover