The Albanese Labor Government is investing $23.3 million to help small businesses adopt eInvoicing, reducing the risk of invoice scams and improving cash flow and productivity.
Minister for Small Business Julie Collins joined a roundtable today with Tasmanian small businesses and Xero to discuss the opportunities of eInvoicing.
eInvoicing is a standardised way to send and receive invoices via a secure network using existing small business accounting software and apps.
This reduces the likelihood of invoice scams, which was one of the most prominent scams reported by business in 2023 with more than $91 million in losses.
More than 130,000 businesses are now registered for eInvoicing, with adoption growing as software providers offer eInvoicing capability as part of their software packages.
Commonwealth Government agencies are also enabled to receive eInvoices, which allows 5‑day payment terms for suppliers using eInvoicing under the Pay on Time or Pay Interest policy.
Supporting small businesses to adopt eInvoicing is just one way the Albanese Labor Government is supporting Australia’s small businesses.
The Government’s Small Business Statement in the recent Budget outlines more than $640 million in targeted supports for small businesses to ease pressure, support small businesses to grow, and level the playing field including:
- Providing an additional $3.5 billion of energy bill relief to households and small businesses through the Energy Bill Relief Fund.
- Committing $3.1 million over two years from 2024–25 to extend support available through the Small Business Debt Helpline.
- Investing $7.7 million over two years from 2024–25 to continue providing mental health support through the NewAccess for Small Business Owners program, so small businesses can access free and specialised help when they need it most.
- Helping to support small business growth and investment through a targeted twelvemonth extension of the $20,000 instant asset writeoff.
- Providing $25.3 million over four years from 2024–25 to improve payment times for small businesses, helping improve cash flow and boosting productivity.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Small Business, Julie Collins MP:
“Our Government is backing small businesses to take‑up eInvoicing because we know it can make a big difference to small businesses, like those I met with in Hobart today and right across the country.
“eInvoicing can save businesses money by reducing the time and effort it takes to process an invoice, so they can focus on what really matters – the running of their business.
“We will continue to deliver a better deal for small businesses, with more than $640 million in targeted support outlined in our Small Business Statement.”