Many people who love driving trucks decide to start up their own transport company. The kind of freight they take may depend on the size of the truck and whether they want to travel interstate, intrastate or just in the same city. No matter what kind of business you start, with the help of a good commercial lawyer there will always be the need to do it properly and adhere to the rules and regulations for your industry.
Here are 9 things to consider when starting up your own freighting company.
- Choose a business structure. Operating as a sole trader is the cheapest option and you can still employ people. Other common options are partnership, company and trust. These take a little longer to organise and cost more, but not all that much.
- Register for an Australian Business Number (ABN). This is free and only takes around 15 minutes. It is not essential, but there are good reasons for doing so, such as claiming tax credits. You’ll also need to register your business name, register for GST if you expect your GST turnover to be $75,000 or more, get a business or personal tax file number and you may need to register for PAYG.
- You may also want to register a trademark for your business.