Anyone Being Paid To Race?

[Nee-san]

How to make a little bit of money out of motorsport? Start off with a LOT of money.

This is good quote and true some of the time but people like Peter Sauber to name but one didn't do half bad...

[Beer Baron]

i believe it's: "how do you make a small fortune in motorsport??? start with a large one."

plenty of examples of that. but yes plenty of people have made some nice money. bernie eccelstone is not exactly hard up for a quid...

[Nee-san]

bernie eccelstone is not exactly hard up for a quid...

True that.

[fat exa]

i wish i was paid thats the life

[Luke_ENR34]

Wish i was getting sponsored or helped out with my project. Doing everything out of my own pocket. Think by the time im done i could of owned a 35 gtr .

[just_racing]

A little off the track but i have an opportunity through my work to get my car a little sponsorship to help me along.

Can anybody who is doing it tell me what you need to setup to take the money as far as business goes?

Just an ABN? Do you need to do tax returns etc? Any advice would help.

[LNG 33S]

my brother won a competition through RallySportMag to drive for Mazda Australia in a rally down in canberra, while it wasn't technically paid, he was given a carbon fiber stilo helmet, RPM race suit, Mazda watch, bag and a few other goodies....also got a few drive days with Rick Bates....brother to multiple Australian Rally Champion Neal Bates.

http://www.carsguide.com.au/site/news-and-reviews/car-news/a_step_up_to_triumph?from=ms

for memory the worth of prize was around $2000.

[PHaT MR30]

A little off the track but i have an opportunity through my work to get my car a little sponsorship to help me along.

Can anybody who is doing it tell me what you need to setup to take the money as far as business goes?

Just an ABN? Do you need to do tax returns etc? Any advice would help.

I don't think its necessary until its an amount that attracts the ATO's attention (IE more than $10,000).

Our rally team this year landed a few cash paying sponsors and we looked into this to see if we could write off some of our expenses.

Ive spoken at large with my accountant about options, but nothing was really worth while and as I wasn't really carrying out a business (trading in anything other than good will of advertising), setting up a company/getting an abn would just be a costly exercise for no benefit.

[just_racing]

I don't think its necessary until its an amount that attracts the ATO's attention (IE more than $10,000).

Our rally team this year landed a few cash paying sponsors and we looked into this to see if we could write off some of our expenses.

Ive spoken at large with my accountant about options, but nothing was really worth while and as I wasn't really carrying out a business (trading in anything other than good will of advertising), setting up a company/getting an abn would just be a costly exercise for no benefit.

Thanks for that. So do you just get transfers, cheques etc to you personally? Just wondering how the sponsers justify the cash outlay from their side.

[our12]

Hi Kirk.

The sponsors write if off against operating expenses as advertising which reduces taxable income or in many cases increases their loss position.

[just_racing]

Hi Kirk.

The sponsors write if off against operating expenses as advertising which reduces taxable income or in many cases increases their loss position.

Sweet. Thanks or your help Terry.

[PHaT MR30]

Yep just get the cheque made out to you personally

[sav man]

I thought you were an accountant Tim?

[PHaT MR30]

I thought you were an accountant Tim?

No Financial Adviser/Planner Most people think that though lol!

I only do Insurance, Investment, Super, Planning etc

[warps]

I think that the ATO will look at the value for money the company is getting for their sponsorship dollars, ie the exposure they'll get, and the relevance to their business. For example, I only do club events, and my business deals with mining companies. Plastering my company name all over my rally car is unlikely to attract the attention of any of my clients (who all live 1000km away from where I'm likely to be competing anyway). It would be a very long stretch to try and claim thousands of advertising dollars against my rally car.

I'm sure I'd get away with it for a while, but I wouldn't want to have to explain it to auditors.

On the other hand, if my business was a tyre shop, panel beater, engine builder etc, then a rally car would be a great way to lift the business profile.

Another thing to remember is that the company will have to think long and hard about how you behave whilst driving your car with their logos all over it. Imagine the PR if a car they sponsor is perceived to be behaving badly in public.

[sav man]

The value of the advertising is a matter of opinion, pretty sure the ATO don't check the 'value' of the advertising.

[phunky_monkey]

The value of the advertising is a matter of opinion, pretty sure the ATO don't check the 'value' of the advertising.

Agreed.

The value of the advertising can always be argued. You may take clients for hot laps, use the car as a static display at events etc so I don't see the issue with it.

[PHaT MR30]

All above comments are valid, however and I can kinda see warps perspective.

If you were self employed and pouring considerable amount of money into sponsoring your own habits, the ATO might have the view that your purely siphoning money from your business to avoid paying personal income tax and keep your taxable income down. Then they might come after you, but it would have to be an ill proportionate value in relation to your business turnover.

But to be quite frank and if you have a good enough accountant I highly doubt this would ever happen as the ATO is understaffed and flat out chasing tax avoiders.

[Beer Baron]

If you were self employed and pouring considerable amount of money into sponsoring your own habits, the ATO might have the view that your purely siphoning money from your business to avoid paying personal income tax and keep your taxable income down. Then they might come after you, but it would have to be an ill proportionate value in relation to your business turnover.

lol, if they did this probably 80% of cars in state and national competition would be sticker free overnight and no longer competing. just about anyone I know who pours decent coin into their race cars does it through their own business as advertising expense for their business. everyone from old mate with a workshop running his alfa to another bloke who owns a cafe running his porsche GT3 cup car and everything in between. I'm sure plenty of small businesses put so much into their race car it ate all their profit and then some! not just would we have empty grids but the whole motorsport industry in aus would just about go under if ATO started cracking down on folks with small businesses putting cash into their race cars as a business expense. scary!

[warps]

The value of the advertising is a matter of opinion, pretty sure the ATO don't check the 'value' of the advertising.

Ah for f***s sake why is everything taken so f***ing literally?

I used the term "Value" as a catch all term which I then went on to explain further. Correct, ATO don't give a stuff if you're getting value for money. What they do care about is that you're claiming $30k a year on "advertising" whereas you might realistically increase your turnover by $100 a year based on that advertising (if at all). Again, that alone won't necessarily raise any eyebrows, however if that $30k allows you to enjoy your hobby, then they will definitely frown upon you trying to claim it.

There's nothing wrong with businesses sponsoring motorsport, but claiming that the $100k a year your business pumps into your club racer is legitimate advertising and hence taxable, well, good luck with that one. I'm not talking about a car that will get national exposure in its category here. What I'm talking about is the typical club racer who wants to write off his racing expenses, even though the only people who are likely to see the car have nothing at all to do with his business.

Just because people get away with it doesn't make it right. I know I could easily syphon tens of thousands into a race car, but as I said earlier it is a stretch to claim that it is legitimate advertising. It all depends on how "creative" you want to be.