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Creative businesses do not struggle with compliance because they are careless, but because traditional accounting systems were never designed for how they work. Income is irregular, project-based, and often delayed, while accounting assumes predictable cycles and stable cash flow. When these assumptions collide, VAT becomes a surprise, provisional tax feels punitive, and penalties appear before understanding does. Many creatives are labelled as disorganised when the real issue is structural misalignment. They think in deadlines and deliverables, not tax periods and accruals. When accounting is adapted to reflect this reality, compliance improves, anxiety drops, and the accountant becomes a trusted advisor rather than the bearer of bad news.
Changing a company’s financial year-end may look like a simple date change, but in reality it is a regulated decision with compliance consequences. The year-end can be shortened, but it may never exceed 15 months, and the change only becomes valid once approved by CIPC. When this step is missed, financial statements, annual returns, and compliance timelines fall out of sync, often leading to penalties and unnecessary rework. For CBAPs, understanding not just what can change, but how and when, is essential to getting it right the first time.
How do you know when something is a big deal, and when it’s just noise? Every accountant faces that call, especially during reviews, reporting, or when a questionable director loan lands on your desk. That’s where materiality comes in. It helps you cut through the clutter, spot what really matters, and avoid wasting time on things that don’t move the needle. In this article, we break materiality down in simple terms, what it is, when to use it, and how to calculate it without overthinking it.
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Practice Management
Corporate culture is often dismissed as a “soft issue,” yet it quietly shapes decision-making, risk behaviour, and long-term performance. From small businesses to large corporates, culture influences how people act under pressure long before the numbers reflect it.
Most accountants do not fall behind because they are bad at their job. They fall behind because they treat CPD as a box to tick instead of a strategy to stay relevant. The profession does not wait. If your knowledge is outdated, clients feel it, employers notice it, and your confidence slowly fades. This article explains why CPD is not admin, why ignoring it costs you more than you think, and why CIBA CPD is designed to keep you sharp, trusted, and in demand.
Compliance is easy to ignore when nothing is going wrong. Deadlines feel routine, forms look familiar, and “we’ll do it later” sounds harmless. Until a SARS letter arrives, a company is deregistered, an employee cannot claim benefits, or a data breach exposes client information. Missed compliance deadlines are not small admin errors. They trigger penalties, audits, reputational damage, and in some cases, the end of a practice. This article explains why compliance discipline is no longer optional, where accountants get caught out most often, and how making deadlines non-negotiable can protect your clients, your reputation, and your income.