Digital signatures now live in NZ

Business in New Zealand has entered a bold new world, and MYOB is right there along for the ride.

From today, Inland Revenue will start accepting digital signatures on forms sent to the department – meaning businesses filing with the department could potentially save both time and money.

Instead of having to print out a form and fill it out using a pen, businesses will now be able to fill out forms electronically and offer a digital signature instead of having to sign a paper copy.

The changes have come about thanks to legislation passed in parliament in May looking at the ways the taxation system could be simplified to make life easier for SMEs.

MYOB is also making life easier for SMEs, launching a digital signatures service to its customers in NZ.

“We’re proud to be first business in New Zealand to offer this service to our customers,” MYOB spokesperson Ingrid Cronin-Knight said.

“MYOB is focused on bringing innovative new services to market. We know small- to medium-sized businesses are always looking for ways to improve productivity in their operations.”

MYOB customers will be able to use the digital signature service through their MYOB platform or through their accountant.

The company has been working directly with the department to find a raft of ways to make life easier for SMEs.

NZ business craving simplicity

Aside from digital signatures, this means things like the introduction of eGST, as well as changes to provisional taxation to allow it to be calculated and paid directly through a business’s accounting software package.

MYOB became the first company in NZ to offer eGST filing in April after working with Inland Revenue on how to best implement the service.

One of the consistent findings of the NZ Business Monitor over two years is a desire from SMEs to make tax compliance simpler.

There is also a wider shift underway in NZ, with NZ businesses seeking to conduct more business in the cloud and unlock more streamlined services.

SMEs are increasingly taking their business to the cloud to gain access to their business anywhere, anytime, rather than being tied to a particular desktop.

It also gives customers the ability to access vital business information and process payroll in case of disaster.

The ability to have business information sitting in the cloud also gives SMEs access to enterprise level security and performance instead of having the performance of a laptop computer dictate the performance of the business.