Xero

For many small business owners, the final few months of the year are critical to nailing a successful year. Part of preparing for this often busy period is understanding the current state of the economy so that you can respond to your customers’ needs. This is where the Xero Small Business Insights (XSBI) program can help you make informed business decisions.

Let’s explore what the latest data means for you.

A mixed bag: Green-shoots, ongoing challenges and a loss of momentum

The latest XSBI data for Australia, New Zealand and the UK was a mixed bag over the September quarter, depending on which country you’re operating in. Australia’s small business economy is showing signs of green shoots, while New Zealand’s remains challenging (but isn’t getting worse), and the UK has lost the positive momentum seen earlier in the year.

Here’s a look at how small businesses are faring in your country:

Australia: Sales grew 5.5% year-on-year (y/y) in the September quarter, following a soft 3.9% y/y rise in the June quarter. The latest quarterly performance is the largest rise in sales in two years. Jobs grew 2.7% year-on-year (y/y) in the September quarter, after a 3.0% y/y rise in the June quarter. As an indicator, jobs lag behind sales (because businesses usually want to see a few months of improving sales before they hire new staff), so this September slowdown could reflect the soft sales performance seen earlier in the year. 

New Zealand: Sales grew 1.9% year-on-year (y/y) in the September quarter, after being flat in the June quarter. Normally such a result would be considered soft but it is the best result since the June quarter 2023. The last four months all showed positive sales growth, which is the longest consecutive run of sales growth since mid-2023. Jobs are still weak, at 1.2% lower than a year ago in the September quarter, after a similar fall in the June quarter. 

United Kingdom: Sales grew 3.1% year-on-year (y/y) in the September quarter, the smallest rise in a year and a half. This continued the trend in slowing sales growth seen in the June quarter, after a solid 5.7% y/y rise in the March quarter. Jobs grew 1.1% year-on-year (y/y) in the September quarter, after a 1.9% y/y rise in the June quarter. This slowdown in jobs growth likely reflects both softening sales performance and the impact of heightened uncertainty, with business owners reluctant to take on staff when the outlook is so unclear.

Regional spotlights

The XSBI data not only revealed differences between countries but also within them.

Australia: Sales improved in all states and territories in the September quarter, notably in previously soft Victoria (+4.7% y/y) and usually below-average Tasmania (+6.7% y/y) – this was Tasmania’s strongest performance in over two-and-a-half years. However, job growth softened a little across all regions, with Western Australia (+3.9% y/y) and Queensland (+3.5% y/y) seeing the largest rises.

New Zealand: Auckland and Wellington, which have been a drag on national results since early 2024, saw slight sales increases in the September quarter (+0.6% and +0.4% y/y respectively), but job losses continued (Auckland -2.5% y/y, Wellington -4.5% y/y). Canterbury (+4.3% y/y sales, +1.0% y/y jobs) and Otago (+6.3% y/y sales, with jobs flat) continued to be the top performing regions.

United Kingdom: Regional sales and jobs growth moderated across the UK. The South East led (sales +4.0% y/y, jobs +2.6% y/y), followed by East Midlands (sales +3.1% y/y, jobs +2.3% y/y) and North East (sales +3.2% y/y, jobs +2.0% y/y). Wales was the worst performing region (sales +1.8% y/y, jobs -1.8% y/y). 

What this means for your business at the end of the year 

The latest XSBI data shows that your customers might need some encouragement to spend in the closing months of the year.  

Make your business the easiest option for customers: At such a busy time of year, consider how you can make it easier for your customers to buy from you rather than from your competitors. With consumers being more careful about their spending, making the experience simple and convenient is crucial. This means considering everything from training sales staff, adding more payment options and offering special loyalty deals and flexible purchasing channels such as click-and-collect or delivery. Plus, use marketing to connect with customers early, ensuring your business is top-of-mind before this important trading period.

Prepare for busy periods: A busy season tests every business process, from stock management to staff performance to customer experience. Now is the time to make sure these are all running efficiently so that you can be confident there won’t be any unexpected surprises during November and early December that prevent you from making those sales.  

Manage cash flow during the Christmas/New Year period: After a busy period, many businesses have a quieter time around Christmas and New Year, which can strain cash flow. Sales may slow down and staff may be on leave, but many of your business bills don’t stop. Proactive planning with your accountant is essential to make sure you have sufficient cash flow to cover costs during this period, particularly during the Southern Hemisphere’s summer holidays.  

The end of the year is an important period for many small businesses. Make sure you’re ready to capitalise on these weeks and set your business up for further success in 2026. 

You can explore the XSBI data in more detail, including industry breakdowns, on the XSBI website.

The post How understanding the economy can help make for a successful end to the year appeared first on Xero Blog.

We’ve just finished up our Roadshows around the country, and it was fantastic to connect with so many of you. It gives us so much energy, and getting your direct feedback is invaluable. 

We’ve really shifted gears. We’ve moved from talking about the future, to delivering it. At the Roadshow, we shared the latest product updates and a sneak peak at our roadmap. Seeing your reactions to game-changers like Syft, financial insights in Just Ask Xero (JAX), and the new Partner Hub was such a highlight. 

Without a doubt, there’s renewed energy on both sides. You can see the tangible benefits in the tools we’re releasing. You can see all the opportunities to be doing more. Based on recent conversations, we’re addressing some common themes and how we’re supporting you with these. 

Taking small steps to prepare for MTD for IT

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (MTD for IT) remains a major topic of conversation. We know it feels like a huge shift and the pressure is on, but you don’t have to face it alone. This is a significant opportunity to guide your clients, and the most important thing you can do right now is get started. We have practical resources that have been built especially for Xero partners. 

We know one of the biggest hurdles is migrating sole trader and landlord clients to digital software. Here are two simple, powerful ways you can empower them (and save yourself time) today:

• Introduce them to Hubdoc: Encourage clients to snap photos of receipts and bills. The data flows directly into Xero, cutting down your admin. Don’t forget Hubdoc is available in their Xero subscription at no extra cost.
• Connect their bank feeds: It’s incredibly secure and far more efficient than manual uploads. It ensures their data is always up-to-date, giving you a clearer picture to work from.

Watch our how-to YouTube series to learn more about this. By starting with these small, manageable tasks, you can save time on manual data entry and focus more on other ways to deliver value. 

Putting you in the pilot’s seat with AI

The other big topic was AI. Xero’s EGM of Technology Research and Advocacy, James Bergin’s analogy really resonated: AI is the plane, and you can either be a passenger or the pilot. It’s about making conscious decisions to shape the future in your favour, rather than just watching it happen reactively.

We unveiled how JAX is evolving from ‘Just Ask’ to ‘Just Done’ solution. Our goal is for JAX to work alongside you to help you save time by getting manual, repetitive work just done across bookkeeping, tax, payments and reporting.

You’ve told us you need AI that’s designed specifically for you, with high levels of accuracy and reliability you can trust. We’re pleased to see your enthusiasm, but you’ve also raised practical questions about how JAX will function, its ability to recall previous conversations, and how it will intelligently handle bank reconciliations.

You’re right to ask these questions. This is exactly why we built the JAX Assure control system. It increases accuracy and reduces hallucinations with precision and control. We’ve made sure that JAX can explain its actions, for example it can show why a reconciliation has been coded in a certain way so you understand why it’s doing what it’s doing as it completes each task, making the AI experience collaborative and transparent. JAX has checks and balances baked in, such as asking for confirmation before making a change to a ledger so your human judgement can be used where it matters most.

Unlocking deeper insights with Syft 

We know Syft is still new to many, but we’re so excited by its potential to change how you interact with your clients. It’s super intuitive, making analysing business data more like reading a good book instead of decoding a puzzle. 

Many of you are excited by the powerful reporting and forecasting capabilities, but are looking for a clearer pathway on how to get started.

To clarify, the way you use Syft will be slightly different to how your clients use it – you’ll have access to deeper reporting, forecasting, and multi-client insights via Syft Analytics, while your clients will use the in-platform analytics in Xero to track their own business performance at a glance. The aim is to enhance your conversations with clients, not take away from them. By showing clients their own top-line business analytics in Xero, they become more engaged with the reports and insights you present. This approach keeps you in the driver’s seat while enabling deeper, more meaningful discussions.

For your clients with eligible plans (Grow, Comprehensive and Ultimate), they have the ability to add Analytics powered by Syft at no extra cost. Speak to your dedicated Xero contact to get started.

The ultimate efficiency: All our partner tools in one place

We heard loud and clear that you need our tools to be as seamless as possible. That’s why we’re excited to launch the Xero Partner Hub. We designed it with over 2,000 accountants and bookkeepers to bring Xero HQ, Practice Manager, Tax, and Workpapers into one unified place. The result is a streamlined workflow for compliance and tax across all your clients.

The Xero Partner Hub will be available to those of you using Xero Practice Manager in November and to all other practices in early 2026.

We’re also working hard to streamline the journey from bookkeeping to accounts production to tax, so that “tax just happens” as we know this will be a huge time saver for you. Stay tuned for more to come on this in the near future. 

We’ve listened to your feedback that a truly streamlined compliance workflow requires a workpapers solution that is deeply integrated with bookkeeping and tax. I know many of you will be excited about this, and I’m pleased to share that our new Workpapers solution will be available in beta to selected UK partners from December.

Building financial confidence amongst small businesses

Our latest research reveals a critical financial skills gap undermining the resilience and growth of UK small businesses. Culturally, there’s a stigma around not knowing our numbers, with many small businesses worried that they should know more. How can we expect entrepreneurs to know what they’ve never been taught? 

To help build financial confidence, especially amongst those from underrepresented groups, we’ve launched Xero’s Know Your Numbers. It’s a series of free educational content on key financial topics like cash flow and budgeting designed to be absorbed in under five minutes a week.

We’re inviting you to help us tackle this challenge. By becoming a Xero For Good Ambassador you have the opportunity to give back. By volunteering just 8 hours over 8-12 months, you can mentor a small business owner who is struggling with the basics, being the friendly expert they can turn to. Help us build a more financially fluent nation, and give small businesses the opportunity they deserve to thrive.Thank you again to those who joined us at the Roadshow. Don’t forget to stay up to date with the latest product releases at The Long And Short Of It. While we can’t get out on the road every month to deliver updates in person, this brings you updates each quarter of what’s new in Xero.

The post UK Roadshow: Turn inspiration into action appeared first on Xero Blog.

I’m humbled and incredibly honoured to share that on Friday, Xero was awarded the prestigious Value of Design Black Pin by the Designers Institute of New Zealand at the Best Design Awards!

A Black Pin recognises outstanding achievement within New Zealand’s design community. It reflects a multi-million dollar investment in design of all kinds, in all sorts of organisations. The effects driven by that investment are truly good for New Zealand. 

“The 2025 Value of Design Black Pin recipients, Xero, have embedded design into the heart of their organisation. From their founding principle to “make it beautiful”, to elevating design leadership onto their executive team, they’ve built a culture where design isn’t an afterthought –  it’s how they solve problems, shape strategy, and support millions of small businesses worldwide.”

Black Pin judging panel – see the judges’ full write up on the Designers Institute of New Zealand website.

This award specifically acknowledges our deep commitment to user experience, and how we embed beautiful, intuitive design into our software to simplify complex tasks for small businesses, accountants, and bookkeepers.

Since the awards began in 1995, the prestigious Black Pin has been awarded only twice: to Fisher and Paykel Healthcare in 2019 and to Emirates Team New Zealand in 2022.

Designing for our customers is in our DNA

Our design ethos ladders directly back to our purpose: to make life better for people in small business, their advisors and communities around the world. This isn’t just a philosophy; it’s a daily practice of listening and acting.

Our approach is built on a constant stream of customer feedback. This is evident in the 300 features our teams have shipped in the last year, and in massive projects like our redesigned navigation and new homepage, which were built with our customers at the forefront. 

On this project, we collaborated closely with more than 3,000 small businesses, accountants, and bookkeepers globally during the research and testing phase, and to date, over 30,000 customers have provided valuable, real-time feedback on the new experience during the beta program. This incredibly valuable input helped us find the right balance: creating an intuitive design that feels both fresh and familiar.

And last month, at Xerocon Brisbane, we moved beyond traditional feedback channels and brought our design process directly to our community with ‘The Laundromat’, our first-ever, purpose-built design lab. The goal was to co-create, not just consult.

We collaborated with our customers through immersive workshops, one-on-one interviews, and hands-on design sessions. Together, we explored everything from the future of AI to what a more personal Xero homepage could look like. The incredible energy and actionable ideas that came from these sessions have reinforced our belief that the most innovative products are born from true partnership.

Embedding beautiful design into the heart of our software

We know Xero is part of the fabric of millions of small businesses around the world. This award is a reminder that our daily focus on design helps simplify complex tasks and drive efficiencies for our customers – the small businesses that keep this country moving, and their accountants and bookkeepers.

At the start of last year, we established a bold new strategy to make design a core competitive advantage for Xero. By directly aligning our design efforts with our product strategy, we’ve empowered our product and technology teams and cross-functional partners to deliver on key priorities more effectively.

This strategic shift integrated design into Xero’s core business operation. 

By embedding ‘beautiful design’ into the heart of our software, Xero has helped put Aotearoa on the global design map – showing that world-class innovation can emerge from New Zealand, and inspiring other companies to place design at the centre of their strategy.

A celebration of our people and our purpose

This incredible honour belongs to the hundreds of designers, past and present, who have poured their hearts and talent into Xero. My deepest gratitude goes out to every one of them. I’m also thankful for the support from many wonderful collaborators across Product, Engineering, Brand, The Hub, and the entire Xero organisation—this award recognises our collective effort.

For a company born in Aotearoa, this feels truly special. My team believes that design is key to making our customers’ lives better, and this award is a powerful affirmation of this belief. It also acknowledges the investment and impact we’ve made in design across Xero – in our people, our research, and our strategy – and affirms that this work is genuinely doing good for New Zealand.

It’s also a deeply gratifying moment to see design formally valued at the highest level internally. As SVP of Design, being a member of Xero’s executive leadership team means that design now has a formal ‘seat at the table’ within Xero. This is a testament to the organisation’s belief in design as a craft and the impact design has on the business and its customers.

Thank you to all the designers who have worked at Xero, past and present. This award is recognition for all you have given at Xero to make accounting software beautiful and easy to use!

The post A huge honour for Xero: Reflecting on the Value of Design Black Pin award appeared first on Xero Blog.

Last week, we kicked off the 2025 Xero Asia Roadshow in Singapore – and we’re still buzzing from all the energy and excitement of the day!

A big thank you to the over 600 accountants and bookkeepers who joined us at PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay for a day of connection, learning and sharing. We loved having our community of partners all together at one event – from long-time Xero fans to those just starting out on their journey. It was inspiring to hear about the many ways you’re working to elevate your practice and deliver the very best to your clients!

You can relive all the best moments of the day through our event photo album here.

And if you didn’t get the chance to join us at our Singapore Roadshow, there’s still time to join us at our Malaysia stop. It takes place on 6 November at W Hotel Kuala Lumpur, and we’d love to see you there!

Register for the Xero Asia Roadshow – Malaysia here!

Supercharged Speaking Sessions in Singapore

It was a jam-packed agenda centred around our event theme – Supercharged. Through our programme, we set out to demystify AI and paint a picture of its impact on the future, while ultimately exploring how Xero and our ecosystem partners can help practices across the region better support their clients in this soon-to-be reality. 

We kicked off the afternoon with an opening welcome by Xero Asia’s very own Managing Director, Koren Wines. One of the highlights from Koren’s address was exploring how accountants and bookkeepers will move from being passengers to pilots – with agentic AI as their co-pilot. And with the help of the “Just Done” experience Xero is building, our partners can focus on delivering high-value strategic counsel that empowers their clients to thrive. 

During her address, Koren was even joined by a surprise guest! No spoilers here – if you were unable to be at our Singapore show, you’ll just have to join us at our Malaysia stop to find out who that mystery person is!

Speaking of guests, we had the amazing opportunity to hear from author, robotics expert and scientific futurist Dr Catherine Ball. Through her keynote, we caught a glimpse of what a digital-first reality will look like in the not-so-distant future, including a day in the life of an accountant or bookkeeper in 2030. It was a truly illuminating look into what will soon be “the new normal” for industry professionals in Asia and beyond.

Finally, we capped off the afternoon with multiple sessions exploring tangible ways Xero will help elevate our partners’ practices. From our Xero showcase and demos, to our panel featuring the Xero Partner Advisory Council, we brought to life best practices, workflow hacks and the latest Xero product updates and enhancements that will allow accountants and bookkeepers to deliver even greater value to their clients.

Exploring the Ecosystem: Singapore Roadshow Exhibitors 

No Xero Roadshow is complete without our incredible ecosystem partners. The exhibition floor was constantly buzzing, giving attendees the chance to see transformative tools in action.

Thank you to all our Singapore Roadshow exhibitors for showcasing their truly revolutionary solutions! A special shout out to Airwallex, CardUp, Copi, Dext, Fishbowl, Fluid, JustLogin and SimpleAI – these app partners were handpicked from the over 1,100 available in the Xero App Store and represent the absolute cutting edge of technology. 

We were also graced by the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS), who engaged deeply with our partner community while providing clarity on Singapore’s evolving tax regulatory landscape. This made for a rich experience for our attendees who gained insight not only on compliance requirements, but the tools within Xero’s ecosystem that will enable them to better meet these regulations.

In Case You Missed It: What’s Next?

To everyone who was a part of our Singapore Roadshow, thank you for joining us! We hope you found it an enriching day staying up to date with the latest from Xero, hearing from our app partners, learning about industry trends, and connecting with your peers and the wider Xero community.

If you’re attending our Malaysia stop, we can’t wait to welcome you and explore how we can supercharge your practice together!

Click here to register for Xero Asia Roadshow – Malaysia

The post A Supercharged Success: A recap of Xero Asia Roadshow 2025 – Singapore appeared first on Xero Blog.

Thousands of Xero customers have taken advantage of free carbon tracking and management via Sumday since our partnership announcement back in April. Sumday has helped businesses like yours get clearer on their emissions, from quick estimates to comprehensive, audit-ready carbon accounting. 

Carbon accounting isn’t always at the top of the to-do list. But building a values-driven, resilient business often is. And increasingly, your customers, employees and suppliers are expecting sustainability to be part of the story. 

That’s why we’re making sustainability easier to understand and act on. With Sumday, you already have estimation tools and a full carbon accounting suite. This month, there’s more for you to discover: Introducing Sumday AI, your new sustainability analyst. 

A sustainability analyst – without the headcount

Imagine having a full time sustainability analyst in your team. Well, now you’ve got one. 

Sumday’s new AI analyst is focused on carbon accounting, management accounting, building business cases and answering those questions others might be asking you about sustainability. 

Use it to: 

• answer your team’s questions in plain language
• translate the jargon
• review the data you already have in Xero, Sumday or any file 
• help build the business case for new sustainability project or ideas
• highlight what you can do to make a difference
• draft communication to share with your team or customers 
• help you get your carbon accounting right, without a huge lift

This new AI capability will be available free within Sumday for every Xero customer – just sign in and try it out when it goes live this month! 

Not a Sumday customer yet? Sign up for your 12 month free subscription via the Xero App Store today.

Hear how businesses like yours are benefitting from Xero + Sumday

Not sure how Sumday could work in your business? Meet three Xero customers who have adopted Sumday and are using it to future-proof their businesses, easily meet reporting and compliance obligations, and keep suppliers, stakeholders and customers satisfied.  

Kiely Plumbing

The mission and motto of Kiely Plumbing, a third-generation, family-owned plumbing business, is “plumbing with purpose”. General Manager Sam Kiely says that their customers and suppliers are increasingly environmentally conscious and socially aware, and want to work for trades businesses who share those values. Being carbon-aware gives Kiely Plumbing a competitive edge. 

Sam says Sumday has armed him with the data he needs to make informed decisions about what sustainability initiatives have the most impact. It also helps the business meet the demands and inquiries of their suppliers asking for carbon information. 

Sumday helps Kiely Plumbing live up to its sustainability mission and influence and inspire customers, suppliers and other trades businesses to do the same. 

West Pine Ag

As carbon accounting advisor for agribusiness West Pine, Emily Roberts understands the importance – and difficulty – of transforming abstract agricultural data into quantifiable emissions metrics. Sumday allows Emily and her team to understand how cow populations, crop yields and more impact both their financial and sustainability bottom line. 

Emily says many businesses that track emissions have a lot of data, but not a lot of ability to draw insights from it. The beauty of Sumday is that it can transform everyday data from purchases and bills (and counting livestock, application of fertilizer, and cow feed) into emissions information. Plus, it then goes further to turn that data into actionable insights. 

Sumday allows West Pine to calculate what they need for their carbon inventory, find hidden efficiencies and costs, and get a clear emissions profile of various activities on the farm. 

Pinnacle Investment Management Group

For Pinnacle, the transparency around carbon accounting and sustainability data is becoming increasingly important for risk mitigation. Plus, with more and more of their affiliates demanding carbon accounting services, sustainability manager Ella Thompson needed a way to scale this area professionally and accurately.

The smooth integration between Xero and Sumday allows Ella and her team to maintain consistency in how they assign emissions factors and keep tidy, transparent records they can rely on across all of the accounts they manage. Ella especially loves the AI features, which help her categorise and reconcile up to 20,000 line items efficiently. 

Ella says Sumday is making it simple to bring people along on the sustainability journey as Pinnacle grows. 

Haven’t signed up to try Sumday yet? Xero customers have until 1 April 2026 get a full 12 month subscription to Sumday for free – including access to this new AI feature. This is a great opportunity to try out carbon accounting and see how simple it can be to put numbers to your sustainability goals. 

The post Introducing Sumday AI, your new sustainability analyst appeared first on Xero Blog.

Payments are at the heart of any accounting and bookkeeping firm. But what happens when your clients don’t pay on time? The cost isn’t just financial. There’s often an emotional toll, a drain on time, and a real barrier to growth.

We surveyed 800 small-to-medium business (SMB) decision-makers across Australia and New Zealand to better understand the state of late payments today, and the findings are powerful.

The GoCardless Pursuing Payments 2025 report uncovers the true impact of late payments and what you can do to break the cycle.

1. The pursuit of payments is still a time drain for many businesses

Over a quarter of small businesses report spending up to an hour every single week just chasing down late payments.

Think about that – a full hour of every work week, gone. That’s an hour that could be spent onboarding new clients, innovating, or simply focusing on what you do best. Instead, it’s lost to the frustrating and awkward task of debt collection.

Unfortunately, the problem isn’t getting any better. Nearly half of SMBs are waiting longer for payments now than they were just 12 months ago (48% in Australia and 51% in New Zealand). And with rising living costs, it’s no surprise that 59% are worried this trend will only get worse.

2. Late payments take a financial and emotional toll

While the time sink is bad enough, the financial and emotional impact can be far-reaching.

41% of Australian SMBs and 35% of New Zealand SMBs report that their payments are, on average, more than 14 days overdue. And these delayed payments inflict a substantial financial hit with 15% of SMBs in both countries losing up to $1,000 every month.

Our research also showed the heavy emotional cost. Chasing money creates tension with customers, causes stress, and makes business owners feel anxious and frustrated. It’s a vicious cycle that can distract from your day-to-day business and core purpose.

3. Bad cash flow is bad for growth

Delayed payments often mean poor cash flow and can result in businesses having to put a hold on future plans. Here are a few growth-stunting actions Australia and New Zealand SMBs have been forced to take due to late payments:

• Ending their relationship with the late payer
• Increasing the price for their customers

• Being late paying their suppliers
• Postponing the rollout of a new product or service
• Closing their business

4. Late payments don’t have to be inevitable

So, what’s the solution? The good news is that SMBs are hungry for change. Two-thirds of the businesses we surveyed said they’re interested in using new technology to get a handle on late payments.

That’s where technology comes in. By adopting modern methods like bank payments with GoCardless (think, payments that are made from one bank account directly to another, including BECS Direct Debit and PayTo) you can create, schedule and collect payments for your client invoices on their due date – all from your existing Xero setup.

It’s time to put a stop to the endless admin, reduce costly payment failures, and get paid up to 47% faster. Connect GoCardless to Xero to automate invoice payments, and take back control of your business’s cash flow and growth. 

The post How to break the cycle of late payments appeared first on Xero Blog.

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has announced a significant change that will affect the way around 250,000 Australian businesses manage superannuation payments. The ATO’s Small Business Superannuation Clearing House (SBSCH), a service used by these small businesses to make quarterly super contributions, will be closing.

The SBSCH is set to be fully retired from 30 June 2026, with new users unable to join from 1 October 2025. 

Why are these changes proposed?

The proposed payday super reform, if legislated, would require employers to pay super at the same time as wages, replacing the current quarterly cycle. As a manual system, the SBSCH isn’t designed for this frequency and won’t be fit for the future direction of super in Australia.

Payday super aims to create a fairer, more transparent system that better protects Australians’ retirement savings. Aligning super payments with wages helps streamline payroll, reduce admin, and minimise missed or late payments, especially when using digital tools like Xero. For employees, it offers greater visibility and confidence that their super is being paid on time.

I currently use the SBSCH. What should I do?

For Aussie small businesses relying on the SBSCH, this might feel like just another challenge to navigate. But the good news is, Xero already has the tools and infrastructure in place to help you migrate away from the clearing house comfortably.  

• Auto super: Xero’s auto super feature streamlines the entire process of calculating and paying super contributions directly from within Xero payroll. This helps you stay compliant, save time, and eliminate manual processing. Many of our customers and their advisors already use auto super, with many already choosing to pay super on a per-pay-run basis.
• Increased payroll capacity: We recently increased payroll capacity on our Ignite and Grow plans. This makes our auto super service available to even the smallest businesses as a simple alternative to the ATO’s SBSCH.

What’s next?

If you’re currently using the SBSCH, you can continue to do so until it officially closes on 30 June 2026. The final quarterly payment you’ll be able to process is for the March 2026 quarter. In view of this, we recommend switching to Xero’s auto super sooner rather than later. It’s an easy way to stay ahead of the changes and benefit from a faster, more streamlined process. 

If you’d like to see Auto Super in action, join one of our free webinars to see a step-by-step walkthrough of how to set it, process contributions and prepare for upcoming Payday Super changes. Log in to Xero Central to view upcoming sessions and register.

We’ll keep championing small businesses

As the ATO wraps up the SBSCH chapter in Australia, the proposed payday super reforms present a valuable opportunity to simplify payroll, stay compliant, and provide better support for your employees. But for these reforms to work and remain manageable for small businesses, the details need to be properly considered.

Rest assured, we’re working closely with the government alongside other key groups to ensure the changes reflect the realities of running a business in Australia. And as always, we’ll keep you informed and supported every step of the way.

The post How Australian small businesses can prepare for a new era of superannuation appeared first on Xero Blog.

Analytics is designed to boost the financial literacy of our customers across Aotearoa. By integrating Syft’s small business tools into eligible Xero plans, we’re helping to turn complex data into clear, actionable insights that help you make smarter decisions and drive performance.

Get a clear view of your future cash flow

Stay on top of your cash flow with powerful visual insights. Analytics tools turn your financial data into clear, interactive views designed to help you monitor, manage and forecast cash flow with ease. Giving you the ability to track trends, spot issues early and make informed decisions all within Xero. 

Cash flow manager goes beyond simple reporting, enabling you to:

• Get a quick understanding of your cash movements and current position by choosing the view that works best for your business. 
• Plan proactively for what’s around the corner. The cash flow manager tool analyses historical payment patterns to predict recurring transactions. It also suggests an expected payment date based on a customer’s previous behaviour, and enables you to view your expected cash position up to 180 days out.
• Understand the impact of different financial outcomes to support your decision-making. You can add one-off or repeating manual transactions and adjust individual transactions. 

Turn your data into insights with visualisations

See your data from new angles by turning basic reports into clear, insightful visuals that make the numbers easier to understand. Plus, create customisable dashboards to give you and your team a streamlined overview of your business performance. Analytics also offers a range of pre-set dashboard templates along with fully customisable options to help you get started straight away, allowing you to compare, track, and drill into the metrics that matter most for your business. Whether you’re monitoring financials, sales, or operational KPIs, Analytics transforms complex data into actionable insights, helping you make smarter decisions, faster. You can also add your non-financial and operational data alongside your Xero data, such as website traffic or store visits, for a complete view of the metrics that matter most to your business.

Uncover trends with AI insights (available in beta)

AI-powered insights are starting to roll out in New Zealand as part of our initial launch. Offering a simple, fast way to view key performance summaries and emerging trends, alongside your visualisations and right within Xero. 

Instead of manually digging through static spreadsheets and reports, soon you’ll be able to select from suggested prompts to understand the “why” behind key trends in your profitability. This will help you to make strategic decisions with confidence and give you and your advisor the same view of what’s driving your business.

Powerful tools for confident decision-making

We’re excited to see analytics in Xero continue to evolve. With the expanded availability of the cash flow manager, powerful visualisations and innovative AI insights, we hope these insights features will empower  you to be more confident and proactive in managing your business.

Stay tuned for more developments as we continue to invest in analytics for the Xero community.

The post Unlock greater insights with Analytics (powered by Syft): Now rolling out in New Zealand appeared first on Xero Blog.

Today is an important day for Xero, as we launch our new social impact initiative: Know Your Numbers. 

This programme aims to tackle a fundamental challenge that I encounter frequently across the UK: the deep-seated financial skills gap, something that’s important to me personally and also the reason I became an accountant. 

I grew up watching the hard graft and resilience of entrepreneurs. My own father left school at 14 to become a carpenter, eventually working nights to balance work and childcare once my brother and I arrived on the scene. I’ve seen firsthand the determination it takes to be self-employed and run a business but also the anxiety induced by managing the financial side of it.

Culturally, there is a stigma around not knowing our numbers, with many worried that they should inherently know more than they do. There’s no shame in this, but small businesses deserve more.

The financial confidence gap: it’s not just about data

The smallest firms – the 5.3 million sole traders and businesses employing up to nine staff – are the champions of our economy. Together, they generate £680 billion for the economy yet they often lack exposure to the financial knowledge they need.

Our research indicates that nearly two in five small business owners (38%) are unaware if they were profitable last month, and over half (55%) struggle specifically with cash flow management.

This uncertainty leads to avoidance and fear, which is where the personal struggle truly manifests:

• More than half (55%) avoid finances primarily due to anxiety, lack of enjoyment, or simply being busy.
• A quarter (28%) admit they don’t think of themselves as ‘a numbers person’.

This cultural resistance fosters detrimental financial habits. More than half (51%) of businesses are caught off guard by unexpected costs (with 44% caught short by unexpected expenses), a quarter (26%) fail to set aside enough money for tax, and more than half of sole traders (59%) operate without a separate business bank account.

Supporting advisors and entrepreneurs against financial misinformation

This financial skills gap explains why accountants and bookkeepers are so trusted by small businesses. They are the hands-on advisors that business owners desperately need.

But those same advisors fear they are battling against financial misinformation: nearly half (45%) of accountants and bookkeepers we surveyed blame ill-informed conversations in places like the pub for the spread of financial “folklore”. Half (50%) have worked with small businesses who incorrectly assume the government will reimburse their expenses, and a third (33%) have met business owners who didn’t realise dividends were taxable.

Introducing the Know Your Numbers programme

To support the need for improved financial literacy, we are launching Know Your Numbers. This free programme offers tools, training and educational resources designed to be accessible and fit within busy schedules. The content is offered via easy-to-digest videos and guides that can be absorbed in less than five minutes, focusing on tackling the “seven big problems” that small businesses struggle with most.

Crucially, we understand that mentoring is key. Through the programme, we are launching the Xero for Good Ambassador Programme, which connects small business owners with volunteer accountants and bookkeepers for up to a year of free mentoring. This is a commitment to helping people apply their newfound knowledge and supercharge their businesses.

A collective effort for economic stability

But more needs to be done. Plugging this financial skills gap is crucial for productivity gains, enabling businesses to make more informed decisions, and access capital for growth.

A solution requires collaboration across industries, sectors, and especially from the UK government. We are calling for financial education to become better embedded within UK culture, starting with the school curriculum.

To help drive this, Xero is forming a Financial Confidence Taskforce – made up of accountants, bookkeepers, academics, small business champions and social enterprises to campaign for more support to boost the nation’s financial literacy. 

We are also proud to support government-backed initiatives like The Maple Review, and we continue our partnership with Small Business Britain for the successful Small & Mighty Programme, which has helped 4,000 micro businesses to scale. Xero has also recently become a patron of the King’s Trust, a multi-year programme focused on helping disadvantaged young people start their own businesses.

My personal mission is to help people in small business thrive. I urge every entrepreneur reading this to explore the free resources offered by Know Your Numbers and take that first step toward greater financial fluency. Numbers are only scary if you ignore them; there’s no need to suffer in silence.

By working together – advisors, entrepreneurs, industry, and governments – we can inspire entrepreneurs to dive in and help build a more resilient and financially fluent nation.

Learn more about the research in Xero’s report: Know Your Numbers: Empowering financial confidence for small business growth.

The post Why knowing your numbers is key to UK small business growth appeared first on Xero Blog.

At Xerocon Brisbane, we announced the new Xero Partner Hub, a significant step forward in evolving the practice experience for our accounting and bookkeeping partners. Built with the help of feedback and insights gathered from over 2,000 partners across the globe, the Xero Partner Hub has truly been shaped with and for you. 

The Xero Partner Hub brings your practice tools and data together in one seamless platform, making it easier to manage your practice, clients, and compliance work. It’s designed to simplify your day-to-day work and boost team productivity by ensuring information flows smoothly — surfaced where you need it, or delivered as AI-powered insights through JAX, your AI financial superagent.

We’re building on the enhancements we’ve been making across Xero to deliver you a more intuitive and insights-rich experience, starting with the recently announced new navigation and homepage. Now – we’re reimagining your practice experience.

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Built with your feedback

We’ve already gathered insights from more than 2,000 partners, along with dozens of suggestions from your Xero Product Ideas. You told us that juggling multiple tools is inefficient; that having everything in one place would save time and that you want improvements to core functions without losing what you love from Xero. That’s why the design and build of the Xero Partner Hub has been shaped by feedback from accountants and bookkeepers around the world.

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The features partners are buzzing about

We took your feedback, we listened, and the Xero Partner Hub has been designed to solve exactly those challenges. Here’s a taste of what you can expect:

• All your tools and data in one place. The new Xero Partner Hub provides a unified experience, so that everything from client management to tax is in one central place. With a single, simplified navigation that is tailored to practices, and familiar with other Xero products, it is easier than ever to move through your workflow.
• A powerful, connected compliance suite. We’re making you more efficient with a single end-to-end process for compliance work, where data flows seamlessly, reducing manual entry and errors. To enable this we’ve partnered with BGL to develop a new, deeply integrated workpapers solution. For partners in AU, UK, and NZ – tax is embedded in the Xero Partner Hub. In the UK, partners also get access to payroll obligations in payroll manager.
• AI-powered insights at your fingertips. The Xero Partner Hub provides easy access to Just Ask Xero (JAX), your AI financial superagent. With all your client information and financials in one place, JAX can help you with core tasks and get actionable insights across your client base.
• Instant access to what needs your attention. The new homepage surfaces actionable information across a growing range of widgets including bank feed status, unreconciled bank items, tax lodgement status (AU only) and more from the moment you log in. Like the new Xero homepage, you can customise the dashboard to show you what’s most useful to you.
• Flexibility to run your practice your way. We know every accounting and bookkeeping firm has a unique way of working, and many of you already have a set of apps you like. So we’ve designed a platform that is flexible to grow with your practice. You can choose to add advanced features like jobs and invoicing as your firm grows and connect a wide range of third-party practice apps to extend the functionality even further.

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A smooth and simple transition

From November we will be offering partners using Xero Practice Manager the opportunity to opt in for early access to the Xero Partner Hub. All other practices, including those only using Xero HQ, will make the move in early 2026. Rest assured, we’ll ensure the transition is effortless so your practice can keep operating smoothly and avoid downtime. 

Our commitment to you:

• Help and support. As we begin to roll-out these changes we will share educational resources and support to help you make the shift. These will include videos, webinars and you can also rely on our unlimited 24/7 online support.
• No disruption. All the features you use today will still be there. When the time comes, we’ll switch you over with your existing data, and there won’t be any heavy lifting required from you.
• Your access stays the same. Moving to the Xero Partner Hub won’t affect how you use or pay for your practice tools. Whether they’re included in your partner program benefits or through a monthly subscription, your access remains unchanged.

Want to know more?

Learn more or sign up for early access on the Xero Partner Hub webpage, or see the Xero Central article.

We can’t wait for you to experience the new Xero Partner Hub. It truly is a simpler, smarter way to run your practice.

The post Introducing Xero Partner Hub: A simpler, smarter way to run your practice appeared first on Xero Blog.

Remember that bank account you opened when you first started your company? It may have made the most sense for your business back then, but chances are that your business has changed, and your checking account could be costing you time, money, and peace of mind.

Entrepreneurs usually bank somewhere that’s familiar when they’re in the early stages. Unfortunately, that first banking solution isn’t always equipped to scale with your business. The wrong account can eat into your profits, slow down operations, and create major cash flow headaches.

Here are five telltale signs that you’re not getting what you need from your business checking account—and that it’s time to find a solution that sets you up for long-term success.

Sign #1: You’re getting nickel-and-dimed with fees

Small monthly charges can add up to a big cost over the course of a year, so it’s important to pay attention to every fee your bank charges. These can include monthly maintenance fees, as well as minimum balance requirements that come with penalties if you’re not able to maintain them. Some business checking accounts still charge fees for incoming ACH transfers and even overdrafts.

These fees can be particularly burdensome to small businesses operating on tight margins. Every dollar spent on unnecessary banking charges is a dollar that could have gone toward inventory, marketing, or growing your team. Luckily, modern banking alternatives like Bluevine have flipped the script on the traditional banking fee structure, even tailoring solutions to small businesses by reducing or eliminating many of these more or less  hidden costs.

Sign #2: Your account doesn’t play nicely with your tools

Accounting software like Xero allows you to manage your books, send invoices and stay on top of your cash flow, all in one place. However, not all banking platforms integrate well with other solutions, which can subject your team to time-consuming and error-prone manual data entry copying data from one platform to another. 

To avoid costly mistakes and save your team valuable time, it’s important to find a business checking account that syncs transactions seamlessly with your other financial tools. Your team, your accountant, and your cash flow will thank you.

Sign #3: Lack of money movement options

Fast and flexible money movement is critical if you want to be competitive in the digital era. We’re talking about being able to make standard and same-day ACH transfers, domestic and international wires, and easy mobile check deposits, without needing to visit a physical bank branch. If you feel like your options for depositing money, transferring funds, or paying bills are limited, it’s probably time to seek a new solution.

The good news is you might be able to find everything you need in one online banking platform. That means you’ll be able to manage your checking balances, organize budgets, accept customer payments, and pay your bills all from a single account.

Sign #4: Your money isn’t working for you

Many traditional business banks and credit unions offer little to no interest earnings on checking accounts. If they have a savings account option, you can usually earn a higher annual percentage yield (APY), but then you’re stuck moving money back and forth between accounts to take advantage of the higher rate.

Online business checking accounts are able to offer higher interest rates because they have no brick-and-mortar locations to maintain, and therefore have lower overheads. To make the most of your money, consider finding a banking platform such as Bluevine that lets you earn high-yield APY on checking balances so you can generate passive income on your working capital, without needing to move it in and out of multiple accounts.

Sign #5: Your banking tools are outdated or nonexistent

Your bank account should feel like a productivity tool, not a roadblock that slows you down, and you should be able to do all the essentials from your phone.

Think being able to easily view your finances at a glance, deposit a check from your phone while on the go, or set your invoicing on autopilot for ongoing clients. 

When you have a modern banking solution that works for you, you’ll be able to spend less time managing your money and more time doing what you love.

How to switch banks without disrupting cash flow

With a little planning, you can switch your business checking account  to a new platform without disrupting your accounts receivable, accounts payable, or daily operations.

Here’s a simple roadmap for how to make the switch as smoothly as possible:

1. Open your new account and keep both active during the transition.
2. Update the new bank’s payment info with vendors, payroll, and subscriptions.
3. Gradually move deposits and auto-payments to the new account.
4. Close your old account only after confirming everything works the way you want.

By keeping your old account open for a while, you give yourself time to set up your new account with the right payees, integrations, and automations.

The right banking tools make your life easier, not harder, and switching your business checking account can save you time and money, optimize your cash flow, and let you focus on what matters most: running and growing your business.

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Bluevine is an online banking platform designed to help small businesses simplify their financial management – including time-saving accounting integrations with Xero – so they can spend less time banking and focus more on what they love.

As a Xero customer, you can get a 12-month free upgrade to Bluevine’s Premier plan when you open a business checking account. This offer is only available to Xero customers based in the United States. Apply now. 

The post Five signs it might be time to switch your bank appeared first on Xero Blog.

How much time is Beneficial Ownership compliance really costing your practice? Untangling complex ownership structures and chasing down information for annual filing to CIPC is a manual, time-consuming process. With Xero’s new Beneficial Ownership functionality, you can turn that compliance headache into a streamlined, visual, and automated process. 

Beneficial Ownership, now available in Xero’s integrated practice management and tax solution via the Gatekeeper app, is designed to help you effortlessly manage compliance, minimise manual effort, and reclaim valuable time.

As companies cannot file their Annual Return without submitting a full trial of ownership, there are serious consequences to non-compliance. Xero’s Beneficial Ownership solution aims to transform this process. It enables accountants and bookkeepers to effortlessly handle all required documentation with an interactive, visual approach to building organograms and powerful auditability.

Here are the key features of Xero’s Beneficial Ownership solution and what our partners are saying:

Build a visually interactive organogram
Visually build out the organogram so you can see a dynamic view of ownership structures and get a complete picture of ownership across a group. The Individual Holdings Search allows you to trace common beneficial owners and quickly find all of an individual’s holdings within a complex structure. This helps make due diligence easier.

Instantly produce required documentation
Instantly create the required registers and documents based on the data in the organogram. This automation means you can skip the intensive manual data entry and ensure accuracy and consistency. 

“The generation of Beneficial Ownership documents was really helpful and saved a lot of time.” – Dewald Taljaard, APS Africa

Historical beneficial ownership snapshots
‘Finalise’ an organogram at a specific point in time and recall that exact structure later. It ensures the data you submit to authorities is accurate for the submission date, and that you don’t lose historical information.

See a detailed audit trail of changes
Easily identify changes between dates with a detailed history view that tracks who made changes, when, and creates an uneditable instance of the finalised organogram. This provides robust compliance and accountability, simplifying audits and investigations.

Single source of truth for client data
Beneficial ownership data doesn’t live in isolation. It is seamlessly integrated with the existing client record in Xero HQ and Xero Practice Manager for the company for which submission is due. This keeps your data clean and organised, avoiding non-client data from the beneficial ownership register getting tangled up with your main client list. 

Guidance for identifying natural beneficial owners
The organogram building process guides you on how deep to go to find the natural beneficial owners. It simplifies compliance by visually helping you to identify the ultimate natural persons, cutting through layers of complexity.

“We love how user-friendly it is. The platform is simple and intuitive — even team members with little to no company secretarial experience find it easy to understand and use.” – Michiel Claassen, Dough Getters

Register for our webinar to see it in action

By automating some of these critical but incredibly time-consuming tasks, Xero’s BO tool gives you valuable time back and keeps your clients compliant. To learn more about how it works, register for our upcoming webinar here, or get in touch with your Xero Account Manager to discuss the next steps. 

The post A new game-changing tool for Beneficial Ownership compliance appeared first on Xero Blog.

The long-awaited Xero Asia Roadshow is back – and this year promises more insights, inspiration and innovation than ever.

This year, we’re taking the show on the road with stops in both Singapore and Malaysia. Our Singapore event will take place on 9 October at PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay, and our Malaysia stop will be held on 6 November at W Hotel Kuala Lumpur. Each event features a similar half-day agenda packed with updates, engaging speakers and expert exhibitors – so no matter which location you choose, you’ll enjoy the full Asia Roadshow experience.

The theme of this year’s edition is Supercharged, and fittingly, our programme is all about helping accounting and bookkeeping practices across the region elevate how they support their clients. You’ll have the chance to:

• Stay up to date with the latest from Xero;
• Connect with ecosystem app partners and explore their offerings;
• Discover industry trends in accounting and bookkeeping; and
• Network with peers and the wider community.

Programme Highlights

With AI set to revolutionise the future of accounting, we’re thrilled to have Dr Catherine Ball speak at both the Singapore and Malaysia Roadshows. A scientific futurist, bestselling author and leading voice in AI and emerging technologies, Dr Ball will share her perspective on how a digital-first future is redefining what’s possible in accounting. If you’d like a glimpse into where the industry is heading, her session is not to be missed.

You’ll also be able to explore exciting ways Xero can help unlock more possibilities for your business. Last year we announced our acquisition of Syft Analytics – and this year at the Asia Roadshow, you’ll get the chance to meet the Syft team, explore best practices across Xero and Syft and learn how they can help you generate insights faster and expand your services beyond compliance.

At both the Singapore and Malaysia stops, you can also visit the booths of some of Xero’s most innovative ecosystem app partners – a curated selection of exhibitors handpicked from the 1,100+ apps available in the Xero App Store. It’s your chance to see transformative tools in action and discover how the right solutions can supercharge both your clients’ businesses and your own practice. 

Beyond the speakers, showcases and exhibitors, the Asia Roadshow is also a space to connect with some of the best minds in the industry – your community of peers. Network with fellow accountants and bookkeepers from around the region, exchange ideas and explore potential avenues for collaboration. Walk away with fresh insights you can apply to your firm, and contribute to shaping the future of the profession together.

Register to Join Us in Singapore or Malaysia!

If you’re keen to join us, register today to secure your spot. The programme will be similar at both locations, so to ensure as many people as possible can attend, we encourage you to register for one location only.

• Register for Singapore here
• Register for Malaysia here

We’re excited to welcome you to the Asia Roadshow, and we can’t wait to explore how we can supercharge your practice together!

The post Xero Asia Roadshow 2025: What you need to know appeared first on Xero Blog.

Open for Small Business is Xero’s new podcast that spotlights and celebrates the resilience, innovation and impact of small business owners across Aotearoa New Zealand.

Hosted by Bridget Snelling, Xero Country Manager – New Zealand, the podcast dives into the real stories behind the mahi, from breakthrough moments to hard-earned lessons. 

Each fortnightly episode features candid conversations with small business owners and industry experts who have  carved their own paths to success.

“Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and our communities and so often their incredible mahi and positive impact gets overshadowed by conversations about how tough it can be out there,” says Snelling. 

“This podcast is about providing a platform to go behind the scenes with small business owners and really get to know what their journey has been like. 

“In each episode, we dive deep into real stories of small business life. From the exhilarating highs of a breakthrough moment to the tough lessons learned in the trenches, we explore what it truly takes to build and sustain a business in today’s ever-changing landscape.

“There are helpful nuggets for others to take away in each episode, but most importantly it’s about celebrating the people who are driving our small businesses forward here in Aotearoa New Zealand,” says Snelling.

Whether you’re just starting out, scaling up, or simply looking for a dose of inspiration, the Open for Small Business podcast is here to support you with insights, encouragement, and a whole lot of admiration for the hard work SMEs undertake  every day.

Listen now on your favourite podcast platform:

• YouTube
• Spotify
• Apple Podcasts
• iHeartRadio
• Amazon Music
• Podcast Index

The post Open for small business: Introducing a new podcast that goes behind the scenes with Aotearoa’s small business owners appeared first on Xero Blog.

Did you hear about the New Zealand government’s new tax deduction? It’s called Investment Boost, and it’s been introduced to help your business grow with earlier deductions when you buy new assets. 

The 2025 New Zealand Budget delivered on 22 May introduced a new tax deduction for all businesses: 20% of the cost of new investment assets can be claimed immediately as an expense, with standard depreciation applied to the remaining 80%.

Now, Investment Boost is accessible via Xero: you can use Xero’s fixed asset feature to help you claim this government deduction. New assets purchased from 22 May 2025 onwards may be eligible. 

We’re rolling out the update to the fixed asset feature now, and it will become available for all New Zealand Xero partners and customers over the coming weeks.

What is Investment Boost?

When your business buys a new eligible asset, you can immediately claim 20% of its cost as an expense in that year’s tax return. Then, you can claim depreciation as usual on the remaining 80%. 

For example, you buy new equipment that meets the eligibility criteria for NZ$10,000. You can immediately claim a $2,000 deduction (20% of $10,000). You then depreciate the remaining $8,000 over the asset’s useful life. 

Some eligible assets may include machinery, vehicles, new and existing commercial buildings, and other depreciable assets for tax purposes. For the list of what you can and can’t claim, and for more information, visit the Inland Revenue website. 

Note, assets used for both business and private use are also included (the claim is pro-rated, just like other expenses with a private portion). There is no cap on the value of assets you can claim this for.

If you have any questions or need help, reach out to your advisor for support. 

Applying the Investment Boost for fixed assets

In your Xero fixed asset register, select the 20% option in the Investment Boost dropdown box to apply it. It can be applied to any eligible new assets purchased on or from 22 May 2025. 

The new Investment Boost feature will help you: 

• automatically calculate the 20% upfront claim and subsequent depreciation for both straight line and diminishing value methods
• identify Investment Boost deductions from normal depreciation transactions
• calculate Investment Boost in line with private use of an asset 

Investment Boost is all about timing. While you claim the same total depreciation over an asset’s life, this new rule means you get a bigger tax deduction in year one. A bigger deduction means a smaller tax bill, leaving more cash in your business sooner. 

More information and support

You can find out more about how to use the new Investment Boost option for fixed assets in Xero in this Xero Central article. If you have any questions, check in with our Xero Support team.

For more information about Investment Boost and its benefits, visit the Inland Revenue website.

The post Access the new Investment Boost via Xero appeared first on Xero Blog.

It’s no secret that South African small businesses face a unique set of challenges, yet they continue to demonstrate remarkable resilience and optimism. We recently conducted an independent global study that reveals a truly special characteristic of the South African small business community: a strong culture of celebrating milestones. Our ‘Made-it Moments’ report found that 92% of South African businesses currently celebrate, or plan to celebrate, milestones.

Milestones that matter

The study, which surveyed 300 South African small business owners, along with their counterparts in the UK, the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Singapore, highlights the moments that are critical to small business success. These are the ‘made-it’ moments that make you feel energised and supercharged to keep going. They can be big or small, and are all part of the journey of being an entrepreneur. 

An impressive 86% of South African small businesses reached a milestone in the last three years. The top three milestones both globally and in South Africa are the ability to pay themselves (55%), having repeat customers (55%) and receiving positive reviews (49%). 

Happy Hounds: scaling with purpose

Emma Kaye is the founder and director of the dog food brand Happy Hounds, which specialises in producing fresh, cooked dog food, made from high-quality produce from artisanal fishers and micro farmers. What started as a personal project quickly evolved into a viable business, driven by a passion for animal wellbeing and ethical ingredients. Every tub of food is “made with sunshine” says Emma, whose commercial kitchen is now 100% solar powered.

Happy Hounds has hit many notable milestones since starting out, including opening a commercial kitchen and reaching R1 million in revenue. In addition to the big achievements, her team celebrates daily wins to foster a culture of collective achievement and workplace happiness. 

Financial ambition and personal pride drive motivation

Our research also looked at core motivations of entrepreneurs. The study found that making money (67%) and making themself proud (61%) were the top motivators for South African business owners. This combination of financial ambition and personal pride underscores a powerful drive for success. Other key drivers include making those around them feel proud (41%), followed by solving a real problem (41%), along with contributing to the community (38%).  

The impact of celebration on growth

Celebrating business milestones is more than just a feel-good activity, it has a tangible, positive impact on business performance. When asked about the benefits of celebrating milestones, South African small businesses were the biggest believers in the positive impact of celebrating on employee morale (92%), performance (89%), as well as on their own energy (85%), motivation (88%) and happiness (75%).

Emma says a stand-out moment for her was when a customer came into the shop and burst into tears of gratitude after seeing the positive impact on her dog after four weeks on a Happy Hounds diet. For Emma, knowing her team makes a real impact on people and their pets is what truly drives them.

South African entrepreneurs lead the way in celebrating success

It’s remarkable that South African small business owners have a higher tendency than all the other countries surveyed to celebrate milestones. Emma believes this is because it’s essential as an entrepreneur in South Africa to have the hustle and creativity to overcome challenges and succeed.

So, how are you celebrating? Whether it’s treating yourself to something special, running a customer giveaway or employee awards, every win is worth it. I encourage you all to keep celebrating those moments, because doing so doesn’t just feel good; it unlocks more growth and reminds you why you started in the first place.

The post How South African entrepreneurs are celebrating wins appeared first on Xero Blog.

Over the past week, thousands of Xero accountants, bookkeepers and app partners descended on Brisbane for two days of Xerocon. If you haven’t already heard about the event from your advisor, picture a conference like no other. From world-class speakers and discovery sessions hosted by industry leaders, to activations like an on-site pickleball tournament, we’re always striving to elevate the experience for our partners – and this year, our small business customers, too. 

For the first time, we invited some of Brisbane’s local small business community to experience the magic of Xerocon at the Business Connect event. 

We often hear that founders can feel isolated. Whether it’s being the sole decision-maker, worrying about cash flow, or trying to maintain a semblance of balance outside of work, it’s no easy feat. These are the shared experiences that unite entrepreneurs, yet, so rarely are there opportunities to discuss them. That’s why we created Business Connect as not only a celebration of small businesses, but an opportunity for these founders to connect, share stories, and leave with valuable insights from Xero experts. Read on for a rundown of what we covered. 

Introducing JAX, your new AI business companion and financial superagent

We heard about JAX (Just Ask Xero, currently in beta), your AI business companion that works as a financial superagent to automate repetitive tasks that typically slow small businesses down and provide actionable insights 

The Xero team demonstrated several of its key features. For example, you can ask JAX to create an invoice by copying details of a previous one, or generate a quick summary of your overdue invoices. We also announced a new web search feature that will gradually roll out in the coming months. This feature helps you research general business questions within Xero, without leaving your workflow. 

JAX also works on the go. You can create draft quotes and invoices via WhatsApp or forward an entire email conversation to your unique JAX address with a command like ‘raise invoice at today’s date’. JAX will read the email thread and automatically create a draft invoice from the key information, saving you from manual data entry. 

Check out how JAX can help save your business time here. 

Simplifying payments to boost cash flow

In the ‘Supercharge your cash flow’ session, we focused on more ways to pay and get paid. Of course, we know that late payments are a major challenge for small businesses, partly due to the disconnect between how customers want to pay and how businesses accept payments. 

According to Xero’s ‘I want to pay that way’ report, 86% of consumers prefer using cards, but only 55% of small businesses offer this option. So, to help close this gap, we shared some Xero features that simplify payments for small businesses and their customers.

For example, we’ve added more ways to get paid with Stripe, including secure bank payments via PayTo, Buy Now, Pay Later via Zip, and Tap to Pay for on-the-spot mobile payments. We also announced new features like SMS invoicing, which can help you get paid up to four times faster, and statement payments, which lets customers pay multiple outstanding invoices with just one payment. Less friction means more predictable income, making getting paid even easier.

We’re also showed how we’re simplifying accounts payable with our new bill payments solution (beta launching soon) that brings bill management, payments, and reconciliation together in one place. This will help you save time, reduce admin and gain full visibility of cash flow while giving you the flexibility to pay the way you want. Pay multiple bills at once, schedule payments for later, delegate approvals and view payment activity directly from Xero without the hassle of manual processes or juggling multiple platforms.

For more information on Xero’s online payments, head here.

Uncovering the latest economic trends 

Xero Economist Louise Southall shared some key findings from our latest Xero Small Business Insights (XSBI) data. The XSBI program uses anonymised, aggregated data from hundreds of thousands of real small businesses to provide regular updates on sales, jobs growth, and wages growth, helping us better understand how business owners are faring.

While we saw some positive signs earlier in the year, Louise highlighted that economic uncertainty has indeed dominated 2025. Major shifts in US trade policy have been a key driver, impacting many small businesses.

While there’s no silver bullet solution, Louise stressed the importance of working closely with an advisor to help navigate the current climate and, importantly, plan for whatever’s around the corner. 

Explore the latest XSBI report and learn more about the program here. 

From hands-on support with our expert ‘Xero Pit Crew’ to live demos from app partners solving real-world problems, it was inspiring to see the accounting, small business, and app community in action. We’re excited to bring more of the Xerocon experience directly to small businesses. This is just the beginning!

The post Highlights from the Xerocon Business Connect event appeared first on Xero Blog.

As a global small business platform, the team at Xero is passionate about how we can make life better for our customers. We know that running a small business is hard, and more tech doesn’t always make it easier. In fact, it can often add to the problem. The reality is that one in four small business owners are overwhelmed by managing more than six different platforms each day, and this consumes two of their most precious resources: time and money. 

We believe the future isn’t about more software; it’s about smarter software. That’s why we’re so excited to have expanded our agentic AI capabilities, evolving JAX (Just Ask Xero) into an AI financial superagent. This isn’t just an upgrade; it’s the next chapter in our vision to empower smarter decisions through a reimagined experience, automated actions and workflows, and actionable insights on Xero’s trusted, agentic platform.

Bringing our AI vision to life: the evolved JAX experience

The new JAX experience is built with AI designed specifically for the complicated world of compliance and finance, and its four key pillars aim to empower you to work smarter and more efficiently than ever before.

• From scattered tools to Xero reimagined experiences: Through one intelligent interface, JAX will unify your entire business ecosystem and learn your rhythms, automatically adapting and creating an experience that’s unique to you.
• From manual busywork to automated actions and workflows that are just done, with your control: JAX will automate manual tasks and workflows like data entry, bank reconciliations, and getting paid, completing them in seconds with accountant-level accuracy and appropriate oversight from you or your advisor. This true ‘just done’ automation helps you move faster, stay compliant, and scale effortlessly.
• From static reports to actionable insights that move the needle: Combining deep insights from across Xero customers’ businesses and connected apps, as well as collaborating with OpenAI on web research, JAX will move information beyond static reports to deliver personalised, timely insights – like, key drivers behind this month’s revenue growth – without the manual effort. With a unified view, it spots opportunities and issues before you do, helping you explore your financial data and dig deeper with Xero’s advanced financial insights all in one seamless experience in Xero.
• From generic AI to a trusted partner built for you, with you: Our entire AI vision is built on a non-negotiable foundation: trust. We earn it by delivering on security, privacy, expertise, and a personalised approach. The combination is how we deliver more than just a tool: we build a trusted partnership. 

First, security: Our AI is built with the same robust security you already expect from Xero. Second, privacy: Keeping your data not only safe, but private is a top priority and we make sure we adhere to our responsible data use commitments. Third, expertise: JAX is not just another generic AI tool; it’s built specifically for the complex world of compliance and finance, combining our decades of accounting knowledge with your data in one integrated platform. This delivers insights that aren’t just reliable, but deeply contextual to your business. Finally, it’s built for you, and with you. We develop our AI hand in hand with our customers, and it continues to learn from your workflows, evolving with your needs over time.

A closer look at JAX’s new capabilities

JAX is your AI business companion and financial superagent. It will learn how your business runs, automate routine tasks with your oversight, and provide actionable insights. It’s designed to feel like you have a smart, adaptive team that grows and scales with your business, helping you move faster and make more informed decisions.

Starting this month (September 2025) and progressing over the coming months, you’ll be able to use JAX to:

• Get access to financial data, right at your fingertips: JAX will give you instant access to your cash flow, P&L and balance sheet data. For example, you can request a gross profit trend for the past year and see it visualised in charts and tables. This feature is rolling out first in Australia followed by the US, with more regions to come.

• Get strategic decision support, powered by real-time actionable insights: JAX will help with strategic business decisions, like giving you ideas on how to improve cash flow or comparing loan interest rates across banks. Whether you’re evaluating loan options or navigating tax changes, JAX will bring in timely external data to help you make smarter, tailored decisions.

• Get a clearer view of finances, faster: Soon, JAX will work alongside you to automatically reconcile bank transactions where there’s high confidence, giving you a reliable, up-to-date view of your finances sooner. You’ll have full visibility over this automation on the new ‘Reconciled’ page, where you can see bank and accounting details together. You’ll always be in control, with the ability to easily review or adjust any transaction JAX has reconciled for you.

• Get more done, more naturally: Thanks to advances in conversational capabilities, JAX understands you better, making tasks like generating insights or creating quotes and invoices feel smoother and faster. And, soon, JAX will not only help you create an invoice, it will also intelligently draft invoice emails, helping you transform routine emails into professional ones that get noticed.

Building for the future, together

With JAX, you get more than just a tool; you get a trusted partner. Xero’s AI is designed to make the relationship between small businesses and their advisors stronger, not weaker, because we believe AI should enhance human judgment, not replace it. You will always have the final say on what happens with your business.

We’re only just getting started and are committed to building for the future, so you can continue to thrive.

The post The future of small business starts here, with Xero appeared first on Xero Blog.

Running a trade or service business is no easy feat. Between job scheduling, quoting, managing staff, taking client calls, and tackling paperwork, it is hard to switch off. Nights and weekends can disappear into a blur of emails, quoting, invoicing and admin.

But Alan Collins, owner of Westcork Electrical, seems to have cracked the code. He’s built a thriving trade business and a lifestyle to match, all the while earning a reputation as one of Inner West Sydney’s top residential electricians.

What’s his secret? A mix of entrepreneurial drive, human touch, smart systems like Xero and ServiceM8, as well as plenty of hard work.

Alan shares his journey to finding this balance, and what he’s learned along the way.

Taking the leap and finding your niche 

Alan started Westcork Electrical in 2016 after deciding it was time to go out on his own.

“To be brutally honest, I fell into the classic trap of thinking: ‘Why am I working so hard for someone else? This is easy – why can’t I just make my own money?’” he recalls.

Seeing a $30,000 invoice from his old employer sparked the leap. 

“I did the fit-out in about five days and got paid $1,000. I thought they had pocketed $29,000 — but I didn’t realise the light fittings alone probably cost $15,000, plus all the business overheads in the background.”

Alan quickly learned the ropes, experimenting with different clients before finding his sweet spot. Now, Westcork Electrical specialises purely in residential service and maintenance electrical work.

From chaos to control, with ServiceM8

Before Alan combined Xero with ServiceM8 in 2018, running Westcork Electrical was a daily battle.

“Before ServiceM8 and Xero, it was mayhem; I was writing job and client details on pieces of cardboard. I was taking pictures on my iPhone. It was an absolute mess.”

“Now, everything is in one spot; that’s really how ServiceM8 saves me time. I’ve got photos, documents, emails, quotes, invoices, everything on each individual job card, not just for future jobs, but past jobs too.”

For example, a client messaged Alan for a certificate for some smoke alarms he installed years ago: 

“I typed her name into ServiceM8, brought up the job, and sure enough, I’d sent her that exact certificate in 2021. So I just emailed it to her again. That’s how easy ServiceM8 makes it to stay on top of your customer service.”

Building the flexibility you want

What does Alan love most about his business? 

“I love the flexibility. I’ve built a simple, lean business with systems in place and a virtual team. If I go away, it doesn’t fall apart, and I think that’s vital.”

Now, Alan has achieved the kind of work/life balance many tradies dream of.

“I can take off to Europe with my wife for one or two months a year. If I want to take next Tuesday off, I can just take next Tuesday off. I don’t have to ask a boss to do that. That’s probably the best thing about running your own business.”

“When you do it correctly – and that’s very, very key – when you do it correctly with systems, you can then delegate your time and take time off when you want.”

Of course, you need to put the work in too.

“It’s not all glam;, I’m still busting myself when I’m working!” Alan says.

Xero and ServiceM8: A perfect match for tradies

For Alan, ServiceM8 and Xero are the perfect pair.

“What I stress to people, is that you use ServiceM8 and Xero together: one’s for bookkeeping, one’s for your job management. They speak to each other, and when they’re connected, it makes things a lot handier.”

Alan says the combination has proven to be a huge time-saver.

“ServiceM8 being connected to Xero saves me so much time,” Alan explains. “Once you approve an invoice in ServiceM8 and it goes across, Xero picks up that it’s come from ServiceM8, it picks up that the client has paid the bill, and it’s ready to reconcile. It just saves so much time, effort and money. It makes my bookkeeper’s life a lot easier as well!”

“The integration between Xero and ServiceM8 is seamless. It’s set and forget. You click a few buttons, save, done. I’m very happy with it.”

Learn more about how ServiceM8 job management can help your trade business succeed on the Xero App Store.

The post Building a lifestyle-friendly trade business with ServiceM8 and Xero appeared first on Xero Blog.

It’s Friday afternoon, and whilst everyone else is winding down, you’re still wrestling with payroll calculations that should have taken minutes, not hours. Sound familiar?

This National Payroll Week, we want to celebrate not just the professionals who keep the UK’s employees paid accurately and on time, but the dramatic shift happening in how payroll actually gets done. Because here’s the thing: 92% of our customers now run payroll faster using Xero*. That’s not just an improvement, that’s transformation.

Over the past 12 months, we’ve been on a mission to turn payroll from your biggest headache into your smallest worry. Here’s how we’re making that happen, and what’s coming next to save you even more time.

We made the complex simple

The days of losing entire afternoons to employee setup are over. Whether you’re switching from Sage, QuickBooks, BrightPay, or HMRC’s system, or onboarding a new team member, we’ve turned what used to be a heavily time-consuming task into a streamlined process that just works. You can now get started with or switch to Xero Payroll in 6 simple steps.

And with flexible working patterns now built in, you can accommodate the new world of work without the administrative burden. The result? You’re not just processing payroll faster, you’re doing it with complete confidence that everything’s been set up correctly from day one.

We turned compliance from worry into certainty

Here’s what keeps payroll professionals up at night: getting compliance wrong. We want to help reduce that anxiety by providing a tool that’s trustworthy and compliant, to give you peace of mind. Xero Payroll is HMRC-recognised and trusted by millions, and 95% of our customers agree Xero Payroll helps them stay compliant*.

From National Insurance categories, RTI submissions, pension auto-enrolment, leave calculations that actually align with your business year, we’ve automated the complex bits so you don’t need to stress about staying compliant. Every calculation is verified, and every compliance requirement is handled automatically.

Complete your pay run and file with HMRC in 3 simple steps. Because compliance shouldn’t require constant mental arithmetic or second-guessing.

Giving advisors greater control and clarity

A business managing one payroll system is tough enough, but for accountants and bookkeepers, the reality is managing multiple client payrolls.

Payroll Manager makes this easier. You don’t need to dip in and out of each Xero organisation to get the necessary information. Instead, you have a clear view of what’s happening with every pay run and every submission. This can save valuable time – in fact, 86% of accountants and bookkeepers agree having accounting and payroll in one place saves significant time.

With tools like these, you’re not just running payroll, you’re running it strategically, with the insights to make better decisions about your business or your clients’ businesses.

The future of payroll and people management

Payroll is no longer just about processing payslips. It’s about giving businesses confidence, empowering teams, and unlocking insights that drive smarter decisions. At Xero, we’re building towards an intelligent platform that helps you pay your people right, empower your teams, and advise with confidence from first hire to full workforce.

Here’s a glimpse of where we’re heading:

Payroll that runs itself

Payroll should feel effortless. It should be accurate, compliant, and automated. Soon, real-time National Minimum Wage alerts will help ensure compliance is never in doubt. Calculation transparency will help you understand the ‘how’ behind the numbers. Payroll Payments directly from Xero will connect pay runs and payments in one seamless flow. 

With more and more automation being embedded in payroll and with the help of Just Ask Xero’s (JAX) AI-powered features, those manual repetitive tasks will be handled for you, freeing up time to focus on the bigger picture. 

And for businesses with complex rosters, more advanced time and scheduling tools will help make shift and industry-specific demands easy to manage.

Onboarding without the admin

Welcoming new employees should be simple. With employee self-onboarding, team members will be able enter their own details directly into Xero Payroll, reducing errors and admin. It’s a smoother, more empowering experience for both employers and employees.

Insights that guide your next move

Payroll data should be more than numbers, it should power better decisions. That’s why we’re evolving reporting with smarter insights and proactive recommendations, helping you see issues before they arise, stay compliant with confidence, and plan ahead with clarity. The future of payroll is one where insights don’t just look back, they guide what you do next.

We’re on a journey to create a platform that goes beyond payroll combining compliance, payments, and people management to support growing businesses and the advisors who guide them. 

We love hearing from you – if you have suggestions for how we can make Xero Payroll even better, head over to Xero Product Ideas and share your thoughts.

To learn more about any of these updates, register for one of our upcoming Xero Payroll webinars.

*Survey conducted by Xero of 254 small businesses in the UK using Xero, May 2024

The post National Payroll Week: We’re making it easier than ever appeared first on Xero Blog.