QLD: Q&A Body corporate invoice approval: Verifying strata payments

This article is about body corporate invoice approval and verifying strata payments.

Question: Our body corporate has used the same cleaner for many years. Given their lack of information, how can I ensure the cleaner’s invoices are compliant?

I am the new treasurer on our committee. The body corporate has a weekly cleaner who provides a handwritten invoice made out to “xxx” (no CTS number), an ABN, the name of the business and a phone number. The cleaner hand delivers the invoice to the strata manager’s office and gets paid on the spot. I queried this and asked if we had any other details on the cleaner. Should I be concerned about approving payments? I am told to just do it. The cleaner has been working for us for years.

Answer: You can authorise your body corporate managers to make these payments for you, but we recommend that an invoice is sent to the body corporate committee for approval before payment is made.

From the information provided, the invoice may be correct. It is not necessary for the invoice to list the CTS number. From what you say, it seems the building is clearly identified and there is no dispute the work is taking place. The ATO’s website states that invoices under $1000 – which I am assuming this is – must include the following:

1. document is intended to be a tax invoice
2. seller’s identity
3. seller’s Australian business number (ABN)
4. date the invoice was issued
5. brief description of the items sold, including the quantity (if applicable) and the price
6. GST amount (if any) payable – this can be shown separately or, if the GST amount is exactly one-eleventh of the total price, as a statement which says ‘Total price includes GST’
7. extent to which each sale on the invoice is a taxable sale

Provided those conditions are met, the invoice is likely to be legitimate.

The fact that it is hand delivered is unusual these days, but some small contractors still prefer to deal this way. Your body corporate managers should still create a digital record of the invoice.

The main question is whether you are happy with the approval and payment process.

I find it unusual that payment would be made on the spot. I don’t think many companies would do this, but it is not necessarily incorrect.

More commonly, you would see invoices received being sent to an accounts team with some kind of online process in place for approval.

As a scheme, you can authorise your body corporate managers to make these payments for you, but we recommend that all invoices be sent to the committee for approval before payment is made.

Most companies should have access to an easy online system that facilitates this. A good example is the StrataMax Online Invoice Hub. If you haven’t been offered something like this, you may want to ask why.

The risk for you is that if you change the system, your cleaner may not be happy. If you have a good cleaner at a decent rate, you might want to consider the value of upsetting the ecosystem in which they operate. Maybe have a chat with them and see what they think. You could also speak to your strata company to see how quickly they can process invoices if you adopt a new system.

William Marquand
Tower Body Corporate
E: willmarquand@towerbodycorporate.com.au
P: 07 5609 4924

This post appears in the December 2024 edition of The QLD Strata Magazine.

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