How to set up your business

While new start-ups are exciting, the registrations needed rarely are. But don't let the paperwork get in your way; NAB can guide you through these requirements and make it as easy as possible for you to launch your new business.

Starting a business in Australia

So you want to be your own boss and you have some start-up business ideas, but you’re worried about all the red tape?

We know that all an entrepreneur wants to do is pursue new business opportunities. That’s why we’ve worked with EasyCompanies, opens in new window, a service that takes the hassle out of the administration side of starting up a new company. 

Our aim is to help you through the annoying admin side of a start-up, so you can get your business off the ground and focus on your dream.

What does we mean? Well, for starters there's ABN registration, opens in new window. And if you want to register a company with ASIC, opens in new window – a more complicated process – we can do that for you, too. Then there’s domain registration for your business (like yourgreatidea.com) and associated email accounts. We can help make sure the key building blocks of registering your business are covered.

Here are some of the main administration tasks we’ll help you with so you can launch your business.

Choose your business structure

We can help you choose the business structure that best suits your needs. This could be one of the following:

• Sole trader – an individual operating as the sole person legally responsible for all aspects of the business. Like other structures, as a sole trader you can employ people to help you run your business.
• Company – a legal entity separate from its shareholders.
• Partnership – an association of people or entities running a business together, but not as a company.
• Trust - a structure where a trustee carries out the business on behalf of the trust’s members (or beneficiaries). A trustee can be a person or a company, and is responsible for everything in the trust, including income and losses.

If you are eager to register as a company, we can also register your Australian Company Number, opens in new window (ACN) for you.

Obtaining an ABN

The next thing we’ll do is get you set up with an Australian Business Number, opens in new window (ABN). This is what identifies your business. With your ABN, you can:

• confirm your business identity to others when ordering and invoicing
• avoid Pay as You Go (PAYG) tax on payments you receive
• claim Goods and Services Tax (GST) credits
• claim energy grants credits
• obtain an Australian domain name.

Register your business name

This is the name under which your business operates. Once you’ve decided on the  name, we’ll help you register it with ASIC, and make sure  it  hasn’t already been registered. 

Registering your business name will help protect your business if you choose to use that name as a trademark.

Register for business taxes

We can help you get registered for the business taxes that apply to you. Once you’ve got your ABN, you can then register for business taxes, opens in new window.

In most cases, businesses will have to pay GST, and we’ll help you get registered for that.

Understand your business finances

If you need financial assistance to help make your goal a reality, we have a range of business loans, overdrafts, equipment and trade finance options.

Find the right solution for you on our business loans and finance page.