I also thought it could be the work that has happened around the restriction of losses over the years.
IRD can question, assess and potentially deny the loss-making of a business. That could mean you end up having to pay when you didn't expect to — many small businesses don't turn much of a profit, if any, for the first few years.
IRD can appear scary for most people when it comes to filing a tax return, child support or working for families, let alone self-employment.
It could also be that anything less than 20 hours in a business is not enough work to profit, not enough time to wear all the hats, not enough without another source of income to ensure bread and butter is paid for. Perhaps in a time of low unemployment, people are opting for the perceived safer route of being employed.
While on the horizon we see more compliance coming I hope it doesn't become all we do. We need to nurture and encourage people into business — you don't need to be a million-dollar start-up to be successful and to make a difference.
Jeremy Tauri is an associate at Plus Chartered Accountants.