It’s good to keep an eye out on the key dates the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) for your tax obligations throughout the year. From when to lodge your Business Activity Statements (BAS), pay your Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) to when you lodge your income tax return, its pays to remain compliant with the ATO to avoid late fees and penalties.
All year long, there are bookkeeping tasks that need to be done in order to meet these dates. It’s a good idea to out these into a calendar to keep you on track. There’s a few of them!
Business Activity Statements
BAS forms are lodged either monthly, quarterly or annually. Depending on the size of your business and your annual turnover, the ATO will let you know when your statements will be due.
| Monthly BAS | Quarterly activity statements lodged electronically | All other Quarterly activity statements lodged in Paper Form | All Quarterly Activity Statements lodged through a Tax or BAS Agent |
| Due on the 21 of the following month | Quarter 4 (April–June) – due 11 August Quarter 1 (July–September) – due 11 November Quarter 2 (October–December) – due 28 February Quarter 3 (January–March) – due 12 May | Quarter 4 (April–June) – due 28 July Quarter 1 (July–September) – due 28 October Quarter 2 (October–December) – due 28 February Quarter 3 (January-March) – due 28 April | Quarter 4 (April –June) – due 25 August Quarter 1 (July – September) – due 25 November Quarter 2 (October – December) – due 28 February Quarter 3 (January – March) – due 26 May |
Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT)
FBT is a tax paid by employers on certain benefits they provide to staff and can include provisions for employees families or other associates. These amounts may be a part of, or extra to, their usual salary or wage. The ATO regards this as an income, and requires reporting on these amounts.
The Fringe Benefits year is different to the calendar and financial year and runs between 1 April to 31 March. The FBT liability must be paid for and lodged by the 21 May. From 2021 the due date for FBT payments has permanently moved to 25 June if you have a tax agent that lodges your return electronically. If your tax agent lodges your return by paper, the due date for lodgement and payment is 21 May.
Good and Services Tax (GST)
The Goods and Services Tax (GST) is a tax of 10% on most goods and service sold within Australia. If your business earns over $75,000 annually, you’ll need to register for and collect the GST from your customers. You’ll need to pay the amount you’ve collected minus any GST credits you claim in your reporting period via your BAS. There are key dates you’ll need to lodge and pay your GST.
| Date | Reporting |
| 28 July | GST quarter instalment 4 (April- June) final date for payment and, if varying the instalment amount, lodgement due. |
| 21 August | Final date for eligible monthly GST reporters to elect to report GST annually. |
| 28 October | GST quarter instalment 1 (July – September) final date for payment and, if varying the instalment amount, lodgement due. Final date for eligible quarterly GST reporters to elect to report GST annually. |
| 31 October | Annual GST return or Annual GST information report – lodgement and payment is due when your income tax return is due. |
| 28 February | GST quarter instalment 2 (October – December) final date for payment and, if varying the instalment amount, lodgement due. Final date for lodgement and payment (if required of your annual GST or Annual GST Information Report if you do not have an income tax return lodgement obligation. |
| 28 April | GST quarter instalment 3 (January – March) final date for payment and, if varying the instalment amount, lodgement due. |
Pay As You Go (PAYG) withholding and instalments
As an employer, you’ll need to withhold your employees, contractors and company directors portion of their wage or salary and then pay the ATO their income tax on their behalf. This is known as PAYG withholding. You may also need to withhold from payments to other businesses if they don’t quote their Australian business number (ABN) to you. You’ll need to report your PAYG on your BAS.
| Date | Reporting |
| 28 July | Final date and payment, and if varying the instalment amount, lodgement for Quarter 4 (April – June). You’ll need to finalise all your PAYG instalments before you lodge your tax return to receive the correct credit in your income tax assessment. |
| 21 October | Annual PAYG instalment notice final date for payment. |
| 28 October | Quarter 1 (July – September) instalment notices for payment and if varying the instalment amount, lodgement. |
| 28 February | Quarter 2 (October – December) instalment notices for payment and if varying the instalment amount, lodgement. |
| 28 April | Quarter 3 (January – March) instalment notices for payment and if varying the instalment amount, lodgement. |
Super Guarantee
As an employer you will be obligated to pay your employees with their superannuation once they earn over $450 per month or more before tax per calendar month. The minimum you need to pay is known as the super guarantee (SG) which is currently 9.5% of an employee’s ordinary time earnings. Super guarantee contributions to be made to the super fund for every quarter.
| Date | Reporting |
| Quarter 1 | Due 28 October. If you do not pay the minimum super contributions, you must pay the SG charge and lodge a Superannuation Guarantee Charge Statement – Quarterly by 28 November. |
| Quarter 2 | Due 28 January. If you do not pay the minimum super contributions, you must pay the SG charge and lodge a Superannuation Guarantee Charge Statement – Quarterly by 28 February. |
| Quarter 3 | Due 28 April. If you do not pay the minimum super contributions, you must pay the SG charge and lodge a Superannuation Guarantee Charge Statement – Quarterly by 28 May. |
| Quarter 4 | Due 28 July. If you do not pay the minimum super contributions, you must pay the SG charge and lodge a Superannuation Guarantee Charge Statement – Quarterly by 28 August. |
Taxable Payments Annual Report (TPAR)
A TPAR is an industry specific report for companies that need to report the total payments made to contractors. You’ll need the ABN, business name and address, the gross amount paid (including GST) in the financial year and the total GST included in the gross amount you pain when you report. This report is due by the 28 August each year.
If your company has used building and construction services, cleaning services, courier services or road freight services, IT services, security, investigation or surveillance services or government entities, you’ll need to lodge a TPAR report.
TFN reporting for closely held trusts
The TFN report is to be completed by the trustee of a closely held trust to report tax file numbers (TFNs) and other personal details quoted to them by beneficiaries of the trust.
| Date | Reporting |
| Quarter 4 | April – June TFN report due 31 July |
| Quarter 1 | July – September TFN report due 31 October |
| Quarter 2 | October – December TFN report due 31 January |
| Quarter 3 | January – March TFN report due 30 April |
| 30 September | Annual TFN withholding report due |
| 28 October | Annual activity statement for the previous financial year due |
Income Tax
The following are the key lodgement and payment dates for businesses and apply to entities that balance on 30 June. They do not apply to entities that use a substituted accounting period.
| Date | Reporting |
| 31 October | Individual, partnership and trust income tax returns due |
| 1 December | Income tax lodgement due date for non full assessment of company entities. Income tax payment date for companies that were taxable medium to large taxpayers in the immediate prior year and required to lodge by 31 October |
| 15 January | Lodgement due date for income tax returns for companies, and trusts that were taxable medium to large business clients in the prior year and are not required to lodge earlier. |
| 28 February | Due date for tax medium to large trusts that were non-taxable in the latest year |
Hopefully this has cleared some of the key dates you’ll need to remember when reporting your tax obligations to the ATO. If you’re too busy to remember these dates, help is at hand. ITP Bookkeepers tailor their service to meet your needs. One day or five days a week, ITP Bookkeepers might be the help you need to keep your business ATO compliant. Phone 1800 367 487 or book online today.