As 2023 draws to a close and the holiday season gets underway, it’s the time for Australians to start preparing for their 2024 tax obligations. With the new year fast approaching, taxpayers would be wise to begin organizing their records and diaries for the key dates ahead on the Australian Taxation Office’s calendar.
Being proactive and planning early will help avoid last-minute stresses when it comes to meeting lodgement and payment deadlines. This article provides an overview of some important 2024 tax dates that all Australians should be aware of to ensure they stay on top of their tax affairs in the new year.
Here are some key tax dates for 2024
January 2024
21 January
- Lodge and pay the June 2023-24 quarterly PAYG instalment activity statement for head companies of consolidated business groups.
- Lodge and pay the December 2023 monthly business activity statement, unless the business has an annual turnover of up to $10 million and reports GST monthly via electronic lodgement. This exception applies to clients who report GST and lodge electronically on a monthly basis.
28 January
- Make your quarterly superannuation guarantee contributions for the October-December 2023 period (Quarter 2 of the 2023-24 financial year) to employees’ super funds by this date.
- It is important to meet this deadline to avoid penalties. Employers who fail to make the minimum super guarantee payments for Quarter 2 by this date must pay the superannuation guarantee charge. They will also be required to lodge a Superannuation Guarantee Charge statement with the ATO by 28 February 2024. Meeting payment deadlines is essential to avoid fines for non-compliance with superannuation guarantee obligations.
31 January
- Lodge a TFN report if any beneficiaries quoted their tax file number to a trust trustee in the October-December 2023 quarter (Quarter 2 of the 2023-24 financial year).
- Lodge tax returns for large and medium tax entities by the date shown on their most recent tax return, unless an earlier date applies.
- Pay tax liabilities by 1 December 2023 if the entity is a company, superannuation fund, or head company of a consolidated group that is large or medium sized. Trusts should pay according to the date stated on their notice of assessment.
- You cannot assume a later lodgment date just because the taxpayer expects to be non-taxable for the current year. Requests to defer must be escalated for manual approval as an ATO-assessed extension. Meeting standard deadlines is required to avoid penalties.
- Large and medium trusts (annual total income more than $10 million in latest year lodged) where the trust was taxable in latest year lodged.
February 2024
21 February
- Lodge and pay the December 2023 monthly Business Activity Statement if your business has an annual turnover of up to $10 million, reports GST monthly, and lodges statements electronically.
- Lodge and pay the January 2024 monthly Business Activity Statement. This deadline applies to all businesses that report monthly via the Business Activity Statement, regardless of size or lodgment method.
28 February
- Large or medium non-taxable entities (except individuals) must lodge tax returns by the date shown on their previous year’s return. Payment is also due for companies, super funds, and trusts if tax is owed.
- Newly registered large or medium taxable and non-taxable entities (except individuals) must lodge tax returns. If tax is owed, payment is due for companies, super funds, and trusts.
- Non-taxable head companies of consolidated groups, including new registrants, must lodge returns if a member is large or medium.
- Members exiting a consolidated group must lodge returns for any period during the income year.
- Newly registered non-taxable head companies of consolidated groups must lodge returns.
- Newly registered self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs), whether taxable or non-taxable, must lodge annual returns unless advised of a 31 October due date after registration review. Special rules apply to newly registered SMSFs.
- Lodge and pay the October-December 2023 quarterly activity statement for all lodgement methods.
- Pay quarterly instalment notices by this date. Only lodge a notice if varying the amount.
- Lodge annual GST returns by this date if no tax return obligation. Otherwise, lodge by the tax return due date.
- Employers must lodge and pay any Superannuation Guarantee Charge statements if they did not pay sufficient contributions on time. The ATO allows late payments to offset charges.
- Large and medium trusts where the trust had an annual total income of more than $10 million in the latest year lodged must lodge a return if the trust was non-taxable in the latest year lodged.
- New registrant large and medium trusts.
March 2024
21 March
- Lodge and pay February 2024 monthly business activity statement.
31 March
- Companies and super funds with total income over $2 million in their previous return must lodge, unless already required to lodge earlier as a large or medium entity. Payment is due for companies and super funds.
- Consolidated group head companies must lodge if a member had over $2 million income previously, unless already lodging as a large or medium group. Payment is due for these companies.
- Individuals and trusts owing $20,000 or more in their previous return must lodge, excluding large or medium trusts. Payment is due per the notice of assessment for individuals and trusts.
April 2024
21 April
- Lodge and pay the September 2023 quarterly PAYG instalment activity statement for head companies of consolidated business groups (Quarter 3 of the 2023-24 financial year).
- Lodge and pay the March 2024 monthly Business Activity Statement. This deadline applies to all businesses that report monthly via the BAS.
28 April
- Lodge and pay the September 2023 quarterly activity statement if you elect to lodge via paper and are not reporting through Single Touch Payroll (STP).
- Pay the September 2023 quarterly instalment notice (Form R, S or T) by this date. Only lodge the notice if varying the instalment amount.
- Make your quarterly superannuation guarantee contributions for the January-March 2024 period (Quarter 3 of 2023-24 FY) to employees’ super funds by this date.
- It is important to meet this deadline to avoid penalties. Employers who fail to make the minimum super guarantee payments for Quarter 3 by this date must pay the superannuation guarantee charge. Employers must lodge a Superannuation Guarantee Charge statement with the ATO by 28 May 2024.
30 April
- Lodge a TFN report if any beneficiaries quoted their tax file number to a trust trustee in the January-March 2024 quarter (Quarter 3 of the 2023-24 financial year).
- Lodge a lost members report. You should provide details of lost or inactive super fund accounts for the period between 1 July 2022 to 31 December 2023.
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May 2024
15 May
- All entities that were not required to lodge earlier and are not eligible for the 5 June filing concession must lodge their 2023 tax returns. This includes any remaining consolidated groups.
- The payment due date for any tax owed applies to companies and superannuation funds in this category.
- Individuals and trusts in this category should pay according to the date stated on their notice of assessment.
21 May
- Lodge and pay the April 2024 monthly Business Activity Statement.
- This is the final date to add new Fringe Benefit Tax clients to your list to ensure they receive lodgment and payment concessions for their FBT returns.
- Lodge and pay the Fringe Benefits Tax annual return if lodging via paper rather than electronically.
26 May
- Lodge and pay eligible quarter 3, 2023–24 activity statements if you or your client have elected to receive and lodge electronically.
28 May
- Employers must lodge and pay the September 2023 quarterly (Quarter 3) Superannuation Guarantee Charge statement if they did not pay sufficient superannuation guarantee contributions to employees’ funds by the due date.
- Employers lodging this statement have the option to offset any late super contributions paid to funds against the superannuation guarantee charge amount for the quarter. The remaining balance of the charge still must be paid. This helps employers receive credit for late payments without full penalty for late contributions.
June 2024
5 June
- Lodge tax returns for all entities with a 15 May 2024 lodgment due date if they were non-taxable or received a credit assessment in the latest year lodged AND meet the same criteria for the current year. This excludes large/medium taxpayers and head companies of consolidated groups.
- Taxpayers must lodge tax returns for individuals and trusts by 15 May 2024, provided they also pay any tax liability by this date.
- The ATO notes that 15 May 2024 is a concessional date. They will waive failure to lodge penalties if taxpayers complete both lodgment and payment by this date. However, the original underlying lodgment due date does not change. This arrangement provides leniency as long as taxpayers meet their lodgment obligations by 15 May.
21 June
- Lodge and pay May 2024 monthly business activity statement.
25 June
- Lodge and pay 2024 Fringe benefits tax annual return for tax agents if lodging electronically.
30 June
- Employers must pay superannuation guarantee contributions by this date to qualify for a tax deduction in the 2023-24 financial year.
- Clients who receive Child Care Subsidy and Family Tax Benefit payments from Services Australia must lodge their 2022-23 tax return by 30 June 2024, regardless of any lodgment deferrals in place. This ensures eligibility for ongoing government payments can be correctly determined. See the Services Australia website for more details.
READ: Individuals and trusts 2024 dates
BAS quarters 2024
Business Activity Statement (BAS) payment deadlines vary depending on a business’s reporting cycle. This cycle is determined by annual GST turnover.
Smaller businesses have less frequent reporting obligations since they have lower transaction volumes. Their BAS may be due quarterly or annually.
For businesses with an annual GST turnover under $10 million, the default reporting cycle is quarterly. The ATO may specify a different cycle in some cases.
Businesses with $10 million or more in annual GST turnover must report monthly via BAS.
Voluntarily GST-registered businesses can report annually if their turnover is under $75,000 (or $150,000 for non-profits). For quarterly BAS reporters, payment deadlines fall on the 28th day after the end of each financial quarter. The exception is the second quarter (ending December), where the deadline extends to the following February. Having awareness of these schedules helps businesses comply with their tax obligations.
| Quarter | Period | Due Date |
| 1 | July, August and September | 28 October |
| 2 | October, November and December | 28 February |
| 3 | January, February and March | 28 April |
| 4 | April, May and June | 28 July |
Superannuation
Employers must pay superannuation guarantee contributions for eligible employees on time each quarter. This will avoid penalties under the super guarantee charge.
Super payments are required to be made quarterly based on employees’ earnings. The following table outlines the payment due dates for each quarter to ensure compliance:
It is the employer’s responsibility to remit super contributions for eligible employees from their start date. Meeting quarterly deadlines is important to avoid fines for late super guarantee payments.
| Quarter | Period | Payment Due Dates |
| 1 | 1 July – 30 September | 28 October |
| 2 | 1 October – 31 December | 28 January |
| 3 | 1 January – 31 March | 28 April |
| 4 | 1 April – 30 June | 28 July |
If a superannuation payment due date falls on a weekend or public holiday, super funds must receive the contribution by the next business day.
Employers can choose to make superannuation contributions more regularly than quarterly, such as fortnightly or monthly. Employers must ensure they pay the total required super guarantee amount for the entire quarter in full by the required quarterly due date.
If you have missed or delayed superannuation payments, you may be liable to pay the superannuation guarantee charge (SGC). Paying contributions on time each quarter ensures that employers avoid potential SGC penalties.
Superannuation Guarantee Charge Statement
Failing to lodge the SGC statement by the due date compounds the non-compliance and risks additional penalties. It is important employers meet both the contribution payment deadlines and subsequent SGC statement lodgement dates to avoid SGC fines.
| Quarter | Due Date |
| 1 | 28 November |
| 2 | 28 February |
| 3 | 28 May |
| 4 | 28 August |
We hope providing an overview of these key Australian tax dates will help you better plan to meet your lodgement and payment obligations throughout the coming year. Keeping on top of deadlines and having your documentation organized well in advance can certainly help reduce last-minute stress.
Speaking to a registered tax agent is recommended if managing tax requirements feels overwhelming. Tax agents can help ensure accurate and timely lodging, while also identifying any rebates or deductions employers may be entitled to. This can help minimize the tax you need to pay while giving you peace of mind of having an expert handle compliance on your behalf. Their expertise and experience navigating tax laws means one less thing for you to worry about.