Checking your tax return lodgement requirements comes down to two separate questions: whether you need to lodge at all, and how you are permitted to lodge. The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) sets the tests for the first, and it publishes the available lodgement channels for the second. Working through them in that order matters, because the channel you choose changes the date your return is actually due.
What decides whether you need to lodge
The ATO applies its own lodgement tests to your circumstances for the financial year, including income thresholds that are updated from time to time. Those thresholds are not something to reconstruct from memory or from a blog post — check the current year's figures on the ATO website before you decide that you are exempt. If your circumstances have changed during the year (a new job, a period of unemployment, a business on the side), the answer can change with them.
Income is the part people most often under-count. Moneysmart notes that payments you receive from Services Australia, or from the Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA), may be taxable. That means family assistance and similar government payments can belong in your return even if they never felt like "income" when they arrived. Treat the question "is this taxable?" as one to confirm with the ATO or your agent, not one to assume.
Pre-fill helps, but it is not complete. Moneysmart also notes that if you received emergency payments during the financial year, some of those payments won't be pre-filled when you lodge. Anything missing from pre-fill is still your responsibility to report correctly.
Choose your lodgement channel
The ATO's guidance on how to lodge outlines the options you have to lodge yourself or with help from someone else. In practice there are three routes:
| Channel | What it is | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| myTax | The ATO's free online tax return, accessed through myGov | No fee; relies on pre-filled information that fills in progressively |
| Registered tax agent | A professional who prepares and lodges for you | Registered tax agents are the only people who can charge a fee for preparing and lodging your return |
| Paper | Available in limited situations | The ATO describes early paper lodgement for people leaving Australia permanently |
Two practical points follow from that table. First, if you are paying someone to do your tax, confirm they are on the ATO's tax practitioner register — that registration is what permits them to charge a fee and represents a professional standard. Second, Moneysmart notes you need to engage a registered tax agent before 31 October if you want them to handle that year's return, so leave enough time rather than approaching one in the final week.
Timing: what actually happens when
You can lodge from 1 July, but Moneysmart recommends waiting until late July so your information pre-fills in myTax. Lodging on 1 July with incomplete data is a common source of amended returns and delayed refunds.
The standard self-lodgement deadline is 31 October. If you use a registered tax agent, the ATO notes they will tell you when they will lodge your tax return — that date, not 31 October, is the one to diarise. Ask your agent for it in writing when you engage them.
If you also run a business
Business obligations sit alongside your individual return, not inside it. Business.gov.au states that your business needs to lodge a tax return with the ATO each year. If your business is registered for GST, you also need to lodge a Business Activity Statement (BAS) — and BAS due dates are different from tax return due dates, which is a frequent source of missed deadlines.
When you register for an Australian Business Number (ABN) and GST, the ATO will send you a BAS when it is time to lodge, so watch for that correspondence. If you run a not-for-profit organisation, business.gov.au notes you may be eligible for tax concessions; whether your organisation qualifies is worth confirming with the ATO before you assume either way.
Family assistance and balancing
Your tax return is not only about tax. Services Australia uses lodged tax returns to check whether you were eligible for Family Tax Benefit (FTB) during the financial year, and when it completes an FTB lump sum claim it checks whether you are eligible for any supplements. If you received family assistance, a delay in lodging can hold up that balancing process. Conversely, if you are expecting a balancing outcome, lodging earlier gives Services Australia the information it needs.
Leaving Australia, or already gone
Departure changes the schedule. The ATO publishes specific guidance on lodging your tax return before leaving Australia, including whether you can lodge early by paper if you are leaving permanently, and on how to lodge if you are outside Australia when your return is due. If a move is on the horizon, handle the return before you go rather than trying to reconcile it from another time zone.
While you are in there: check your super
Moneysmart's framing is useful here: while you prepare your tax return, it is also a good time to check your super. You already have your income and employer details in front of you, which makes it easier to confirm contributions were paid. Moneysmart also publishes separate guidance on how much Australian income tax you should be paying and how Australian GST is calculated, if you want to sanity-check the numbers in your return.
Questions to verify before you lodge
These are the points where you should confirm the answer rather than assume it:
- Does the ATO's current-year test require you to lodge, given every income source you had?
- Are the Services Australia or DVA payments you received taxable in your situation?
- Which of your payments are missing from pre-fill, and do you have the records to report them?
- Is the person preparing your return on the ATO's tax practitioner register?
- What date has your agent committed to lodging, in writing?
- If you have a business, are both the tax return and any BAS on your calendar, with their separate due dates?
- If you are leaving or have left Australia, which early or overseas lodgement rules apply to you?
Next steps
- Log in to myGov and open myTax from late July, so pre-filled information has arrived.
- List every payer you had during the year, including Services Australia and DVA, and tick each against what appears in pre-fill.
- Decide your channel: myTax if you are lodging yourself, or a registered tax agent engaged before 31 October.
- If you have a business or GST registration, add the tax return and each BAS due date to your calendar now.
- If you received family assistance, lodge in time for Services Australia to complete its eligibility and supplement checks.
- Keep your records and the ATO's confirmation of lodgement for your own files.
If part of the reason you are getting your tax affairs in order is to present a cleaner financial picture — for a home loan application, for example — our /money/home-loans/ guide covers what lenders typically look at. To be connected with professional help for your circumstances, /match/ is the place to start.
This article is general information only. It is not personalised legal, tax, financial or migration advice, and it does not predict any outcome, refund, approval or entitlement. Tax rules, thresholds and due dates change, and how they apply depends on your individual circumstances. Confirm your position with the ATO or a registered tax agent before acting. Australian Today is not a lender, broker, government body, regulator or comparison service.