When is Tax Return Due with Accountant in Australia?

If you are asking “when is tax due australia with accountant”, registered tax agents may be eligible for later lodgement dates.

For 2025-26, start by checking the main ATO dates that apply to you. They cover individual tax lodgements, BAS, super, Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT), PAYG instalments and the Taxable Payments Annual Report (TPAR). Check those dates before lodging or paying, because a missed deadline can bring Failure to Lodge penalties, interest charges and avoidable pressure.

It covers:

• The main lodgement and payment dates affecting individuals and businesses.
• When registered tax agents may receive extended lodgement dates.
• Possible consequences of missing an ATO deadline, including Failure to Lodge penalties and interest charges.
• The distinction between the date for lodging an obligation and the date for paying it.
• How weekends and public holidays can change an ATO deadline.
• The deadlines relevant to tax returns, BAS, super, FBT, PAYG instalments and TPAR.

When is Tax Return Due with Accountant for Self-Lodgers vs. Agent Clients

The official Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) register at tpb.gov.au provides a check before you rely on an accountant’s lodgement program. If you choose a professional, check their registration to provide tax services.

1. Go to the official Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) register through `tpb.gov.au`.
2. Search for the practitioner or firm using its name, business name, or registration number.

This check shows that the professional you picked meets legal qualifications and can use the ATO’s lodgement program.

Key Australian Tax Deadlines at a Glance

Tax agents can shift standard dates for obligations they lodge. Check the table before 31 October if your tax agent is lodging it.

Income tax, BAS, superannuation and business reporting have different dates, while quarterly BAS follows its reporting quarter:

• Q1 (Jul, Sep): The due date is 28 October.
• Q2 (Oct, Dec): The due date is 28 February.
• Q3 (Jan, Mar): The due date is 28 April.
• Q4 (Apr, Jun): The due date is 28 July.

FBT uses its own annual cycle, from 1 April to 31 March, instead of the income tax year.

Some businesses paying contractors in specified industries must lodge a Taxable Payments Annual Report (TPAR). When you pay contractors in building and construction, cleaning, courier services, road freight, information technology or security services, lodge a TPAR.

For each financial year, the TPAR captures contractor payment details. For every contractor, include their name, address and ABN, along with the total paid and any GST within those payments.

The FBT return is generally due, for both lodgement and payment, on 21 May. When a registered tax professional lodges electronically, 25 June may apply. Check the agent’s FBT client list by the original 21 May date. Your business can use 25 June only if it appears on that list.

Individual & Sole Trader Tax Deadlines

Income Tax Return

A sole trader reports all trade earnings on an individual tax return. No separate return is lodged for that income, as it is declared on the individual return. For a self-lodger, the return must be lodged by 31 October, while a tax agent has until 15 May to lodge the return on their behalf.

The structure of the business and the lodging method both determine the tax return date. A sole trader may lodge independently or have a tax agent lodge the return.

• Lodging independently: You are a self-lodger, so the return is due on 31 October.
• Using a tax agent: The lodgement date moves to a later date, often in the following year.

How you lodge changes the deadline that applies to your sole-trader tax return in each case.

What Happens If You Miss a Deadline?

The ATO takes late lodgements seriously. Missing a tax deadline can cost more than admin hassle, with the amount rising the longer you leave it.

Once your return is late, problems can build quickly. The ATO may issue a default assessment from the limited information available, and the assessment can be substantially higher than what you actually owe. A late lodgement can also shut off some payment options and arrangements. In serious cases, garnishee orders may affect your bank accounts or employer.

Failure to lodge penalties are worked out in penalty units. Check when the failure to lodge happened, because the government changes a unit’s value from time to time. For infringements between 7 November 2024 and 30 June 2026, a unit is $330; its value changes to $364 on or after 1 July 2026.

Your penalty begins at one unit for each 28-day period, including any part of a 28-day period, while the return remains late. The maximum is five penalty units. Depending on when the failure to lodge occurred, one overdue return can mean a penalty up to $1,650 or $1,820.

Refund amendments have a fixed time limit for claiming a refund. For individuals, the usual period is two years, with the clock starting on the day following issue of the notice of assessment. Sole traders can amend for two years for the 2023-24 income year and earlier.

That changes to four years for the 2024-25 income year and later. If that amendment window closes, you generally can no longer claim the refund.

Key Filing and Payment Considerations

Each ATO obligation has a date to watch, particularly where tax could be payable. If you are wondering “when is tax due with accountant”, add the relevant payment date to your calendar early. You then have enough time to prepare before the money leaves.

First, pin down the obligations that apply to you. Then add every relevant date to your calendar, once those obligations are clear, so you can track them properly.

The Difference Between Lodgement and When Tax is Due if You Have an Accountant

Sending in an obligation and paying the amount that follows are two separate tasks. When you treat both as one deadline, avoidable costs can follow.

You lodge when your tax return or BAS goes to the ATO. Payment settles any tax or GST still owing.

With BAS, the standard setup has the filing and payment dates falling on the same day. This is the usual BAS arrangement.

Eligible quarterly BAS clients can get an extension through a tax agent. If a registered BAS agent handles the obligation, the extension moves both Lodgement and payment dates under it.

For income tax, once the ATO issues the Notice of Assessment, it may specify a payment date rather than treating the tax return Lodgement date as the payment date.

Depending on the assessment, you may need to clear the outstanding tax within 21 days of the assessment date. That payment timing doesn’t necessarily match the original Lodgement deadline.

An extended Lodgement date gives you longer to submit your tax return. Using it doesn’t on its own set the payment date. For assessed tax, the assessment date drives the payment timetable.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens if I hire an accountant after 31 October?

Hiring an accountant after 31 October does not bring back the extension. If 31 October was your return deadline, the extension cannot be applied retrospectively after that date.

A registered tax agent can prepare and lodge the relevant prior-year returns, even where you have several years outstanding.

When the circumstances support a remission request, a registered tax agent may help you seek remission of a penalty. If you want help from a late tax return accountant, speak with a qualified tax professional about the steps available.

Does a lodgement extension also extend my payment deadline?

The ATO says these two things stay separate. Lodgement means sending a return or BAS to the ATO, while payment means settling outstanding tax or GST.

For eligible quarterly BAS clients, a tax agent arrangement moves both obligations. If you qualify, the later program date covers filing and payment.

Income tax liabilities run on a different timetable. Once the ATO issues the Notice of Assessment, it may set a payment date separate from the date on which you can lodge the return.

With these dates in mind, arrange to hire professional tax accountants newcastle before 31 October if the extension is open to you. Keep lodgement and payment dates separate, and use a registered tax agent for missed returns. Eligible quarterly BAS clients may receive the later program date for filing and payment.

Income tax payment follows the Notice of Assessment. If you are still asking “when is tax return due with accountant”, a tax professional can talk through the available steps for a late return or penalty remission.