DUE DATE FOR LODGEMENT
The due date for lodgement of the tax return is 31 October each year. Extensions will usually be granted if written notice is forwarded to the
Commissioner of Taxation (the Commissioner) before 31 October.
Tax agents are normally granted extensions of time beyond 31 October for taxpayers who are listed with the ATO as their clients by that date
and who have no tax returns outstanding for earlier years. Where a taxpayer has outstanding prior year tax returns, the due date for lodgement
of the current year tax return will be 31 October, even if they are registered with a tax agent.

WHERE TO LODGE TAX RETURNS

Most individual tax returns are lodged electronically, either by the taxpayer using myGov or by a tax agent via the Practitioner Lodgement Service (PLS). Tax agents are also able to lodge tax returns for other entities electronically.

If an entity, for example a partnership, trust or company, is lodging their own tax return, or a tax agent is lodging a paper tax return, the return
will be posted to:

• Australian Taxation Office
• GPO Box 9845
  (insert the name and postcode of the nearest capital city)

Trust, Company or Fund

• Australian Taxation Office
  GPO Box 9845
  IN YOUR CAPITAL CITY

WHAT IS REQUIRED TO BE LODGED
The income tax law requirements provide that, except as otherwise prescribed, every return under the Act shall:
a. be prepared and lodged on the form stipulated by the Commissioner
b. contain the information and particulars mentioned, or referred to, in the form
c. be verified by declaration and
d. be accompanied by all schedules and other documents as required (e.g. rental schedule).
There are different forms required to be lodged for different entities. For example:
Individual Form – used for individual taxpayers.
Partnership Form – an information only form. It records the partners’ distribution of profit/loss, which is then reported on each
taxpayer’s individual form.
Trust Form – used by trusts (including deceased estates and family trusts)
Fund Form – used by superannuation funds.
Company Form – used by entities that are registered under the Corporations Act 2001.
For the purposes of this course, we will be focusing on preparing tax returns for individuals.
It is important that only one tax return be lodged by an individual in any one year. If an error has been made in the original return, then a letter
of amendment or an electronic amendment must be sent to the ATO.

DECLARATIONS
For manual (paper) lodgement, the declaration on the tax return must be signed by the taxpayer. If the return is lodged by a tax agent, the Tax
Agent’s Certificate must also be signed by the Tax Agent.
If the return is lodged via the PLS (Practitioner Lodgement Service), the tax agent is not required to sign a declaration. The agent accesses the
PLS using their tax agent registration number in combination with the PLS registration/approval of the transmitter and completes the relevant
fields on the PLS return. This constitutes the agent’s declaration and electronic signature.
The taxpayer must provide a written declaration to the tax agent stating the information on the form is true and correct and that the tax agent
is authorised to lodge the specified form. This declaration may be in the form of an email or some other electronic declaration.

SELF ASSESSMENT
The Australian Taxation System is a self-assessment system. Under this system, tax returns are not subject to scrutiny before assessment.
Taxpayers provide information on their tax return about their assessable income, allowable deductions, tax offsets and credits and other
relevant information required for the Commissioner to issue an assessment.
The Commissioner is authorised to accept, without examination, statements made by or on behalf of the taxpayer in the return or in any other
document. The onus is on the taxpayer (or their representative) to ensure the tax return complies with the taxation legislation.
The taxpayer is not required to provide supporting documentation to the ATO at the time of lodgement of the return. However, records, receipts
and other documentation used to prepare the return must be retained by the taxpayer for five years from the date of lodgement of the return
and may have to be provided to the ATO on request. Records must be kept in English.
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PERIOD OF REVIEW
For most individual taxpayers, small business taxpayers (turnover less than $10m) and medium business taxpayers (turnover $10 or more
but less than $50m), the period during which the Commissioner may amend an assessment (or a taxpayer may request an amendment to an
assessment) is 2 years from the date of issue of the original assessment. This period applies from the day on which the notice of the original
assessment was issued.
Where a taxpayer
• carries on a business that is not a small business entity (SBE) or medium business entity or
• is a partner in a partnership that is not a SBE or medium business entity or
• is a potential beneficiary of a trust that carries on a business that is not a SBE or medium business entity
the period of review is 4 years.
Prior to the 2022 year, for business taxpayers, the 2 year period of review only applied to small business taxpayers.
In the case of fraud or tax evasion, there is no time limit on the Commissioner to amend an assessment.
NOTE
There are limited circumstances where the Commissioner has the authority to accept an amendment request where it is lodged after the time limit has expired. If a taxpayer wishes to amend a tax return which is outside the period of review, they can lodge an objection. The time limit for lodging an objection
is generally the same as for lodging an amendment, however the taxpayer can request that the objection be treated by the Commissioner as if it has been
lodged on time.
DATA MATCHING
Although tax returns are not subject to scrutiny prior to assessment, the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) obtains information from a variety
of third-party sources in order to detect discrepancies on tax returns. Banks, employers, private health insurers and government departments
have a legal obligation to provide information to the ATO. This enables the ATO to not only verify tax returns, but also to prefill tax returns
lodged electronically with some information.
Other third party information available to the ATO include:
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• Details of motor vehicles sold, transferred or newly registered from state and territory motor vehicle
registering bodies.
• Sales and other transfers of property from state and territory titles offices and revenue agencies.
• Foreign sourced income from Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) and
international treaty partners.
• Quantity and value of sales from online selling platforms.
• Payments to participants from sharing economy facilitators (e.g. ride sourcing platforms, sharing economy
accommodation platforms).
• Purchase and sale information from cryptocurrency designated service providers.
• Details of share transactions from stock exchanges and share registries.
• Payments made to contractors and payments made for building and construction services from businesses
in the building and construction industry.
• Payments made to contractors from businesses in other industries (cleaning services, courier services, road
freight services, IT services and security, investigation and surveillance services).
In addition, the ATO’s lifestyle assets data-matching program collects data on insurance policies for certain classes of assets, including:
• marine vessels
• motor vehicles
• thoroughbred horses
• fine art, and
• aircraft.

The individual tax return Form 2024