Indirect tax ebook - Australia

Reporting & filing 

GST returns (also known as Business Activity Statements or BASs)
An entity with an annual turnover of more than $20 million must report and pay GST monthly. The due date for lodgment of a monthly BAS and payment of any amount owed is 21 days after the end of each month.

An entity with an annual turnover of less than $20 million can report and pay GST quarterly (or elect to report and pay GST on a monthly basis). The due date for the lodgement of a quarterly BAS and payment of any amount owed is 28 April for the March quarter, 28 July for the June quarter, 28 October for the September quarter and 28 February for the December quarter.

Annual GST returns
An entity that has voluntarily registered for GST purposes and has not elected to pay GST by instalments can choose to report and pay or claim a refund of GST annually. The due date for the lodgement of an annual GST return and payment of any amount owing on that return is either the date the entity’s income tax return is due, or by 28 February following the end of the financial year covered by that return (if the entity is not required to lodge an income tax return).

Filing penalties
Penalties apply when a BAS is lodged late or is outstanding. The penalty can vary from between $110 and $550 for a small entity, $220 and to $1,100 for a medium entity and $550 and $2,750 for a large entity.

Late payments are subject to a general interest charge (GIC) which is 7% higher than the marker rate of interest and is calculated daily on a compounding basis.

A number of other penalties may also apply. 


 

• Introduction
• Scope
• Registration
• Tax rates
• Reporting & filing
• General tax application/Time of supply
• Other local requirements