Lodge Late or Prior Year Tax Returns
Have you missed the tax deadline?
Not a problem, Culburra Beach Accounting & Tax can help. Here are a few tips to get control of your tax returns.
How do I lodge a late tax return?
It's not too late! Most people generally need to lodge an income tax return every year. However, some may have been too busy, overseas, or found that it was just too complicated to lodge their tax return. If you have not lodged a tax return for a few years or you have a tax return outstanding or overdue, no matter the reason, getting up to date now will give you peace of mind. Culburra Beach Accounting & Tax can help you with your outstanding tax returns for this and past years. Just call and book an appointment.
Are there fines or penalties for late or past year tax returns?
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) may apply a "failure to lodge on time penalty" (FTL). The penalty is calculated at the rate of one penalty unit for each period of 28 days or part thereof that the return is overdue, up to a maximum of five penalty units. Size tests also apply, so that the penalty for larger entities is multiplied by either two or five. The penalty is $210 for every 28-day period or part thereof that the returns remain outstanding up to a maximum of $900:
- 1-28 Days Past Deadline = $210
- 28-56 Days = $360
- 57-84 Days = $540
- 85-112 Days = $720
- 113 Days or more = $900
This FTL penalty calculation applies for small businesses only. Taxpaying businesses classified as medium (assessable income of more than $1 million and less than $20 million) will have the fine factor multiplied by two and entities classified as large (assessable income over $20 million) will have the fine amount multiplied by five.
Further, the ATO may issue a default assessment warning letter. This letter will summarise the income on which the default assessment may be based. The letter will also tell you the date by which you must lodge the overdue return if you want to avoid being issued with a default assessment.
The ATO is more likely to apply a penalty if:
- you have more than one tax return outstanding
- you have a poor lodgement history, or
- you have not complied with a request to lodge your tax return.
Can I still submit a late tax return if I don't have all my documents and receipts?
The ATO collects information about your income from banks, employers, government agencies and other parties. This information is matched to your TFN.
With your consent, Culburra Beach Accounting & Tax can help by checking your lodgement status with the ATO, ascertaining which years are outstanding and accessing details that have been reported to the ATO.
At Culburra Beach Accounting & Tax, we'll work with you to ascertain what deductions may be relevant and help you to work out how to locate this information. Obviously the more receipts, statements and information you can find at your home or office, the easier it will be. But don't stress about it, there are some deductions you can claim without receipts.
How else can Culburra Beach Accounting & Tax assist me?
Completing your outstanding tax returns may also result in matching past entitlements for benefits, such as superannuation co-contribution, family payment, baby bonus or education tax refund. Standard fees apply.. If for some of the outstanding years, you were not required to lodge a tax return, Culburra Beach Accounting & Tax can submit a non-lodgement advice and make sure you're up-to-date with the tax office.
It's important to understand that once you are up to date with your tax returns, Culburra Beach Accounting & Tax can continue to assist you to keep up to-date with record cards, log books, annual reminders, newsletters and more. At Culburra Beach Accounting & Tax nothing is too complicated. book an appointment online or call 02 44473893
