Deadline looms for lodging your own tax return

THE Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has reminded taxpayers that the due date for individuals who lodge their own income tax return – October 31 – is fast approaching.

As of September 22, the ATO had received more than 7.9 million income tax returns from individuals for the 2024 financial year.

More than 4 million individuals self-lodged their income tax return, while 3.8 million chose to use a registered tax agent.

ATO Assistant Commissioner Rob Thomson has urged those yet to finalise their tax returns or engage with a registered tax agent to act now to avoid potential late lodgment penalties.

“If you’re lodging your own tax return, the due date to lodge is October 31,” he said.

“If you’re using a tax agent, you need to be on their books before then. You need to ensure they are a registered tax agent which you can check by searching the Tax Practitioners Board’s Public Register at tpb.gov.au.”

There can be penalties for lodging a tax return late.

“If you believe you may have difficulty meeting your tax obligations, contact the ATO prior to the deadline to lodge so that we can take your circumstances into account,’ Mr Thomson said.

“It is your choice if you lodge yourself or use a registered tax agent.

“For taxpayers with simple tax affairs, lodging online through myTax is easy as most of the information you need is already pre-filled. You simply need to check your details, add any additional income, and claim the deductions you’re entitled to.”

“For those with more complex affairs, you may want to consider engaging a registered tax agent.”

The ATO is also reminding people to make sure their claims for work-related expenses are accurate, and to not copy and paste claims from last year.

Mr Thomson said that if a person’s circumstances had changed, so had their deductions.

“We see a lot of people changing jobs but not their claims.”

“Remember, the job that you do affects the deductions you can claim, that’s why we have a series of 40 occupation and industry-specific guides which can assist you.

“We want people to get their deductions right on the first go and claim what they are entitled to – nothing more, nothing less.

“If you’re procrastinating to avoid a tax bill, it’s important to know that the due date to pay most tax bills is the same regardless of when you lodge.

“That means November 21, 2024 if you lodge your own tax return, however your due date may be later if you are using a registered

tax agent.”