Small businesses have until 31 December 2023 to make use of an amnesty on penalties for failure to lodge tax returns, activity statements and fringe benefit tax returns on time.
These are in place for small business income tax returns, fringe benefits tax (FBT) returns and business activity statements (BAS) – that were originally due between 1 December 2019 and 28 February 2022.
The Australian Tax Office (ATO) has stated that 14,000 small businesses have taken advantage of this amnesty since its introduction on 1 June 2023, and more than $48 million in failure to lodge penalties have been revoked.
ATO Assistant Commissioner, Jillian Kitto said that “all you need to do to take advantage of this opportunity is lodge, and we will remit any failure to lodge penalty.”
This is open to all businesses with an annual turnover of less than $10 million when the lodgment was due.
The ATO also mentioned this is an opportunity for small businesses to sort out their tax affairs and become up to date without the threat of late penalties.
Company directors who bring their company lodgments up to date can also have failure to lodge penalties revoked if they rely on company returns to finalise their own personal tax affairs.
This applies to eligible returns made between 1 June and 31 December 2023.
Businesses no longer in operation can still benefit from the amnesty. However, it is recommended to advise your registered tax professional or contact the ATO directly about finalising your tax obligations.
Businesses that have tax debts after forms are lodged will still be required to pay such debts, and payment plans can be set up for this.
