What’s a Tax/Financial year
For all individual, sole trader, company and trust working in Australia, the tax year starts on 1st of July of that year and ends on 30th of June of the following calendar year. So, it actually captures the second half (Jul-Dec) of one year and the first half (Jan-Jun) on the next year. That is known as a financial/tax year.
The Australian Resident Individual tax calculator for the 2021/22 financial year can be used here.
GST lodgment deadlines
For a business that is registered for GST (Goods & Service Tax), on a annual basis, the time to lodge your annual GST would be at the end of the financial year along with your tax return.
The BAS (Business Activity Statement) or IAS (Instalment Activity Statement), return standard due dates for small businesses lodging quarterly typically give 28 days plus 2 weeks from period-end if lodging online, except for the December quarter where the lodgement deadline is the end of February. Lodging via an agent will normally provide a further 2 weeks.
- July – September due date is October 28th
- October – December due date is February 28th
- January – March due date is April 28th
- April – June due date is July 28th
FBT year
An FBT(Fringe Benefits Tax) year is similar to the financial/tax year as it also does not follow the calendar year schedule, an FBT year starts on 1st of April and ends the following calendar year 31st March.
FBT is a tax on employers, for taxable benefits provided to employees or their associates, by the employer or associates. Typical kinds of benefit are the provision of a car, loans and the payment of expenses. To be taxable, the essential components of a fringe benefit are:
- there is an employment relationship
- a benefit has been provided
- it is not an excluded benefit