Source: New places to play in Gungahlin
Welcome and governance
The ATO Co-chair welcomed members and ATO attendees to the Tax Practitioner Stewardship Group (TPSG) Tax Time 2025 meeting.
ATO updates
Frontline Services
We can confirm it has been a successful first week of tax time:
- We’ve received 22,000 calls from agents, which is 8% down from last year.
- Lodgment numbers are down 10% for self-preparers, and 15% for agent lodged.
- Safety nets have now been successfully lifted; therefore early lodgers should start receiving their refunds by the end of this week.
IT system updates and maintenance
Good performance of core Tax Time Support systems with forecasts for Online Services and IITR Lodgments tracking well.
Planned maintenance of ATO online was successfully completed on Monday 6 July between 9:00 pm AEST and 1:00 am AEST (7 July).
ATO Digital services
Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation (CSC) have identified an error in their original reporting of PAYGW for members of the MSBS and DFRDB super schemes.
CSC lodged their original report on 4 July with this data flowing through to pre-fill tax returns. On 6 July, it was reported that pre-fill information had been reported twice as both super lump sum and super income stream income.
We are working with CSC to address the issue as soon as possible. Its recommended members wait for prefill data to be corrected before lodging. Members who have lodged with the duplicated data may need to complete an amendment to correct this issue.
ATO Communications
We continue to highlight the importance of keeping accurate records and eligibility when claiming deductions in line with our ongoing ‘Back to Basics’ theme.
The ATO Tax Time Spokesperson will be recording the KPMG Tax Now podcast, the Tax Vibe podcast, as well as recording an episode of the NTAA’s Tax on the Couch.
An ATO Community language officer will be interviewed on SBS in Hindi on the importance of using a registered tax agent, including how to find out if the tax agent is registered and that only a registered tax agent can charge a fee for preparing and lodging your tax return. They will also cover if taxpayers are unsure of their tax obligations or need assistance, they can speak to a registered tax agent.
The first ‘Open Forums’ for this financial year, scheduled on 7 August from 1:00 pm AEST, will cover TPB Code obligations, implementation and compliance guidance, and Small Business focus areas for the upcoming quarter.
The Tax Professionals Tax Time webcast recording is now available at Tax professionals webcasts | Australian Taxation Office. Topics discussed around tax time include what’s new for individuals and small business clients, preparing your practice, and cyber security.
Superannuation
As of Monday 7 July, 56% of employers have finalised their STP data ensuring their employees have the right information to lodge their 2024–25 income tax returns.
We have reminded members that employer’s STP finalisation declarations are due next Monday 14 July. They should make sure they finalise the data for all employees paid during the financial year. This includes those they haven’t paid for a while, like employees or casuals who stopped work for them during the year.
Member insights and experience
Member comments
A member reminded tax agents that the prefill availability is updated regularly, and encouraged members to promote information on Pre-fill availability across their networks via their newsletters and tax time communications, etc.