How Lodgment Deferrals Work

A lodgment deferral extends the due date for lodgment of a document, giving extra time to lodge without incurring a failure to lodge on time penalty.

Lodgment deferrals can help if there are exceptional or unforeseen circumstances which impact the ability of tax agents or their clients to lodge on time.

A request for a lodgment deferral should be consistent with PS LA 2011/15 Lodgment obligations, due dates and deferrals.

A lodgment deferral can be requested for the following obligations:

• Tax returns;
• FBT returns;
• Monthly and quarterly activity statements (but not including quarterly PAYG and GST instalment notices form R, S, and T, or annual PAYG instalment notices form N);
• Annual GST returns;
• PAYG payment summary annual reports; and
• Taxable payments annual reports.

Only tax agents may request a lodgment deferral for tax returns and FBT returns, while both tax agents and BAS agents may request lodgment deferrals for the other obligations.

Tax agents do not need to request a deferral if:

• the lodgment or payment due date falls on a weekend or public holiday, as they can lodge or pay on the next business day;
• the due date is 15 May for tax returns, as they already have an extension of time to lodge and pay to 5 June (a concessional due date in the lodgment program); or
• they are affected by a general or geographical issue (such as a natural disaster or widespread system outage) and the ATO has informed them that they don't need to request deferrals.

The ATO may decline a tax agent's deferral request if:

• their client has a record of late lodgments, including poor compliance with deferred due dates;
• the ATO has started lodgment compliance action with their client;
• they are not listed on the ATO's systems as the authorised agent to act on the client's behalf; or
• they request a deferral from the 5 June concessional lodgment date.

Tax agents who are not satisfied with the ATO's decision can ask the ATO to review its deferral decision.

Tax agents and their clients can refer to How lodgment deferrals work on the ATO's website for further information, including how to apply for a lodgment deferral.

For more information, visit the Australian Government ATO website.

At Trinity Advisory, we specialise in tax accounting, business advisory and coaching services for small businesses located in and around Cairns (116 Mulgrave Road, Parramatta Park QLD 4870) and the Sunshine Coast (2/8 Maroochydore Road, Maroochydore QLD 4558).

Should you need any taxation or accounting advice for your business, get in touch with Trinity Advisory today. Our team of expert Business Accountants, Advisors and Coaches are here to help!

Ref: ATO website, Tax and Super Professionals, 1 December 2023