Compliance is the part of running a business nobody thanks you for, and everybody notices when it goes wrong. A missed BAS means penalties and interest. Late super now has its own charge from the first missed payday. A forgotten ASIC review fee means late fees and, eventually, deregistration. None of it is hard on its own. The problem is that there are a lot of dates, they belong to different agencies, and they don't stop for holidays.
This page is the map. It lists every lodgement we handle, the 2026–27 calendar, and links to the page for each one.
What lodgements does a small business actually have?
It depends on your structure and whether you employ people. Here's the full set we manage, and who it applies to.
| Obligation | Who has it | How often | Our page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business activity statement (GST, PAYG withholding, PAYG instalments) | Anyone registered for GST, withholding from wages, or on instalments | Monthly or quarterly | BAS and GST |
| Single Touch Payroll | Every employer | Every pay run | Payroll and Payday Super |
| Payday Super | Every employer | Every payday, from 1 July 2026 | Payroll and Payday Super |
| Company tax return | Every company | Yearly | Company tax returns |
| Trust tax return and trustee resolutions | Every trust | Yearly; resolutions by 30 June | Trust tax returns |
| Individual tax return | Owners, sole traders, investors | Yearly | Individual tax returns |
| Fringe benefits tax return | Employers providing fringe benefits | Yearly (FBT year ends 31 March) | FBT returns |
| ASIC annual review, solvency resolution, company changes | Every company | Yearly, plus within 28 days of changes | ASIC and company secretarial |
| Taxable payments annual report | Businesses in certain industries paying contractors (building, cleaning, courier and others) | Yearly | This page |
| SMSF annual return and audit | SMSF trustees | Yearly | SMSF returns and audits |
Add state obligations such as payroll tax and land tax, which we cover on our state taxes service.
What's due when in 2026–27?
This is the calendar for the 2026–27 year, using the ATO's registered agent lodgment program where a later date applies to clients we lodge for electronically. The 2025–26 income tax returns fall due during this period. Where a date lands on a weekend or public holiday, you can lodge and pay on the next business day.
| Date | What's due | Who it applies to |
|---|---|---|
| Every pay run | STP report to the ATO | All employers |
| Within 7 business days of each payday | Super must reach the employee's fund (Payday Super) | All employers |
| 21st of each month | Monthly BAS for the previous month | Monthly GST reporters, and large withholders |
| 28 October 2026 | Q1 (July–September) BAS if lodging yourself or on paper | Quarterly BAS lodgers |
| 31 October 2026 | Individual and trust returns lodged without an agent; last day to be on an agent's client list for the 2026 lodgment program; returns with prior years outstanding | Self-lodgers, and anyone not yet with an agent |
| 25 November 2026 | Q1 BAS lodged electronically through an agent | Our quarterly BAS clients |
| 1 December 2026 | Tax payment for companies whose return was due 31 October | Companies with prior years outstanding, and large and medium companies |
| 31 January 2027 | Returns for taxable large and medium entities | Larger businesses |
| 21 February 2027 | December monthly BAS | Monthly GST reporters with turnover up to $10 million, lodging electronically through an agent |
| 28 February 2027 | Q2 (October–December) BAS; annual GST return if you have no tax return obligation | Quarterly BAS lodgers (no agent extension for Q2) |
| 31 March 2027 | Company and super fund returns where total income was over $2 million in the latest year lodged; individual and trust returns where the latest return showed tax of $20,000 or more | Higher-income entities and individuals |
| 28 April 2027 | Q3 (January–March) BAS if self-lodging | Quarterly BAS lodgers |
| 15 May 2027 | Most remaining 2026 tax returns not due earlier | Most individuals, trusts and companies on an agent's list |
| 21 May 2027 | FBT return if lodged on paper | FBT-registered employers |
| 26 May 2027 | Q3 BAS lodged electronically through an agent | Our quarterly BAS clients |
| 5 June 2027 | Concessional date for individuals and trusts with a 15 May due date, if any tax is paid by this date; also companies with a 15 May due date if non-taxable or due a refund | Eligible agent clients |
| 25 June 2027 | FBT return lodged electronically through an agent | Our FBT clients |
| 30 June 2027 | Trustee distribution resolutions; super contributions must be received to be deductible this year; end of the financial year | Trusts, employers, everyone |
| 30 June 2027 | Last day (extended from 31 December 2026, ATO update of 20 October 2026) of the ATO's offer to remit up to 80% of the general interest charge on family trust distribution tax for trusts that come forward and fix it themselves | Family trusts that distributed outside the family group |
| 14 July 2027 | STP finalisation for the 2026–27 year (most employees) | All employers |
| 28 July 2027 | Q4 (April–June) BAS if self-lodging | Quarterly BAS lodgers |
| 25 August 2027 | Q4 BAS lodged electronically through an agent (ATO to confirm in the 2027–28 program) | Our quarterly BAS clients |
| 28 August 2027 | Taxable payments annual report | Businesses in TPAR industries |
The ATO sets these dates and can bring them forward for an individual taxpayer, for example after a history of late lodgment. Our full guide to BAS due dates goes quarter by quarter.
Watch out: The agent dates only apply if you're on our client list in time. For the 2025–26 tax return, that cut-off is 31 October 2026. If you've been meaning to move to an accountant, do it before then.
ASIC dates run on your company's own clock
ASIC doesn't use the financial year. Each company has an annual review date, usually the anniversary of registration. ASIC issues an annual statement around that date, and:
- the annual review fee must be paid within two months of the review date to avoid late fees
- directors must pass a solvency resolution within two months of the review date, unless the company has lodged a financial report with ASIC in the previous 12 months
- changes to directors, addresses, shareholders or shares must be notified to ASIC within 28 days
We act as your ASIC registered agent, so the annual statement comes to us. Our ASIC agent drafts the right form and resolution for any company event, and the accountant checks it against your company's records before anything is lodged.
How do we make sure nothing is missed?
A calendar is only useful if someone owns it. Here's how we work.
- One map of your obligations. When you join, we list every entity in your group, every registration (GST, PAYG, FBT, payroll tax, fuel tax credits) and every due date. One engagement covers the whole family group, signed once.
- Books current every day. Because bookkeeping is done daily in Xero, a BAS is a review of work already done. See our accounting and bookkeeping service.
- Checks before lodgement. Our BAS pre-lodgement check agent flags GST coding and label errors, and every figure on the BAS workpaper is traced to the transactions behind it. Our year-end records request agent builds your document list from last year's figures, so you're only asked for what's relevant.
- A person signs off. A qualified accountant reviews and approves every BAS and return. Nothing is lodged and no email is sent without a person approving it.
- You approve on your phone. Returns and declarations are signed on your phone, with no account to create.
- Early warnings. If a payment is going to be hard to make, we tell you before the due date, while there are still options such as a payment plan with the ATO.
All of this runs on Nagaris, the practice platform built for Australian accounting firms. AI agents draft and check; qualified accountants review and sign off. Your data is stored in Australia.
What are the costs of missing a deadline?
Most penalties are small at first and compound. A few are not small at all.
| What's missed | What can happen |
|---|---|
| BAS or return lodged late | Failure to lodge penalty, based on penalty units for each 28-day period late; general interest charge on unpaid amounts (not deductible from 1 July 2025) |
| Super not received within 7 business days of payday | Super guarantee charge, including notional earnings and an administrative uplift of up to 60%, reduced if you make a voluntary disclosure quickly |
| PAYG withholding or super unpaid as a company director | Director penalty notices can make directors personally liable for the unpaid amounts |
| ASIC review fee unpaid | Late fees; after long non-payment ASIC can deregister the company |
| Trust resolution not made by 30 June | Trustee may be taxed at the top rate on income nobody was presently entitled to |
What if you're already behind?
Then the order of operations matters more than speed. Lodge first, even if you can't pay: the penalty for not lodging is separate from the debt, and an unlodged BAS can expose directors personally. Then deal with the debt.
Our overdue tax and ATO debt service is built for this. We bring lodgements up to date, negotiate payment arrangements, and where it's warranted, ask the ATO to remit penalties and interest.
What does it cost?
Compliance work is included in our fixed weekly plans. Compliance Essentials (from $149 per week + GST) covers bookkeeping, BAS lodgements, the company tax return and annual financial statements. Business Insights (from $249 per week + GST) adds weekly payroll for up to 10 staff. Extra entities, such as a family trust or SMSF, are quoted as fixed fees. See our pricing page.
An honest point: if you're an employee with one job and a bank account, you don't need us for your tax return. The ATO's pre-filled myTax will do the job. We're worth it when there's a business, an investment property, shares, crypto, a trust or a company involved.
What should you send us?
- Your ABN, ACN (for companies) and TFNs for each entity
- Your last lodged BAS and last two years of tax returns
- ASIC annual statements and your company register, if you have one
- Payroll details: employees, award, pay cycle, super funds
- Any letters from the ATO, ASIC or a state revenue office
- A list of what you think is overdue, even if you're not sure
"We have been with BPAG for almost a year now and have felt significant improvement with the business, our own knowledge and motivation… BPAG are by far the best." Veronica Thomas, Google review
Frequently asked questions
Do I get more time to lodge if I use a tax agent?
Often, yes. Registered agents have a lodgment program with later due dates for many returns and for quarterly BAS lodged electronically. The concession isn't automatic: you need to be on the agent's client list in time, prior years must be up to date, and some taxpayers (for example those with a large prior-year tax bill) have earlier dates.
What happens if I lodge a BAS or tax return late?
The ATO can apply a failure to lodge penalty, calculated in penalty units for each 28-day period the document is late, and charges general interest on unpaid amounts. Interest charged by the ATO is no longer tax deductible for amounts incurred from 1 July 2025. If you're already late, lodging is still the first step, and the ATO is generally more lenient with people who come forward.
Can you lodge just my tax return and leave the BAS to my bookkeeper?
Yes. Some clients have a bookkeeper they trust and only want us for returns and advice. We'll review the bookkeeper's year-end figures before the return. If we find recurring BAS errors we'll tell you, because they usually cost more to fix later.
Do you handle ASIC for companies you don't do the tax for?
Our ASIC service sits best alongside the tax work, because a company's ASIC records, share register and loan accounts all feed the tax return. If you only need company secretarial help, ask us and we'll tell you whether it makes sense on its own.
What's the earliest I can lodge my individual tax return?
You can lodge from 1 July, but most investment income, managed fund and employer data doesn't arrive in the ATO's pre-fill until later in July or August. Lodging early and amending later costs time. We generally prepare investor returns once the annual tax statements are in.
Official sources
- ATO — Due dates for lodging and paying
- ATO — Registered agent lodgment program 2026–27, due dates by month
- ATO — Activity statement lodgment program dates
- ATO — PAYG withholding and instalments due dates
- ASIC — Annual statements
- ATO — Family trusts: tips for electing entities (GIC remission offer to 31 December 2026)
General information only, current as at 23 October 2026. It is not personal tax, legal or financial product advice and doesn't take your circumstances into account. Talk to us before you act. Where a recommendation needs a licensed financial adviser or a solicitor, we work alongside them.