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What are the most common questions about Australian tax returns?

Here are answers to the 22 questions people ask most often when they have us do their Australian tax return, grouped into four topics: getting started and progress, refunds and tax, income and documents, and deductions. This page is general information based on the 2025-26 income year (1 July 2025 – 30 June 2026). It may vary depending on your personal circumstances, and it is not personal tax advice.

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Getting started and progress

Do I need to log in to myGov or the ATO myself?

No. Once you ask us to handle your return and complete identity verification, a registered tax agent looks up your information at the ATO and lodges on your behalf. You don't need to link myGov. However, if the details the ATO holds don't match the details you entered, you may need to check with the ATO yourself.

How far along is my tax return?

It usually goes through three stages. 1. Waiting for your employer to finalise their payroll reporting (STP) 2. Reviewing and signing the draft return your tax agent prepared 3. Waiting for the outcome after it is lodged with the ATO Your tax agent will let you know which stage you're at.

My employer says they haven't finalised their payroll reporting (STP) yet. Do I have to wait?

Employers must finalise their payroll reporting by 14 July each year, but some are late. Only your employer can do this, so you'll need to ask them directly. If it's urgent, you can lodge first based on your last payslip, but the ATO may take longer to check it, or the amounts may change later and you may need to lodge an amendment.

When will I know my estimated refund?

Once your income details are confirmed, your tax agent prepares the draft return and tells you the estimated refund (or amount payable) at the same time. The amount changes depending on whether you are a resident and whether you are exempt from the Medicare levy, so they will also tell you what basis it was calculated on.

Where and how do I sign?

Once you've checked the draft and told us it's fine, we'll email you an e-signature request for the final documents. If you can't see the email, please check your spam folder too. When you sign online, it comes to us automatically, so you don't need to send it separately. If the signature field won't open on your phone, you can open it on a computer, or print it, sign it by hand and send us a photo.

Is there anything else I need to do after signing?

In most cases, no. Once you've signed, your tax agent lodges the return with the ATO, and then you just wait for the outcome. However, if you're lodging as a resident and claiming a Medicare levy exemption, you need a Medicare Entitlement Statement (MES), so if you haven't applied for one yet, please do.

Can I also lodge returns for last year or the year before?

Yes. Each income year is lodged separately. If the lodgment deadline has passed, a penalty may apply, and if you have tax to pay, interest may also be charged, so it's best to go ahead as soon as you can.

Refunds and tax

Why is my refund small, or why do I have to pay tax? My friend said they got more back.

For 2025-26, income earned on a working holiday visa is taxed at 15% up to $45,000, 30% from $45,001 to $135,000, 37% from $135,001 to $190,000, and 45% on the amount above that. Each employer withholds tax separately, so if you worked in several places and your combined income is over $45,000, you may have extra tax to pay when you lodge. Also, employers that are not registered as working holiday maker employers sometimes withhold at a higher rate rather than 15%. Even among working holiday makers, the rate differs depending on your nationality (people from some countries, such as the UK, Japan and Germany, may be able to use resident tax rates) and whether you are a resident, so your result may differ from your friend's.

When will my refund arrive?

According to the ATO, most returns lodged online are processed within 12 business days. If extra checks are needed and the return is processed manually, it can take up to 30 days. After processing is finished, it can take up to another 5 business days for the money to reach your bank account.

Where and how do I pay extra tax I owe?

You pay it directly to the ATO, not to us. Once your return is processed, the ATO sends you a Notice of Assessment. If your myGov account is linked to the ATO, you'll get it through myGov; otherwise you'll get it by post or through your tax agent. Pay by the due date on the notice using BPAY, a card or another method, and if it's hard to pay all at once, you can apply to the ATO for a payment plan.

Do I have to get an MES to be exempt from the Medicare levy? Can you apply for me?

If you were a foreign resident for the whole year, you are exempt from the Medicare levy without an MES. If you're lodging as a resident and want an exemption for the period you weren't entitled to Medicare benefits, you need a Medicare Entitlement Statement (MES), and all your dependants, such as your spouse, must also qualify for the exemption. You have to apply for the MES yourself through Services Australia; we can't apply on your behalf. In the busy period (July to November) it can take a few weeks to be issued, so please talk to your tax agent about whether you can lodge first without an MES.

Why do I need to enter my spouse's details? Do couples pay tax together?

In Australia, each person lodges their own return, even if you are a couple. Your spouse's details are used for calculations based on family income, such as the Medicare Levy Surcharge and the Medicare levy reduction. If you don't know your spouse's exact income, you can give us a reasonable estimate.

Income and documents

Do I need to send all my payslips?

No. If your employer's payroll reporting is finalised with the ATO ('Tax ready'), you may not need a payslip. Even when one is needed, the last payslip of the financial year from each employer is enough, because the last payslip shows the year-to-date (YTD) totals. The super your employer paid in for you is not included in your income.

My employer didn't report my income, or has closed down. Can I still lodge?

Yes. You can lodge by entering your income from your payslips or your record of wage payments into your bank account. However, processing may take longer while the ATO checks it.

Do I lodge money I earned with an ABN too? Do I need to get a new ABN?

Your wage (TFN) income and ABN income are combined and lodged together in one return. Tax usually isn't withheld from ABN income in advance, so you may have tax to pay when you lodge. If you only have wage income, you don't need to get an ABN.

Deductions

If I don't have receipts, can't I claim deductions? Is anything up to $300 deductible automatically?

No amount is deducted automatically. It must be a work-related expense you actually paid, and you must be able to explain how you worked it out. If your total work-related deductions are $300 or less, you can claim them without receipts. If they are over $300, you need written evidence such as receipts for the whole amount, not just the part above it. Some items, such as car expenses, have separate rules.

Where do I submit my receipts? Are card statements OK?

You don't submit receipts to the ATO; you keep them for 5 years from the date you lodge. You only provide them if the ATO asks. Your tax agent may ask you to upload them to check the amounts. A receipt must show the supplier, the amount, the goods or services bought and the date, and a photo or electronic file is fine. A card or bank statement alone doesn't show what you bought, so in most cases it isn't enough as evidence.

Can I claim the clothes I wear for work?

Ordinary clothes that anyone wears (black pants, jeans, ordinary shoes, office wear and so on) are not deductible, even if your employer tells you to wear them. What is deductible is protective clothing that prevents injury, such as safety boots or cut-resistant pants; clothing used only in your occupation, such as chef's checked pants; and a logo uniform your employer makes compulsory. Black pants or shoes worn with a logo shirt are not part of the uniform.

Can I claim my phone and internet bills?

You can claim the part you used for work. Tell us what you paid over the year and the percentage you used for work; the ATO says to work out that percentage from a record of your use over a representative 4-week period (work calls, texts and data). A phone that cost more than $300 is not deducted all at once in the year you bought it; it is deducted over several years (depreciation). If your employer reimbursed you for a cost, you can't claim that part.

I washed my uniform at home. Can I claim laundry costs?

Yes, if you washed deductible work clothing (protective clothing, occupation-specific clothing or a compulsory logo uniform). The ATO's rate is $1 per load if you wash only work clothes, or 50 cents per load if you wash them with other clothes, multiplied by the number of loads over the year. If your laundry costs are $150 or less, or your total work-related deductions are $300 or less, you can claim without receipts, but you must be able to explain how you worked it out.

Can I claim fuel for commuting, or the cost of buying a car?

Normal commuting costs between home and work are not deductible. Travel between two jobs, or travel during work to a different workplace, may be deductible, and so may carrying heavy equipment that is essential for your work because there is nowhere secure to leave it at the workplace. If it is a car you own or lease, the calculation uses one of two methods: the cents per kilometre method (up to 5,000 km, 88 cents per km for 2025-26), or the logbook method, based on a logbook you actually kept for 12 continuous weeks. A logbook can't be written up later, after the fact. The cost of buying a car is not deducted all at once: the cents per kilometre rate already includes your car expenses, and under the logbook method it is claimed as depreciation in proportion to your work-use percentage.

Can I claim course fees? (cookery school, Certificate III, etc.)

Study may be deductible if it maintains or improves the skills you need in the work you currently earn income from, or if it is likely to increase your income from your current job. Study to get a new job, or study in a field unrelated to your current work, is not deductible. For example, studying hotel management while working in a café is not deductible. A course whose purpose is preparing for a visa or permanent residency, rather than a connection to your current work, is also usually not deductible. Tell us the course name and the work you do now, and your tax agent will check it for you.

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