Australian Financial Year Calendar: Key Tax Dates for Business

Every BAS quarter, super payment, STP deadline and tax return date for the 2025-26 Australian financial year, on one page. Bookmark it, check it quarterly, stop Googling the same dates every three months

If you run a business in Australia and employ people, you're juggling at least four separate compliance calendars: BAS lodgement, superannuation contributions, Single Touch Payroll (STP) reporting, and income tax. Add Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT), Taxable Payments Annual Reports (TPAR), and payroll tax if you're above the threshold, and you've got deadlines landing almost every month of the year

This page pulls every key date into one reference. We update it each July when the new financial year starts

BAS due dates for 2025-26 (quarterly)

Most small and medium businesses with Goods and Services Tax (GST) turnover under $20 million lodge quarterly. Each Business Activity Statement (BAS) covers GST collected and paid, Pay As You Go (PAYG) withholding from employee wages, and PAYG instalments if applicable

Q2 is the odd one out. The standard due date already includes a one-month extension (February instead of January), so registered agents don't get additional time. For every other quarter, using a registered BAS agent buys you roughly four extra weeks

If a due date falls on a weekend or public holiday, the deadline shifts to the next business day

BAS due dates for 2025-26 (monthly)

Businesses with GST turnover of $20 million or more must lodge monthly. Some smaller businesses choose monthly lodgement because they're regularly in a GST refund position and want the cash back sooner

Monthly BAS is due on the 21st of the following month. No agent extensions apply to monthly lodgements (with limited exceptions around the December period)

The December exception: BAS agents who lodge the December monthly BAS electronically typically get until 21 February 2026. This aligns with the Q2 quarterly deadline and accounts for the holiday period

Superannuation guarantee due dates

The super guarantee (SG) rate for 2025-26 is 12% of ordinary time earnings (OTE). Contributions must be received by the employee's fund by the quarterly due date, not just sent. If you use a clearing house, allow processing time

Miss the deadline by even one day and you're liable for the super guarantee charge (SGC). The SGC includes the shortfall amount calculated on total salary and wages (not just OTE), 10% annual nominal interest from the start of the quarter, and a $20 administration fee per employee. Critically, the SGC is not tax deductible. On-time super contributions are

STP finalisation

Single Touch Payroll (STP) runs throughout the year with each pay run. But at the end of the financial year, you need to make a finalisation declaration confirming your payroll reporting is complete. This is what makes your employees' income statements "tax ready" in myGov so they can lodge their tax returns

• Arms-length employees: 14 July 2026
• Closely held payees (directors, family members): 30 September 2026

In Xero, finalisation is a few clicks in the Payroll menu once you've confirmed all pay runs for the year are correct. The common mistake is forgetting to finalise terminated employees who left mid-year. They need finalising too

FBT return

Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) runs on its own year: 1 April to 31 March. If your business provides fringe benefits to employees or their associates (company cars, parking, entertainment), you may need to lodge an FBT return

For the FBT year ending 31 March 2026:

• Self-lodge: 21 May 2026
• Tax agent: 25 June 2026

Even if your FBT liability is nil, lodging a return starts the ATO's two-year review clock. Without a lodged return, the review period stays open indefinitely

TPAR

If your business pays contractors in building and construction, cleaning, courier, road freight, IT, or security, you must lodge a Taxable Payments Annual Report (TPAR) with the ATO

Due date: 28 August 2026 (for payments made during 2025-26)

The report covers total payments to each contractor for the year, including their ABN, name, and GST status. Keeping this data clean in Xero throughout the year makes the August deadline straightforward. Scrambling to find contractor details in August does not

Income tax returns

Income tax deadlines depend on who's lodging and whether you use a registered tax agent:

• Self-lodging individuals: 31 October 2025 (for the 2024-25 year)
• Tax agent clients: Various dates through to May 2026, depending on entity type and lodgement history
• Companies and trusts (self-lodging): Generally 31 October 2025, or 28 February 2026 for new registrants

Using a registered tax agent typically extends your deadline significantly, but only if your prior year returns are up to date. Outstanding prior year returns can pull your due date back to 31 October regardless of having an agent

Month-by-month compliance calendar

Here's every key date consolidated into a single timeline. Not all dates apply to every business, but if you employ people and lodge quarterly BAS, most of these are relevant

After 30 June 2026

July 2026 is the busiest compliance month most Australian employers will face. STP finalisation, the final quarterly super payment, Q4 BAS, and the start of Payday Super all land within 28 days. If there's one month to prepare for early, it's that one

What happens if you miss a deadline

The ATO's Failure to Lodge (FTL) penalty for small businesses is currently $330 per 28-day period (or part thereof) that a return or statement is overdue, up to a maximum of five penalty units ($1,650). Medium businesses pay double. On top of that, the General Interest Charge (GIC) accrues daily on any unpaid amounts

Using a registered BAS agent gives you extended deadlines for quarterly BAS and access to the lodgement program. It also means someone is tracking these dates so you don't have to. We manage BAS lodgement for all our bookkeeping clients as part of the monthly service, and our team monitors every deadline on this calendar

This page is updated at the start of each financial year. If you want us to handle the compliance calendar for your business, get in touch