How to Lodge Your Tax Return in Australia: Step-by-Step Guide 2025-26

More than 14 million Australians lodge a tax return each year. Most get a refund. Many claim less than they are entitled to, miss deadlines, or include errors that delay processing. A small number get flagged by the ATO for review.

This guide covers how to lodge your individual tax return in Australia for the 2025-26 financial year, with all correct deadlines, income and deduction rules, and the step-by-step process, whether you use myTax or a registered tax agent. It also covers the 2024-25 return, which is still within the tax agent lodgment window until May 2026.

The 2025-26 return covers income earned between 1 July 2025 and 30 June 2026. myTax opens on 1 July 2026 but most pre-fill data does not arrive until mid-August. For individual tax return services in Adelaide, our team lodges on your behalf and accesses the extended agent deadline.

Key Dates and Deadlines for Your Tax Return

The table below shows both the 2024-25 return (being finalised now) and the 2025-26 return (opening 1 July 2026).

Do You Need to Lodge a Tax Return?

Not everyone is required to lodge. But if you are not sure, it is almost always worth lodging, because it is the only way to receive any tax refund for tax that has already been withheld from your income. Use the ATO's online tool to check if you need to lodge.

You Must Lodge If You:

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  Earned taxable income above the tax-free threshold of $18,200
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  Had any amount of tax withheld from wages, interest, or other income
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  Received government payments (Centrelink, Youth Allowance, JobSeeker) above reporting thresholds
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  Had foreign income from any source
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  Had reportable fringe benefits or reportable employer super contributions
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  Made a capital gain from selling shares, property, or crypto
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  Ran a business as a sole trader or partnership
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  Are an Australian resident for tax purposes and have received any income

You May Not Need to Lodge If You:

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  Earned income entirely below $18,200 AND had no tax withheld AND had no reportable fringe benefits or super contributions
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  Were a non-resident for the full year with no Australian-source income requiring lodgment

If you do not need to lodge, you should submit a Non-Lodgment Advice (NLA) through myGov to notify the ATO. Failure to lodge when required or failure to submit an NLA when not required can both trigger ATO follow-up.

What You Need Before You Start

Getting organised before you open myTax or meet with your tax agent saves time and prevents the most common errors.

Access and Identity

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  myGov account: free to create at my.gov.au. Must be linked to the ATO before you can use myTax.
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  Tax File Number (TFN): you need this to link myGov to the ATO. If you have lost your TFN, you can find it on a prior tax return, myGov, the ATO app, or a notice from the ATO.
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  Bank account details: BSB and account number for your refund. The ATO deposits refunds directly.

Income Documents

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  Income statement (formerly PAYG payment summary): your employer submits this electronically. It will show as 'Tax ready' in myGov, usually by late July or mid-August. Do not lodge before it shows as Tax ready.
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  Bank interest statements: your bank reports interest to the ATO, but cross-check with your own records.
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  Dividend statements: from any shares or managed funds held during the year.
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  Centrelink payment summary: if you received government payments, Services Australia reports this automatically.
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  Foreign income records: any income earned overseas, including foreign pensions and investment returns.
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  Capital gains records: contracts of sale and purchase for any assets sold during the year, including shares and crypto.
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  Private health insurance statement: your insurer reports this to the ATO for the Medicare Levy Surcharge calculation.

Deduction Records

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  Receipts for work-related expenses: if claiming more than $300 total, you need written evidence for each item. Under $300, you can claim without receipts but the ATO may still ask you to substantiate.
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  Vehicle logbook: if claiming car expenses using the logbook method (needed if claiming more than 5,000 km or wanting to claim the actual cost percentage).
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  Home office records: hours worked at home. The 70 cents/hour fixed rate requires a diary or timesheet. Estimates are not accepted.
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  Donation receipts: only donations to Deductible Gift Recipients (DGRs) are deductible. Keep the receipt showing the charity's DGR status.
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  Tax agent invoice: your registered tax agent’s fee from the previous year is deductible in the current year's return.

Our individual tax return checklist covers the complete document list tailored to your employment and personal situation.

Your Options for Lodging a Tax Return in Australia

Option 1: Self-Lodge via myTax (Free, Online)

myTax is the ATO’s free online tax return system, accessed through your myGov account. It is the fastest and most common method for Australians with straightforward tax affairs. Pre-filled information from your employer, bank, and government agencies is automatically loaded into the system. You review, add anything that is missing, and submit.

Self-lodge via the ATO's myTax portal by 2 November 2026. Refunds from online lodgments are typically processed within 2-4 weeks.

Option 2: Lodge with a Registered Tax Agent

A registered tax agent prepares and lodges your return on your behalf. The key advantages over self-lodging: extended deadline (typically 15 May 2027 instead of 2 November 2026), professional review to maximise your deductions, and representation if the ATO queries your return.

To access the extended deadline, you must be registered as a client with your agent before 31 October 2026. Contacting the agent for the first time in April 2027 does not entitle you to the extension. Our individual tax return services in Adelaide include registration, preparation, lodgment, and ATO correspondence.

Option 3: Tax Help Program

The ATO's Tax Help program provides free assistance from accredited volunteers for individuals with simple tax affairs and income below $60,000. Available from July to October each year. Suitable for straightforward returns with minimal deductions.

Option 4: Paper Return

Paper returns can be requested from the ATO by calling 13 28 61. Paper returns take 10 weeks or more to process and should only be used if you cannot access myTax and do not have a tax agent. The deadline is the same as the self-lodge deadline.

Step-by-Step: How to Lodge via myTax

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  Create or log in to myGov (my.gov.au) and link it to the ATO if you have not already. You will need your TFN, bank account details, and answers to ATO verification questions to link your account.
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  Wait for your income statement to show as 'Tax ready. Do not lodge in early July. Your employer’s data, bank interest, and government payments are progressively pre-filled through July and August. Check the status in myGov before starting.
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  Open myTax in the ATO section of myGov. Select 'Prepare return' for the 2025-26 year.
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  Review all pre-filled income. Cross-check every pre-filled amount against your own records. The ATO receives data from many sources. If they know about income you have not declared, that is an audit trigger. If they have pre-filled income incorrectly, you need to correct it.
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  Add any income not pre-filled. Foreign income, crypto disposals, capital gains, rental income, and sharing economy income are not usually pre-filled and must be entered manually.
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  Enter your deductions. Use the deduction sections to claim work-related expenses, home office hours, vehicle expenses, investment expenses, donations, and the prior year’s tax agent fee. Be accurate. Inflated or unsupported claims are the most common audit trigger for individuals.
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  Review the estimate. myTax will calculate your estimated refund or amount owing before you submit. Check that it makes sense given your income and deductions. If the figure seems wrong, review your entries before lodging.
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  Confirm bank details and submit. Verify the bank account shown is correct. Submit. You will receive an immediate receipt of lodgment. The ATO will process your return and deposit any refund within 2-4 weeks in most cases.

Income You Must Declare in Your 2025-26 Tax Return

The ATO receives data from hundreds of thousands of sources and cross-matches it against lodged returns. Income the ATO knows about but that you have not declared is one of the most reliable ways to receive a review letter.

Employment Income

Your salary, wages, allowances, and bonuses from all employers during the year. Your income statement (formerly PAYG payment summary) shows the gross income and tax withheld. All must be declared even if you changed jobs during the year.

Investment Income

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  Bank interest: all interest received on savings accounts, term deposits, and offset accounts.
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  Dividends: including franking credits. Franked dividends must be grossed up to include the imputed company tax, and the franking credit is then applied as an offset.
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  Rental income: gross rental receipts, with deductible expenses including interest, rates, property management fees, repairs, and depreciation claimed separately. See our tax returns for the rental property investors guide for the full list.
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  Capital gains: net capital gain from disposing of shares, property, crypto, or other assets. Apply the 50% CGT discount if you held the asset for more than 12 months (noting the 2026 budget changes this from 1 July 2027 for new standard investments).

Other Income You Must Declare

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  Government payments: JobSeeker, Youth Allowance, Parenting Payment, and similar Centrelink payments are taxable above thresholds.
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  Sharing economy income: Uber and rideshare earnings, Airbnb and short-term rental income, Airtasker and task-based income, and similar platforms. ATO data matching now covers all major platforms
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  Cryptocurrency: disposal of crypto assets creates a capital gain or loss. ATO has data-sharing agreements with major Australian exchanges. Unreported crypto gains are a growing audit focus.
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  Foreign income: wages, pensions, interest, and dividends from overseas sources. Foreign tax already paid may be creditable against your Australian tax liability.

Deductions You Can Claim

Work-Related Expenses

The three rules for work-related deductions:

(1) You must have spent the money yourself and not been reimbursed.
(2) It must be directly related to earning your income
(3) You must have a record.

The ATO applies benchmarks for common claims and automatically reviews returns where individual deductions exceed industry medians for your occupation.

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  Vehicle and travel: use the cents-per-kilometre method (88 cents per km, 2025-26) for up to 5,000 km of work-related travel, or the logbook method for the actual percentage of business use on any distance.
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  Home office: the fixed rate method is 70 cents per hour for all eligible hours worked at home. You must record hours in a diary or timesheet. The actual cost method requires tracking all individual running cost components.
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  Uniforms and protective clothing: occupation-specific uniforms, protective clothing, and laundry expenses for work clothing. Generic suits, jeans, or office attire are not deductible
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  Tools and equipment: work tools and equipment. Items under $300 are immediately deductible. Items over $300 must be depreciated over their effective life unless the instant asset write-off applies (if you operate a business).
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  Self-education: courses, textbooks, and study materials that maintain or improve skills for your current work. Education for a new career path is not deductible.

Other Deductible Expenses

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  Gifts and donations: donations of $2 or more to registered Deductible Gift Recipients. Cash, cheque, or card. Buying raffle tickets or attending charity dinners does not count.
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  Investment expenses: interest on money borrowed to earn investment income, account fees for investment accounts, and advice fees directly related to investment income.
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  Cost of managing tax affairs: your registered tax agent’s fee from the prior year’s return (the 2024-25 fee is deductible in your 2025-26 return). Tax return software. Travel to visit your tax agent.

2025-26 Individual Income Tax Rates

All Australian residents pay income tax at the following marginal rates for the 2025-26 year.

What's New and What's Coming for Australian Tax Returns

2025-26: The Return You're Lodging Now

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  16% second bracket rate: applies for the second consecutive year. Income from $18,201 to $45,000 taxed at 16% (previously 19% before 1 July 2024).
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  Work from home 70 cents/hour: the fixed rate applies for the full 2025-26 year. Records of hours required (diary, timesheet). No estimation accepted.
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  Crypto reporting: the ATO's data-matching with Australian crypto exchanges is now mature. Unreported crypto transactions are a priority audit area.
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  Short-term rental platforms: Airbnb, Stayz, and similar platforms now report host earnings to the ATO. All short-term rental income must be declared.

2026-27: Coming Next Year

Common Mistakes That Attract ATO Attention

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  Lodging before your income statement is 'Tax ready': if you lodge in early July before employer data is confirmed, you may be missing pre-filled income, leading to a discrepancy the ATO will flag later.
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  Overclaiming home office hours: the ATO cross-checks WFH claims against employment type, industry, and your own prior year claims. Sudden large increases trigger review.
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  Claiming private expenses as work-related: gym memberships, regular commuting, general clothing, and meals are not deductible regardless of how work-adjacent they feel.
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  Forgetting to declare all income: the ATO receives data from employers, banks, Centrelink, health funds, crypto exchanges, and sharing economy platforms. What they know and what you declare are cross-matched.
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  Incorrectly classifying capital gains: selling shares or crypto at a loss and not offsetting capital gains with capital losses, or applying the 50% discount incorrectly.
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  Missing the deadline without a tax agent: the ATO begins issuing failure-to-lodge penalties ($330 per 28-day period) after the 2 November 2026 self-lodge deadline. If you think you have missed it, contact a tax agent immediately.

If you have already lodged and believe you missed deductions or made an error, our second look assessment service reviews lodged returns and lodges an amendment where deductions were missed.

Lodge With Confidence Through The Kalculators

Our registered tax agents in Adelaide prepare and lodge individual tax returns for workers, property investors, sole traders, and retirees. When you lodge through us, you access the extended deadline (typically 15 May 2027 instead of 2 November 2026), a professional review of every deduction, and direct correspondence with the ATO if questions arise.

We also work with online tax return lodgment clients across all of South Australia, so you do not need to visit an office to use our registered agent services.

Call (08) 7480 2593, Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM, or visit our offices at 182 Salisbury Highway, Salisbury; 315 Prospect Road, Blair Athol; or 280 Main South Road, Morphett Vale. Online services for Murray Bridge, Woodville, Melrose Park, Port Augusta, Prospect, and Brighton via info@thekalculators.com.au.