Can You Lodge Your Tax Return Early in Australia?

Yes, you can lodge your Australian tax return from 1 July each year, as soon as the income year ends. Tax season opens on 1 July and myTax becomes available through myGov from that date. However, the ATO consistently warns against lodging in the first week or two of July, and for good reason: most of the income data that pre-fills your tax return has not yet been reported by the time you try to lodge.

The practical question is not whether you can lodge early, but whether you should - and if so, how early is too early for your specific income situation. This guide explains when ATO income pre-fill data becomes available, what risks come with lodging before it does, and the ideal timing for different types of income.

If you are not sure whether you need to lodge a tax return at all, see our guide to who needs to lodge an Australian tax return.

When Does Australian Tax Season Open?

The Australian income year runs from 1 July to 30 June. As soon as 30 June passes, you can theoretically lodge your return for that income year. myTax via myGov opens from 1 July.

However, 1 July is the earliest possible date, not the recommended one. The reason the ATO and most registered tax agents recommend waiting is that the data that pre-fills your return, including your employer income, government payments, bank interest, and investment income, is not all available on 1 July. Lodging before this data appears may mean you miss income sources, leading to errors, underpayment, and the cost of lodging an amended return later.

Why the ATO Warns Against Lodging Too Early

The ATO issues an annual reminder not to lodge too early for a specific reason: employer income statements submitted through Single Touch Payroll (STP) are not always finalised on 1 July. Employers have until 14 July to finalise their STP data for the income year that just ended.

If you lodge your tax return before your employer has finalised your income statement, your return may reflect incorrect or incomplete income figures. If the ATO subsequently receives updated STP data from your employer showing higher income than what you declared, it will adjust your assessment, potentially resulting in a tax debt. You may also need to pay an amendment fee if a registered tax agent has to correct the error.

The same issue applies to other pre-filled data. Banks have until 31 July to report interest earned on your accounts. Share registries typically report dividend income between July and September. Private health insurance data is usually loaded by mid-July. If any of these apply to your situation and you lodge on 2 July, your return will be missing that pre-filled data.

What Information Is Pre-Filled in Your Tax Return?

When you open your myTax return, the ATO pre-populates certain fields with data it has received from third parties. This is what makes the online return process faster than a manual paper return. The pre-filled information includes:

The Best Time to Lodge: By Income Type

The right time to lodge depends on your specific income situation:

Benefits of Lodging Your Tax Return Early

There are genuine reasons to lodge early once your income data is ready:

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  Faster refund: the ATO processes electronically lodged returns within two weeks in most cases. The earlier you lodge a correct return, the earlier any refund arrives. Most refunds for returns lodged in late July or August are processed by mid-August.
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  Get it done before life gets busy: lodging in July or August means your tax return is complete before the end-of-year rush when accountants are at their busiest and processing times may be longer.
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  Identify any tax debt early: if you owe tax rather than receiving a refund, knowing early gives you more time to plan for the payment before the due date (which is generally the same as the lodgment deadline: 31 October if self-lodging, or up to 15 May the following year if using a tax agent).
• 
  Peace of mind: for most people, the tax return is a source of low-level background stress from July to October. Completing it in July or August removes that from your mental load for the rest of the year.

Important: lodging early does not give you a discount, early-bird benefit, or any other advantage with the ATO beyond the benefits listed above. The ATO does not reward early lodgment with any form of bonus. The only benefit is operational: faster processing of a correct return.

Risks of Lodging Before Your Data Is Ready

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  Missing income: if you lodge before your employer has finalised your income statement, your declared income may be lower than your actual income. The ATO will reconcile this automatically and issue an amended assessment.
• 
  Amendment costs: if a registered tax agent has to lodge an amendment on your behalf because you lodged too early and missed income, you will pay for that additional work.
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  Incorrect offsets or deductions: some offsets are income-tested. If you lodge before all income is confirmed and your total income turns out to be higher than calculated, an offset you claimed may be reduced or eliminated.
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  Penalty in some circumstances: if the ATO determines that you deliberately understated income, even if as a result of lodging before data was finalised, it may raise a penalty. Inadvertent errors are generally treated more leniently, but an amendment still creates administrative work and potential interest on any underpaid tax amount.

How to Lodge Your Tax Return Early

Option 1 - myTax via myGov (self-lodge): Open the ATO section in myGov, select ‘Lodge a tax return’, and complete the return using the pre-filled data. Check that your income statement shows ‘Tax ready’ before starting. Suitable for straightforward employment income and simple deductions. See the ATO’s myTax guide for the current lodgment steps.

Option 2 - Through a registered tax agent: Book a July appointment with your registered tax agent. They will confirm that all income data is finalised before lodging, identify any deductions or offsets you may have missed, and lodge the return electronically with the ATO. Using a tax agent also gives you access to the extended lodgment deadline of up to 15 May the following year, if needed.

Our individual tax return service in Adelaide is available from July each year. See our tax return checklist to prepare your documents before your appointment.

What Happened to the Low Middle Income Tax Offset (LMITO)?

The LMITO provided up to $1,500 to eligible low- to middle-income earners. Because it was paid as part of the annual tax return, many taxpayers experienced a noticeable reduction in their refund from their 2022-23 returns onwards, as the LMITO was no longer applied.

If you are searching for ‘LMITO 2024’ or ‘LMITO 2025’, wondering whether it still applies: it does not. The offset ended in 2021-22 and has not been reintroduced. The Low Income Tax Offset (LITO) is a separate, permanent offset for low-income earners (up to $700 for incomes up to $37,500) that continues to apply. The Stage 3 tax cuts introduced from 2024-25 adjusted the income tax brackets directly rather than using offset mechanisms.

What to Prepare Before Lodging Your Tax Return

Having these ready before you open myTax or contact your tax agent makes the process much faster:

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  Income statement: confirm it shows ‘Tax ready’ in myGov before lodging
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  Payment summaries or income statements: for any employers who did not use STP (rare from 2021 onward, but can occur)
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  Bank interest statements: if lodging after August, check your bank’s annual interest statement
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  Dividend statements: if you own shares, you will receive annual dividend and tax credit statements from share registries
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  Work-related expense receipts: for any deductions you are claiming (clothing, tools, professional memberships, self-education, etc.)
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  Working from home records: diary or log of WFH hours (for the fixed rate method at 70 cents/hour) or actual records of running costs (actual cost method)
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  Rental property income and expenses: rental income received, interest on property loan, council rates, repairs, property management fees, depreciation schedule
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  Private health insurance certificate: if claiming the private health rebate or if you had to pay the Medicare Levy Surcharge
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  HECS-HELP or other study loan balance: the ATO calculates compulsory repayments automatically if you are above the threshold, but it is useful to know your balance

For a complete checklist, see our tax return preparation checklist.

How The Kalculators Can Help

Our registered tax agents in Adelaide open bookings from 1 July each year. We confirm all pre-fill data is finalised before lodging, identify every deduction and offset you are entitled to, and lodge electronically with the ATO. Using a registered tax agent means you receive the extended lodgment deadline of up to 15 May the following year if needed, as well as professional accountability for the return.

For returns with only employment income, we can often turn your return around within a few days of your appointment. Returns with rental property, capital gains, share income, or business income take a little longer, depending on record-keeping.