Tax Scams Australia 2025-26: What the ATO Is Warning About

Australian taxpayers lost $119 million to scams in the first four months of 2025 alone. What makes that figure worse is that the number of total scam reports actually fell during the same period. Scammers are becoming more targeted, more convincing, and more expensive per attack.

ATO impersonation scams alone generated 1,461 reports in March 2026. Phishing losses jumped from $4.6 million in early 2024 to $13.7 million in the same period of 2025, a 197% increase in six months. The fake ATO email that used to arrive with bad grammar and an obvious typo is now indistinguishable from real correspondence.

This guide covers the eight most active tax scams targeting Australians in 2025-26, the specific warning signs the ATO is currently flagging, what to do if you have already been targeted, and how working with a registered tax agent adds a layer of protection most Australians do not realise they are missing.

Why Tax Season Is Peak Scam Season

Tax time creates ideal conditions for fraud. Australians are lodging returns, expecting refunds, corresponding with the ATO and myGov, and sharing Tax File Numbers with employers and tax agents. Scammers design their campaigns around June, July, and August, when inboxes and phones are already full of legitimate ATO correspondence.

The ATO consistently records its highest volumes of scam reports between July and October each year. In 2022-23, SMS scams impersonating the ATO increased by more than 400% year on year, according to the ATO’s latest updates on scams and cyber safety. In 2025, phishing scam losses nearly tripled compared to the same period in 2024.

The Scamwatch data is equally striking: total losses of $119 million in just four months, even as the overall number of reports dropped. Fewer, more convincing scams are doing far more damage per attack.

8 Active Tax Scams in Australia Right Now

Most guides list the same tired examples. The scam landscape in 2025-26 has moved. Here is what the ATO and Scamwatch are currently warning about.

1. ATO Refund Scams

A text message, email, or recorded phone call tells you the ATO has processed a refund, and you need to confirm your details to receive it. This is the oldest and still the most common category.

The ATO does not send unsolicited messages asking you to claim a refund. Legitimate refunds come directly to the bank account registered in your myGov account. You can track them through the ATO app or your registered tax agent. No one contacts you to collect banking details before a refund is released.

Warning signs: A message claiming you are owed a refund you were not expecting. A request for bank account details, credit card numbers, or personal identification. A link to a page asking you to log in.

2. Phishing Emails and SMS Scams (Smishing)

Phishing is the fastest-growing category. ATO impersonation phishing emails surged 300% in 2025 compared to the same period in 2024, according to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA). Common subject lines include “Urgent notification in your account inbox,” “Your refund is ready,” and “Action required: update your details.”

Links in these emails lead to fake myGov or ATO login pages designed to capture your credentials. With your myGov password, scammers can access your linked Centrelink, Medicare, and ATO accounts simultaneously.

Important ATO policy change: Since 2024, the ATO has removed hyperlinks from all outbound unsolicited SMS messages. If you receive an SMS claiming to be from the ATO or myGov that contains a clickable link, it is a scam. Full stop.

Warning signs: Any SMS from “ATO” or “myGov” containing a hyperlink. Urgency language asking you to click, log in, or confirm details. Sender email addresses that are close but not exactly right, for example, no-reply@ato-gov.com instead of @ato.gov.au.

3. ATO Phone Fraud and Impersonation Calls

Callers claim to be ATO officers, provide a name and badge number, and tell you that you owe a tax debt that must be paid immediately or you will be arrested. They may spoof a legitimate ATO phone number so the caller ID looks official.

These calls are entirely fake. The ATO will never threaten arrest over the phone, never demand immediate payment, and never ask you to pay using gift cards, Bitcoin, or wire transfer. Real tax debt notices arrive in writing through your myGov inbox or by post, and the ATO always allows time to respond or dispute.

Warning signs: Immediate payment demands over the phone. Threats of arrest or legal action. Requests for payment via iTunes, Google Play, Steam, JB Hi-Fi, Myer, Woolworths gift cards, cryptocurrency, or ATM cash withdrawal.

4. myGov Credential Theft and Account Takeover

Scammers impersonate government workers and claim your myGov account has been suspended or locked and needs to be reactivated. They walk you through entering your credentials on a fake website or ask you to share your password directly.

With your myGov account compromised, scammers can redirect your ATO refunds, file fraudulent individual tax returns in your name, access your Centrelink payments, and change all contact details linked to your account. The damage extends well beyond a single tax return.

Warning signs: Any call, text, or email asking for your myGov username, password, or two-factor authentication code. Requests to ‘verify’ your myGov account through a link. Claims that your account is locked and needs urgent action.

5. DocuSign Email Scam (Flagged: October 2025)

The ATO flagged this scam variant in October 2025. Scammers send emails designed to look like DocuSign notifications, claiming you have an important tax document waiting for your signature. The link inside leads to a fake document-signing page that captures login credentials or installs malware. For the ATO’s current scam alerts list, see the ATO scam alerts page.

DocuSign is legitimately used by some accounting firms and businesses for electronic signatures. Scammers rely on this familiarity to make the email seem credible enough to click.

Warning signs: Unexpected DocuSign email related to your taxes, especially if you have not recently engaged a professional or lodged paperwork. Signing requests you were not expecting. Sender addresses that do not exactly match @docusign.com.

6. Cryptocurrency Email Scam (Flagged: February 2026)

The ATO flagged this scam in February 2026. Emails claim you have a cryptocurrency tax liability or a pending crypto refund requiring urgent attention. The message links to a fake ATO portal or instructs you to pay a “crypto tax bill” via a digital wallet address. The scam works because genuine cryptocurrency tax obligations are a real and often confusing area for Australian taxpayers.

The ATO treats cryptocurrency as a capital gains tax asset, which makes the scam's premise plausible. Any email asking you to pay a tax bill directly via a digital wallet or directing you to an unfamiliar ATO portal should be treated as fraudulent.

Warning signs: Emails claiming you owe crypto-specific tax with an immediate payment deadline. Requests to pay via a digital wallet address. Links to ATO “crypto portals” you have never accessed or registered for.

7. AI-Generated Voice Calls and Deepfakes

This is the newest and most sophisticated threat. Scammers now use AI voice synthesis to mimic official call centre environments, complete with hold music, background chatter, and professional-sounding officers. Some are using cloned voices of real public figures or known individuals to make the call feel authentic.

The traditional tells, awkward phrasing, poor audio quality, and robotic delivery are largely gone. The defence is no longer about tone detection. It is about process: hang up, look up the ATO's official number yourself, and call back independently before taking any action.

Warning signs: Unsolicited calls from anyone claiming to be from the ATO, regardless of how professional they sound. Any call requesting immediate action, payment, or personal details before you have had a chance to verify the contact.

8. Fake Charity and Investment Scheme Scams

Scammers set up fake charities and investment schemes timed to tax season, knowing Australians are thinking about deductions. A fake charity asks for a donation and provides a receipt you can claim as a deduction. A fake investment promises high, tax-free returns.

The charity version is straightforward: your money goes to the scammer, and the “Deductible Gift Recipient” status the charity claims to hold does not exist. You receive no deduction and lose the donation entirely. Investment scams targeting small businesses cost Australian business owners more than $25 million over the past two years, according to the ATO. These typically promise strategies like “wash sales,” round-robin transactions, or offshore arrangements designed to eliminate tax liability. If you are a small business owner and have been approached with a tax-elimination strategy, treat it as a red flag.

Warning signs: Charities you cannot verify on the ACNC register at acnc.gov.au. Investment opportunities promising to eliminate your tax liability entirely. Anyone presenting a strategy to “leverage” or “optimise” your tax that sounds too good to be true.

7 Practical Steps to Protect Yourself This Tax Season

1. File Your Return Early

Tax identity fraud works by a scammer lodging a false return using your details and diverting the refund before you act. Filing your own return early in July closes that window. The earlier you lodge, the less opportunity there is for someone else to beat you to it.

2. Verify Before You Respond

If you receive unexpected contact claiming to be from the ATO, do not respond through whatever channel was used. End the call or close the email. Then contact the ATO directly using their official number: 1800 008 540. For myGov messages, log in directly at my.gov.au, not through any link in a message. You can also verify or report an ATO scam through the ATO website.

3. Lock Down Your myGov Account

Enable two-factor authentication on your myGov account if you have not already. The ATO strongly recommends this, and myGov has progressively strengthened authentication requirements across the platform. Never share your two-factor code with anyone, including someone claiming to call from the ATO.

4. Protect Your Tax File Number

Your TFN is one of the most valuable pieces of information a scammer can obtain. Do not include it in your CV, share it over email or text, or give it out during an unsolicited phone call. Your TFN should only go to the ATO, your registered tax agent, your employer after you have started work, and your bank for interest reporting purposes.

5. Use a Registered Tax Agent

Working with a registered tax agent means your tax return is lodged through the secure tax agent portal rather than public-facing systems. Your agent has professional obligations to protect your data and can often detect when something has gone wrong before you do. Verify that your tax preparer is registered on the Tax Practitioners Board register at tpb.gov.au before sharing any personal information with them.

6. Keep Devices and Software Updated

Scam websites and phishing emails frequently exploit known security vulnerabilities in outdated browsers and operating systems. Keeping your phone and computer updated, running reputable security software, and restarting your devices at least once a week significantly reduces your exposure.

7. Report Every Suspicious Contact

Reporting scams helps the ATO, Scamwatch, and the Australian Cyber Security Centre track patterns and warn other Australians faster. If you receive a suspicious ATO-related message, forward suspicious emails to reportscams@ato.gov.au, report online through Scamwatch, or call the ATO scam line on 1800 008 540. Even if you did not engage with the scam, reporting it still helps others.

What to Do If You Have Already Been Targeted

Act quickly. The faster you move, the more damage you can limit.

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  Contact your bank immediately and report a possible fraud. Ask them to flag suspicious activity and, if a payment was made, initiate a recall.
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  Change your myGov password and review all linked services for unauthorised changes to bank accounts or contact details.
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  Contact your registered tax agent. They can check whether any returns have been fraudulently lodged in your name and help you work through the ATO's identity theft remediation process.

How The Kalculators Keep Adelaide Clients Protected

Working with a registered tax agent is not just about convenience. It means your tax affairs run through a secure professional portal, your data is handled in accordance with strict privacy obligations under the Tax Agent Services Act, and you have a professional watching your account who can spot irregularities before you do. Our team at The Kalculators is registered agents under the Tax Practitioners Board. We work with individuals, small business owners, and investors, managing everything from bookkeeping to company tax returns across Adelaide and online.

If you have received a suspicious message related to your tax, had your details exposed in a scam, or simply want to lodge this tax season safely, book a consultation with us.

Call (08) 7480 2593, Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM, or visit one of our three Adelaide offices at 182 Salisbury Highway, Salisbury; 315 Prospect Road, Blair Athol; or 280 Main South Road, Morphett Vale. We also serve Murray Bridge, Woodville, Melrose Park, Port Augusta, Prospect, and Brighton online.