How to Lodge Your BAS Online: 2026–27 Steps and Due Dates
Author
Emmanuel Sarris
Date Published
To lodge your BAS online, sign in to ATO online services (myGov for sole traders, or Online services for business with your myID for companies, trusts and partnerships), go to Lodgments > Activity statements, prepare the statement for the period, check the figures, then complete the declaration and lodge. You can also lodge straight from SBR-enabled accounting software such as Xero, MYOB or QuickBooks, or have a registered tax or BAS agent lodge for you and get extra time. Quarterly BAS is due 28 October, 28 February, 28 April and 28 July (monthly BAS by the 21st of the following month), and lodging late can cost one penalty unit ($364) for each 28 days it's overdue. The right route depends on your business setup, how complex your finances are, and whether you prefer a hands-on approach or want an expert to handle it.
The Three Main Lodgement Methods
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) gives you a few different ways to get your BAS submitted online. Let’s break them down.
Directly via ATO Online Services: This is the most direct, DIY route. If you're a sole trader, you can use Online services for individuals and sole traders through your myGov account linked to the ATO. Companies, trusts and partnerships use Online services for business, which you sign in to with your myID after the business has been linked to it in Relationship Authorisation Manager (RAM). It’s a free option and works well for businesses with straightforward accounts.
Through Your Accounting Software: Many business owners live in their accounting software these days. Platforms like Xero, MYOB, and QuickBooks are enabled with Standard Business Reporting (SBR), which lets you generate and lodge your BAS right from the software you already use for your bookkeeping, cutting down on manual data entry.
Using a Registered Tax or BAS Agent: For a lot of businesses, outsourcing is the smartest move. A registered agent prepares and lodges the BAS for you, which helps ensure accuracy and gives you access to extended due dates when they lodge electronically, a real bonus when you're juggling a million other things.
For many small business owners, using an agent isn't about not being able to do it themselves. It's about efficiency. It frees up their valuable time to focus on actually running and growing the business, rather than getting bogged down in tax compliance.
Comparing Online BAS Lodgement Methods
Not sure which path to take? Here's how the three methods compare.
ATO online services: best for sole traders and businesses with simple, straightforward finances. Key benefit: no cost and direct access to your ATO account information.
Accounting software: best for businesses already using Xero, MYOB or QuickBooks for bookkeeping. Key benefit: efficiency, because lodging directly from your software saves time and reduces data entry errors.
Registered agent: best for busy business owners, companies with complex transactions, or anyone wanting peace of mind. Key benefit: expertise and time savings, plus extended due dates for electronic lodgement.
Ultimately, the best method is the one that makes your life easier and keeps you compliant. Whether you lodge it yourself through a portal or hand it over to a pro, the goal is the same: get it done accurately and on time.
Preparing for a Smooth BAS Lodgement
Before you even think about logging into the ATO portal, a bit of prep work can turn your BAS lodgement from a frantic scramble into a quick, painless task. Think of it like a chef doing their mise en place—getting everything chopped and ready makes the actual cooking process smooth and stress-free. First things first, you need to be crystal clear on what your Business Activity Statement actually reports on. It’s not just one figure; it’s a wrap-up of a few key tax obligations for that period. For most small businesses, this will boil down to:
Goods and Services Tax (GST): This is the GST you’ve charged on your sales, minus any GST you’ve paid on things you bought for the business.
Pay As You Go (PAYG) Withholding: The tax you’ve held back from your employees' wages or from payments to certain contractors.
Pay As You Go (PAYG) Instalments: Think of these as pre-payments towards your business's big annual income tax bill, with the amount calculated by the ATO.
The absolute bedrock of an accurate BAS is good bookkeeping. You simply have to trust your numbers. Having solid ways of record keeping means your sales, expense, and payroll figures are correct long before it’s time to lodge.
Know Your Reporting Cycle and Deadlines
How often you lodge your BAS depends mainly on your business’s GST turnover. A local coffee shop, for example, will almost certainly lodge quarterly. But a larger construction company with GST turnover of $20 million or more? It must report monthly. This frequency sets your deadlines, and the ATO doesn’t see them as flexible. Lodging late can attract a failure-to-lodge penalty of one penalty unit ($364 from 1 July 2026) for each 28 days or part of 28 days the BAS is overdue, up to five units for small businesses, even if you don't owe any tax for that period. The trick is to know your dates and work backwards from there.
So many business owners make the mistake of treating the due date as the day they start working on the BAS. The smart ones have their books reconciled and ready to go days, or even weeks, in advance. This turns the lodgement itself into a simple 15-minute job.
The quarterly dates are the same every year: quarter 1 (July–September) is due 28 October, quarter 2 (October–December) 28 February, quarter 3 (January–March) 28 April and quarter 4 (April–June) 28 July. Monthly BAS is due on the 21st of the following month. If you receive and lodge your quarterly BAS online yourself, you generally get an extra two weeks for quarters 1, 3 and 4 (for example, 11 November instead of 28 October). If a registered tax or BAS agent lodges electronically, the 2026–27 due dates for those quarters are 25 November 2026, 26 May 2027 and (subject to confirmation) 25 August 2027. Our guide to business activity statements and BAS due dates covers the full list. Knowing these dates helps you build a compliance rhythm right into the flow of your business.
Lodging Directly Through ATO Online Services
For many business owners, lodging your own BAS directly with the tax office is the go-to method. It’s free, puts you in the driver's seat, and gives you immediate access to all your tax information without a middleman. The ATO has two online doorways, depending on how your business is set up. If you’re a sole trader, you’ll likely use Online services for individuals and sole traders through your existing myGov account, the same one you might use for your personal tax or Medicare. As long as it's linked to the ATO, you're good to go. For companies, trusts, and partnerships, the ATO has a dedicated portal called **Online services for business** (sole traders can use it too). To get into this one, you'll need a myID (formerly myGovID), and the business must be linked to your myID in Relationship Authorisation Manager (RAM). It’s easy to confuse myID with a regular myGov login, but they are different: myID is the app on your phone that proves who you are, and RAM is where the business authorises you to act on its behalf online.
Navigating the Online Lodgement Process
Once you’re logged in, finding your way around is pretty intuitive. In myGov, select the ATO under Linked services, then Tax, Lodgments and Activity statements. In Online services for business, select Lodgments, then Activity statements. Your current BAS will be listed with its due date, and the ATO pre-fills some information it already holds, such as your PAYG instalment amount and, if you use Single Touch Payroll, your wages and tax withheld. Select Prepare and fill in your key figures. Under Simpler BAS that's total sales (G1), GST on sales (1A) and GST on purchases (1B). For instance, if your retail store had $20,000 in taxable sales (before GST) for the quarter and collected $2,000 in GST, you’d report $22,000 at G1 (G1 includes GST) and $2,000 at 1A. It's just a matter of transferring the figures from your bookkeeping records.
Before you click that final 'submit' button, take a moment for a quick gut check. Do the figures feel right compared to last quarter? A simple double-check can save you from a misplaced decimal or a typo that could cause a real headache down the track.
After you've entered all the necessary figures, you'll see a summary showing whether you need to make a payment to the ATO or are due a refund. Give it one last look-over, complete the declaration and lodge it, then save the receipt ID as your proof of lodgement. If you had nothing to report for the period, you still need to lodge: choose Prepare as nil in Online services for business, or use the ATO's automated phone service on 13 72 26 (you'll need the document ID from your BAS). Spotted a mistake after lodging? You can revise the BAS through the same Activity statements menu (see the FAQs below).
Paying Your BAS
Lodging and paying are separate steps, and any amount owing is due by the same date as the BAS. You can pay by BPAY (biller code 75556, using the payment reference number, or PRN, shown on your BAS), by bank transfer, or by debit or credit card online. Since 1 October 2026 the ATO no longer charges a card payment fee, and it will keep accepting credit cards directly until 30 June 2027; after that, credit cards can only be used through third-party providers, which may charge their own fees (see the Treasury announcement). Allow a few business days for BPAY and bank payments to reach the ATO. If you can't pay in full, lodge on time anyway and contact the ATO about a payment plan.
Using Your Accounting Software for a Pain-Free Lodgement
If you’re already running your business on a platform like Xero, MYOB, or QuickBooks, you’re sitting on the easiest way to lodge your BAS. Honestly, it turns what used to be a manual data-entry chore into a near-automated process. These systems use a technology called Standard Business Reporting (SBR), which is just a fancy way of saying your software can talk directly and securely with the ATO.
As you go about your day-to-day bookkeeping—sending invoices, recording expenses—the software is quietly tallying up the GST in the background. When BAS time rolls around, the numbers are pretty much good to go.
The Typical Software Lodgement Workflow
While every platform looks a bit different, the core steps for lodging your BAS through software are always the same.
Generate the BAS Report: First, you’ll head to the tax or reporting section of your software and tell it to prepare the activity statement for the correct period. The system then pulls together all the data it's been tracking.
Review and Cross-Check: This is the most important part. The software does the heavy lifting, but you still need to be the human who gives it a final sanity check. Does the income look right? Have all your eligible GST credits been included? A quick review now can save a lot of headaches later.
Lodge Directly with the ATO: Once you’re happy with the figures, you'll see an option to lodge electronically. With a few clicks, your BAS is sent securely to the ATO. You don't even have to leave the platform.
Lodging electronically also tends to mean faster processing of any GST refund than lodging on paper, and it works hand-in-hand with other digital reporting like Single Touch Payroll. To see how that fits with your payroll obligations, read our guide to payroll software and Single Touch Payroll.
Time to Call in the Experts? Working with a Tax or BAS Agent
Sometimes, the smartest move you can make for your business is to not do everything yourself. This is especially true when it comes to tax compliance. Handing your BAS over to a registered tax or BAS agent isn't giving up; it's a strategic decision made by countless business owners who'd rather focus on growth than get bogged down in paperwork.
This isn’t about losing control. It's about gaining peace of mind. An expert ensures your figures are accurate, which is your best defence against costly ATO penalties down the track. Plus, one of the biggest perks is that agents often get access to extended lodgement deadlines, giving you some much-needed breathing room when things get hectic.
Finding and Authorising Your Agent
When you're looking for an agent, find someone who genuinely understands your industry and business structure. A one-size-fits-all approach just doesn't cut it. Once you've found the right fit, you'll need to formally authorise them to act on your behalf. If your business has an ABN and isn't a sole trader (for example, a company, trust or partnership), you must first nominate the agent yourself in Online services for business (Profile > Agent details > Agent nominations > Add, using the agent's registered agent number); the agent can then add you to their client list. Sole traders don't need to do this step. If you're unsure how that works, we've got a straightforward guide that explains how to add your tax agent to your myGov account.
Hiring an agent is a proactive step. You're not just offloading a task; you're investing in expert oversight to keep your business financially healthy and compliant, letting you get back to what you do best.
More and more businesses are turning to registered agents because they do more than just lodge the BAS. A good agent will often handle your payroll and Single Touch Payroll reporting too, making sure all your obligations are met accurately and on time. You can see the extended due dates in the ATO's BAS agent lodgment program 2026–27.
Common Questions About Lodging Your BAS Online
Realising you've made a mistake
after
hitting 'submit' is a classic "uh-oh" moment for many business owners. Don't worry, it's usually straightforward to fix. The ATO allows for simple corrections on your
next
activity statement, as long as the error meets certain criteria. Generally, you can correct a mistake on your next BAS if it has:
For errors that understated the GST you owed, a net value of less than $12,500.
Occurred within the specific time limits set by the ATO for corrections.
That's the limit for businesses with GST turnover under $20 million (larger businesses have higher limits), and errors in your favour have no value limit but must be corrected within four years. If the error is larger than that, or if you'd just prefer to amend the original statement, you can simply lodge a revision. You do this through the same portal you used the first time—myGov, Online services for business, or your accounting software. The main thing is to act as soon as you spot the error to keep your records straight.
Lodged your BAS and now you're staring at a bill you can't pay right away? The most critical thing to do is
lodge on time anyway
. This is so important. Lodging on time helps you avoid a 'Failure to Lodge' penalty, which is completely separate from any interest that might build up on the actual debt. Once it's lodged, get in touch with the ATO immediately. They are far more receptive to business owners who are proactive and upfront about their financial situation.
The ATO offers payment plans that let you pay off your debt in manageable instalments. For smaller debts, you can often set one up yourself directly through your online services account. Being honest and proactive shows you’re committed to meeting your obligations, and the ATO appreciates that.
Absolutely. You have complete flexibility to switch between lodging methods. We see this all the time. Many business owners handle their own BAS for most of the year but bring in a BAS agent during really busy periods or for the tricky end-of-year finalisation. When you appoint an agent, they will link your business to their client list with the ATO and take over the lodgement process for you. If you later decide to take back the reins, you just need to let your agent know. Clear communication is the key here to make sure there’s no confusion, no missed deadlines, and definitely no accidental double lodgements.
Navigating BAS compliance can feel complex, but you don't have to figure it all out on your own. The team at
Australia Wide Tax Solutions
provides expert BAS preparation and lodgement services to keep your business on track.
The ATO provides guidance through ato.gov.au, the Small Business Support Line (13 28 66), and Online Services for individuals and businesses. For complex situations, a registered tax agent provides advice tailored to your specific circumstances and professional indemnity protection. You can verify agent registration at the TPB register at tpb.gov.au.
What records do I need to keep for tax purposes in Australia?
Most tax records must be kept for five years from the date of lodgement or the date the transaction occurred, whichever is later. Records must be in English or convertible to English and must be sufficient to explain the income and deductions in your return. The ATO can request records at any time during the retention period.
When do I need a registered tax agent in Australia?
Consider a registered tax agent when your affairs involve multiple income sources, business activity, investment properties, capital gains, or overseas income. Agents extend your lodgement deadline, provide safe harbour protection, and take professional responsibility for the advice given. Verify registration at tpb.gov.au.
How does the ATO calculate penalties for compliance failures?
The failure to lodge penalty is based on penalty units ($364 per unit from 1 July 2026), accruing per 28-day period for late returns and BAS lodgements. Incorrect information penalties range from 25% to 75% of the tax shortfall depending on whether the behaviour was careless, reckless, or intentional. Proactive disclosure before an audit begins typically results in significantly reduced penalties.
What is the difference between tax avoidance and tax minimisation?
Tax minimisation is the legal arrangement of your affairs to reduce tax — claiming all eligible deductions, using appropriate structures, and timing income and expenses. Tax avoidance involves arrangements that technically comply with the law but achieve outcomes parliament did not intend. The ATO can apply Part IVA anti-avoidance rules to cancel benefits from avoidance arrangements.
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