Advising non-lodgement of a tax return

The financial year runs from 1 July to 30 June. We balance your Family Tax Benefit (FTB) after the financial year ends and you get your last payment. We balance Child Care Subsidy (CCS) payments from mid August.

If you or your partner, if you have one, are not required to lodge a tax return, we need you to tell us and confirm your income details. We use your confirmed income, which is also known as your adjusted taxable income, to balance your payments.

It’s important to know we balance CCS and FTB separately.

Why you may need to lodge a tax return

Sometimes you may need to lodge a tax return, even if you think you don’t need to. You may need to lodge a tax return if you had any of the following:

• taxable income above the tax free threshold
• tax withheld, even if your income is below the tax free threshold
• a child support assessment.

To check if you need to lodge a return, there’s help available.

Use the Do I need to lodge a tax return? tool on the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) website.

If you need to lodge a tax return, it’s important you don’t lodge your tax return too early. If you lodge before your payment information is pre-filled in myTax, you may have to amend your tax return later if you make a mistake.

If you lodge before your information is pre-filled, you’ll need to find, calculate and add the information about your financial situation yourself.

Read more about what you need to do at tax time.

How to tell us about non-lodgement

You need to tell us if you or your partner, if you have one, don’t need to lodge a tax return and confirm any income you got. If you have a Centrelink online account that’s linked to myGov, you can sign in to do this and confirm your income for the financial year.

Sign into myGov

If you don’t have a Centrelink online account or a myGov account, you’ll need to create them.

We have 2 online guides that show you how to advise non-lodgement of a tax return and confirm income. You can choose one of the following:

• Advise non-lodgement of tax return using your Centrelink online account through myGov
• Advise non-lodgement of tax return using your Express Plus Centrelink mobile app.

If you separated from a partner during the year and got CCS, we can’t balance your CCS until income for you and your ex-partner is confirmed. Please call the Centrelink families line if you have any concerns about confirming your ex-partner’s income.

Read more about balancing Child Care Subsidy.

What income to declare when advising non-lodgement

You must tell us all the adjusted taxable income you and your partner got from 1 July to 30 June.

Even if you don’t work for an employer now, you still need to tell us all the income you got from them during the year.

When to tell us

You can advise us of a non-lodgement after the end of each financial year.

It’s best to wait until mid July to tell us. This is so we have time to get any pre-filled income information.

You must tell us within the time limits for CCS and FTB. If you don’t your payments may be reduced or cancelled.

If we don’t accept your non-lodgement advice

Sometimes you’ll provide information or we’ll have information that shows you or your partner, if you have one, may need to lodge a tax return.

If this happens, we’ll let you know that we cannot accept your non-lodgement advice. You or your partner will then need to submit a tax return or a non-lodgement advice with the ATO.