Millions of Australians have just a few hours left to meet a crucial tax deadline in order to avoid having to fork out hundreds of dollars in fines.
Those planning on lodging their own tax return must have it done by Monday, October 31, or be prepared to be slugged with a Failure To Lodge penalty worth $222.
The penalty will multiply up to five times for every 28 days it is overdue, making the maximum applicable penalty a whopping $1110.
The penalty is normally applied automatically, but typically on returns with either a nil result or one that generates a refund.
The Australian Taxation Office will sometimes, however, remit penalties where it is “fair and reasonable” to do so, like in the event of natural disasters or illness.
For Australians unfortunate enough to receive a tax bill, payments will need to be paid by November 21.
Interest would be applied to owed amounts not paid by the deadline, the ATO has warned.
Those who have engaged a tax agent to sort their returns out on their behalf will have an extension on getting their document submitted.
By registering with a tax agent by October 31, the deadline will get blown out to May 15, 2023.
While tax agents work to a different schedule, those seeking to engage one still need to get in contact with them by October 31 to arrange for their return to be done.
The ATO earlier warned Australians to contact an agent as soon as possible if they were having difficulty with their return.
The government agency said about $20 billion of expenses were claimed by about 8.5 million Australians every year.
The average expense is about $3000, while the average refund is about $2800.
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