The ATO is Australia's principal tax collection agency, responsible for administering income tax, GST, superannuation, excise and other federal tax obligations.
The Australian Taxation Office is the government agency responsible for collecting federal taxes and administering tax law in Australia. For businesses, the ATO oversees GST/BAS obligations, PAYG withholding, company and individual income tax, superannuation guarantee compliance, fringe benefits tax and various other levies and taxes. The ATO operates the Business Portal and myGov for online lodgement of BAS, tax returns and other forms. It also runs data-matching programs and audit activities to ensure compliance. Key ATO deadlines include quarterly BAS due dates, annual tax return deadlines and superannuation payment dates. The ATO offers various tools for small businesses including the Small Business Superannuation Clearing House and the Business Activity Statement preparation tools. SortBooks helps Australian businesses with GST by suggesting the right GST code for miscoded transactions and giving a quarterly GST estimate on Growth and above, while BAS is still lodged from Xero.
SortBooks helps with the bookkeeping behind ato (australian taxation office) by connecting to your Xero account and using AI to suggest the right account for transactions sitting in catch-all accounts, learning from your own past coding. Instead of fixing ato (australian taxation office) by hand, you review each suggestion, approve it, and SortBooks updates Xero, GST code included. Then ask the AI CFO about your numbers, using live Xero data.
The BAS is an Australian tax form used to report GST, PAYG withholding, PAYG instalments and other tax obligations to the ATO, typically lodged quarterly.
GST is a broad-based consumption tax applied to most goods and services. Businesses collect GST on sales and claim credits for GST paid on purchases, remitting the net amount to the tax authority.
PAYG (Pay As You Go) withholding is an Australian system where employers withhold tax from employee wages and remit it to the ATO on their behalf.
Superannuation (super) is Australia's mandatory retirement savings system. Employers must contribute a percentage of each eligible employee's earnings to a compliant super fund.
Tax compliance means meeting all your obligations to file tax returns, make payments and maintain records as required by your country's tax laws and tax authority.
Connect Xero, check the AI's suggestions and approve the changes. SortBooks updates Xero for you.