ATO on the Hunt for 60,000 TPAR Businesses
The ATO estimates that around 280,000 businesses are required to lodge a taxable payments annual report (TPAR) for the 2019–20 year, following the regime’s extension last year to businesses providing road freight services, information technology services, and security, investigation or surveillance services.
Businesses providing building and construction, cleaning, or courier services are also required to lodge a TPAR.
With the annual 28 August deadline now well overdue, the ATO has confirmed that more than 60,000 businesses have yet to lodge their TPAR, with failure-to-lodge penalties looming.
ATO assistant commissioner Peter Holt has urged these businesses to lodge immediately, noting that the taxable payments reporting system (TPRS) aims to create a level playing field for contractors.
Mr. Holt describes the ATO’s role is to ensure the ‘bubble’ is centered as much as possible to keep things fair for everyone.
Mr. Holt also believes that many more businesses might be captured under the TPRS for the first time ever after COVID-19 forced businesses to pivot to a delivery service model.
This is evident in the many restaurants, cafes, grocery stores, pharmacies and retailers which have begun paying contractors to deliver their products to their customers.
Although these businesses may not have previously needed to lodge a TPAR they will need to lodge, if the total payments for these deliveries or courier services are 10 per cent or more of the total annual business income.
Accountants have also been urged to identify all clients with TPAR obligations after it was reported that the ATO’s automated list of such clients — sent out to tax agents last year — may have been incomplete in some cases.