BAS (Business Activity Statement)

A BAS (Business Activity Statement) is the form Australian businesses lodge with the ATO reporting GST, PAYG and other tax obligations.

A BAS reports GST collected and paid, PAYG withholding for employees and PAYG instalments toward the year’s income tax — plus, for businesses that owe them, FBT instalments, luxury car tax, wine equalisation tax and fuel tax credits.

“BAS statement” is the everyday way people say it, even though the S already stands for statement — the ATO form itself is simply the business activity statement, prepared each period from the business’s books.

Most small businesses lodge quarterly (GST turnover under $20 million; monthly is required from $20 million). Quarterly statements are due on the 28th of the month after the quarter ends — except the October–December quarter, due 28 February — and registered tax and BAS agents get roughly four extra weeks on most quarters when lodging electronically.

Preparing a BAS is mostly a document chase: bookkeepers need the period’s bank statements, sales invoices, supplier bills and payroll reports from the client before they can reconcile and lodge.

In RequestLoops, a BAS document-collection workflow is a quarterly recurring request: source documents listed as items, reminders escalating from email to SMS, files synced to Drive for the bookkeeper to pick up.

Documents bookkeepers collect for a BAS

• • Bank and credit card statements for the period
• • Sales invoices and till or POS summaries
• • Supplier bills and expense receipts
• • Payroll reports showing wages and PAYG withheld
• • Merchant, loan and lease statements
• • Purchase documents for new assets claiming GST credits

FAQ

What is a BAS statement?

A BAS (business activity statement) is the form Australian businesses lodge with the ATO to report GST, PAYG withholding and PAYG instalments — plus FBT instalments, luxury car tax, wine equalisation tax or fuel tax credits where they apply. “BAS statement” is the common redundant phrasing; it is the same form.

When is a BAS due?

Quarterly BAS lodgments are due on the 28th of the month after each quarter — 28 October, 28 April and 28 July — except the December quarter, which is due 28 February. Monthly lodgers file by the 21st. Registered tax and BAS agents lodging electronically get around four extra weeks on most quarterly due dates.

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