r/ato

G’day!

I see a lot of misunderstanding, misinformation, and general bad-taste regarding ATO, and it’s a shame, because a lot of it comes from word-of-mouth embellishments

I previously worked for them, and while I don’t know absolutely everything there is to know, and there’s probably a bit about systems I’ll avoid disclosing, I’d love a chance to answer any questions, big or small, that I can

I won’t set a proper AMA with a schedule, because I always miss those when I had a question, and any questions I don’t know the answer to, I’ll very clearly state that

Either way, if you’ve got a question, I’d love to hear it

Please also keep any opinions respectful, and any information factual, if you feel compelled to share.

The story continues ..

I’ve slowly realised that keeping every single piece of paper isn’t really the same thing as keeping good tax records.

I’m trying to get better at organising things digitally instead of having a drawer full of receipts that I’ll probably never look at again.

How do you guys actually keep your records? And has anyone found a system that they’ve stuck with for more than one tax year?

FYI/Posted this is AusFinance thread too…

Hey iv just seen today that my tax return has been lodged by a tax agent that iv never heard of and never asked for (unauthorised and fraudulently)

My notice of assessment has been finalised and also issued. My refund was sent to the unauthorised tax agents bank account.

It’s been 7 days since this occurred and I didn’t find out until today when I was thinking about lodging it myself.

Iv come to terms with what’s happened and believe my TFN has been leaked. Someone stolen my identity and lodged my tax return via a genuine tax agent. Maybe they have my money now, or maybe the money is still in the tax agents account, idk. I can see the details of the tax agent company that’s lodged on my behalf and it’s a legit franchise company. The tax agent changed my bank details and become my tax agent on record without my consent or knowing. Crazy.

My question is, has anyone experience the same or similar thing where a refund has been issued to an unauthorised or fraudulent bank account??

Will the ATO attempt to recall this money or request a refund from this fraudulent bank account on my behalf?

Will I even get to lodge my real tax return and get my refund ?

Can I get a new tax file number ?

Has anyone experienced similar and received any outcome ? Or is my refund lost for good?

I’ll ring ATO on Monday but its Friday and I have questions on my mind 😕

Thankyou