The ATO is giving taxpayers with simple affairs the ‘green light’ to lodge their annual income tax returns.

Their Assistant Commissioner has said that most taxpayers with simple affairs will find the information they need to lodge has now been pre-filled in their tax return. The information they collect from your employers, banks, private health insurers, share registries and other institutions would mostly be ready to go. So, if your financial affairs are fairly straight-forward, they are giving you the ‘green light’ to lodge.

Here are some tips to keep in mind this tax time:

Include all income: If a taxpayer picked up some extra income (e.g., through online activities, the sharing economy, interest from investments, a capital gain from the sale of a property, or received a cash payment for any work), they will need to include this in their tax return

Assess circumstances that occurred this year: If a taxpayer’s job or circumstances have changed this year, it is important they reflect this in their claims. For example, they may have worked at home less in the 2023 income year than in the year before

Records, records, record: To claim a deduction for a work-related expense, taxpayers must have a record to prove it

Wait for notice of assessment: Taxpayers should wait for their notice of assessment before making plans for how they will use any expected tax refund this year

Stay alert to scams: Taxpayers should remember that the ATO will never send them a link to login to the ATO’s online services or ask them to send personal information via social media, email or SMS.

The ATO reminds taxpayers that the outcome of tax returns this year may be different than in previous years, with some people receiving a lower refund than expected, or even a tax bill.

In simple terms, if you don’t receive a refund, it means that you have paid the correct amount of tax throughout the year. If you receive a bill, it may mean that you didn’t pay enough tax.

Taxpayers can reduce their taxable income by making sure they are claiming the deductions that they are entitled to, and they can refer to the 40 occupation guides to help them understand the deductions that are available to them depending on their job.

It might be tempting to inflate your deductions, but if you’re considering this, hit the brakes and remember, the ATO has sophisticated data-matching capabilities which provide them with the clues they need to spot deductions that don’t add up.