ATO hands NFPs 5-month extension to lodge self-reviews
The Tax Office has extended the October deadline to March 2025 amid concerns over the sector’s ability to meet the new rules.
The ATO has extended the deadline for NFPs to lodge mandatory self-reviews by five months, giving the organisations vital breathing room to adjust to recently introduced rules that now determine their tax-exempt status.
In a statement to Accountants Daily, a spokesperson confirmed the ATO had pushed back the 31 October 2024 deadline for self-review returns to 31 March 2025.
“The decision to provide additional time to lodge up until 31 March 2025 for the 2023-24 financial year was made recently to assist NFPs that need more time to lodge their return using Online services or the self-help phone service,” they said.
The reporting rules, announced in 2021, apply to an estimated 157,000 non-charitable organisations across the country with ABNs.
It requires them to lodge an annual self-review between 1 July and 31 October 2024 for the past financial year to obtain or retain their income tax exemption.
However, concerns over their ability to meet the new requirements have been raised among sector advocates.
In a recent Senate committee hearing, Liberal Senator Dean Smith noted the rules affected “volunteers … people who have held positions for a very long time in their organisation and might not even hold positions anymore”.
NFPs had also previously described the obligations as a “ticking time bomb” threatening their tax-exempt status and viability.
In response, ATO second commissioner Jeremy Hirschhorn urged calm among NFPs. “My first piece of advice would be not to panic, to be calm and to approach this calmly,” Hirschhorn said.
He said the ATO’s focus would be on education and support instead of enforcement during a new regime. “At the start of every regime, but particularly a regime which affects the charity sector, our focus is around education and support, not around enforcement.”
The ATO said letters would be sent shortly to non-charitable NFPs to notify their self-review return was ready to lodge using its online services or the self-help phone service.
It would also advise them that the five-month extension would be available for those that needed more time.
The extension would apply automatically, the ATO said, meaning NFPs would not need to contact the ATO for approval.
“NFPs don’t need to contact the ATO to receive this extra time, as it forms part of the ATO’s transitional support arrangements,” the spokesperson said.
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