In this article we cover everything you need to know about BAS – due dates, how it works, lodging your BAS, how to save on BAS payments, what happens when mistakes are made, tips and more.
Next BAS due date: 28 October 2026 (Q1 2026–27, covering July–September 2026). Lodging through creditte as your registered BAS agent extends this deadline to 25 November 2026.
Need help with BAS?
If you’re looking for a BAS agent or accountant to advise you on BAS due dates, handle the lodgment process, or fix errors, reach out to us. Contact us and let us know how we can help.
What is a BAS?
BAS stands for Business Activity Statement. It is a form that needs to be submitted to the ATO if your business is registered for GST.
A business activity statement reports on your:
- GST (Goods and service tax)
- PAYG instalments (Pay as you go)
- PAYG withholding tax
- Other taxes your business may be required to pay (like FBT)
Your BAS statement lets the ATO know how much tax you need to pay or be refunded.
How to lodge a BAS
You can lodge BAS statements online, through a registered tax agent or by mail. Make sure you’re aware of the relevant BAS due dates for your business so that you lodge on time.
Lodging online with the ATO is secure and can be done either via their online services for business site, your MyGov portal if you’re a sole trader, or standard business reporting enabled software.
BAS can be paid via debit or with credit card or BPAY.
It’s a good idea to lodge your BAS even if you’re not in a position to pay it, just to show the ATO that you are making steps to comply and not evading or ignoring your tax obligations. Late payments can be penalised. When lodging online, you may be eligible for an extra two weeks breathing room.
When is BAS due?
BAS payment due dates depend on your reporting cycle, which is determined by your business’ annual GST turnover. Smaller businesses have less activity to report on so their payment dates are either quarterly or annual.
- For a business that has an annual GST turnover of less than 20 million AUD, your reporting cycle will be quarterly, unless the ATO tells you otherwise.
- For a business with an annual GST turnover of 20 million AUD or more you’ll need to lodge your BAS monthly.
- If you’ve decided to register voluntarily for GST and your GST turnover is under 75,000 AUD, you’ll report annually. (This limit is set at 150,000 AUD for not-for-profit organisations.)
For businesses whose GST turnover is less than 20 million AUD your next BAS due date will be the 28th day of the month following the end of the financial quarter. The exception to this is at the end of the second quarter (ending in December) when the reporting deadline is pushed to February.
BAS Quarters
These are the four quarterly BAS due dates:
- Quarter 1: July, August and September. Quarter due date = 28 October
- Quarter 2: October, November and December. Quarter due date = 28 February
- Quarter 3: January, February and March. Quarter due date = 28 April
- Quarter 4: April, May and June. Quarter due date = 28 July
Monthly BAS due dates
Larger businesses in Australia lodge a monthly business activity statement as they tend to have more to report. Lodging BAS more frequently enables them to manage cash flow better without the surprise of a large tax bill every three months.
If your annual GST turnover is over 20 million AUD, your next BAS due date will be the 21st day of the following month. For example your June BAS report will be due on the 21st of July.
Annual BAS due dates
If your business falls into this category your due date for annual GST is 31 October.
>If you aren’t required to lodge a tax return, then the annual BAS due date is 28 February following the annual tax period.
BAS due dates 2026–27
To make things easier for you we’ve broken down the important BAS due dates that you need to remember this year. If you don’t have a tax accountant doing your BAS payments for you, then take these BAS periods and set a reminder in your calendar.
BAS Quarters, 2026–27
| Quarter | Period | Standard due date | Via registered BAS/tax agent |
| Q4 2025–26 | Apr – Jun 2026 | 28 July 2026 | 25 August 2026 |
| Q1 2026–27 | Jul – Sep 2026 | 28 October 2026 | 25 November 2026 |
| Q2 2026–27 | Oct – Dec 2026 | 28 February 2027* | No agent concession, same date for everyone |
| Q3 2026–27 | Jan – Mar 2027 | 28 April 2027 | 26 May 2027 |
| Q4 2026–27 | Apr – Jun 2027 | 28 July 2027 | 25 August 2027 |
*28 February 2027 falls on a Sunday, so the effective due date is Monday 1 March 2027.
The ATO doesn’t offer a lodgment-program extension for the December quarter, since it falls due alongside other year-end obligations. This is the one quarter where lodging through a registered agent doesn’t buy extra time.
If you lodge online yourself rather than through an agent, Q1, Q3 and Q4 each come with a separate two-week extension. This doesn’t apply to Q2, which already carries a built-in extra month.
Monthly BAS, 2026–27
- BAS due date July 2026: 21 August
- BAS due date August 2026: 21 September
- BAS due date September 2026: 21 October
- BAS due date October 2026: 21 November*
- BAS due date November 2026: 21 December
- BAS due date December 2026: 21 January**
- BAS due date January 2027: 21 February***
- BAS due date February 2027: 21 March
- BAS due date March 2027: 21 April
- BAS due date April 2027: 21 May
- BAS due date May 2027: 21 June
- BAS due date June 2027: 21 July
*21 November 2026 falls on a Saturday, so the effective date is Monday 23 November 2026.
**Businesses with GST turnover of 10 million AUD or less, lodging electronically through a registered BAS or tax agent, receive a concession to 21 February 2027 for the December monthly BAS.
***21 February 2027 falls on a Sunday, so the effective date, including the December concession above, is Monday 22 February 2027.
BAS agents
Make sure you lodge your BAS statement on time and that it correctly contains all the information you need to provide the ATO with regarding your GST, PAYG and other activities. This is where a BAS or tax agent can help.
creditte accountants & advisors is a registered tax agent in Brisbane that handles the entire BAS lodgment process – minimizing errors and avoiding penalties for our clients. Our monthly bookkeeping services will keep your business activities in shape, helping you to stay cash flow positive and meet your tax obligations.
If you lodge quarterly, we can generally get you a four-week extension on your BAS lodgment and payment dates.
What happens if BAS is late?
It’s important to lodge BAS on time and with the correct information in order to accurately calculate your tax. Late BAS lodgment can incur a penalty from the ATO, so we recommend lodging your BAS when it’s due, even if you’re unable to pay at that moment.
BAS payment plan
The ATO understands that businesses sometimes face genuine hardship, so if you’re unable to pay BAS contact the ATO or speak to a BAS or tax agent who can help develop a payment plan with you.
The ATO provides a handy BAS payment plan calculator here.
What if I made a mistake on my BAS?
There’s a difference between fixing a mistake on your BAS or making an adjustment.
Mistakes are typically admin errors such as entering the incorrect amount or mistakenly excluding GST from a sale. Adjustments tend to relate to reporting an item that was correct at the time but later changed, such as goods being returned or a cancelled sale.
You can fix mistakes on your BAS when you lodge at the next due date cycle or speak to your tax agent to do it for you.
Working with local bookkeeping services in Brisbane can help you avoid BAS errors and keep your business compliant with the ATO.
How to reduce BAS payments?
Clients have often paid too much due to a few common BAS mistakes.
Common mistake #1 – not claiming all your GST credits
Any GST you pay on goods and services for your business can be claimed as a GST credit on your BAS. A GST credit reduces the amount of GST your business needs to pay on the sales of your goods or services
Common mistake #2 – not paying GST on a cash basis
If you are a small business with an aggregated turnover (your business’s turnover and the turnover of closely associated entities) of less than 10 million AUD, there are two options for paying GST – cash and non-cash (accrual).
With a cash basis, you pay GST in the BAS period when you receive payment from your customers.
Under a non-cash (accruals) basis, you pay GST in the BAS period when you invoice your customers.This may not necessarily be the same BAS period as you receive payment from your customers, especially if you have 30-, 60-or 90-day payment terms.
Paying GST on a cash basis can help with your cash flow because you’re paying the GST when you physically get paid rather than when you issue an invoice.
Common mistake #3 – incorrectly including GST on GST-free sales
Some products and services in Australia are GST exempt. Mostly these relate to exports, food and some medical and health services. If your business sells any GST-exempt products or services, you do not need to pay GST on those sales.
BAS tips
Here’s a few tips to help you with your BAS:
- Develop a system to keep good records in your business – invoices, expenses, wages, stock takes, vehicle logbooks etc. This will make it much simpler to complete your BAS at the due date.
- Check that GST is included on your sales invoices and only claim GST credits if you have tax invoices for purchases of 82.50 AUD (incl. GST) or more.
- Use accounting software, like Xero, to minimize manual errors. These solutions can automatically calculate GST for you and help you keep better records.
- Use the right payment reference number (PRN), also referred to as an EFT code, when making BAS payments to the ATO.
- You can avoid delays on your BAS refund by ensuring that your lodgments are up to date and your banking details are correct.
FAQs
How long does a BAS refund take?
BAS refunds usually take around seven to fourteen working days to be processed. If you have a debt with the ATO, your bank details are not correct or your lodgments are not up to date, your refund may be affected.
Do sole traders have to pay BAS?
Sole traders, like all types of businesses, only have to pay BAS if their GST turnover is higher than 75,000 AUD per annum.
What is BAS excluded?
Goods or services that are BAS excluded are outside of Australia’s Goods and Services Tax legislation, which means they are not subject to 10 percent GST.
The more common transactions are:
- Owner drawings
- Wages and super
- Loan repayments
- Dividends
- Charity donations
- Depreciation
BAS excluded vs GST free?
Items that are BAS excluded are GST free. These are items where there is no GST applied, such as wages and super, bonuses, loan repayments and so on. You should not include BAS excluded items on your business activity statement.
Difference between BAS and tax return?
Your business activity statement calculates the difference between the amount of GST you’ve collected during the BAS period and the GST you’ve paid; to work out how much you need to pay or be refunded by the government. A tax return calculates the tax you need to pay on your business profits over the financial year.
What is the GST turnover threshold for simpler BAS?
Simpler BAS is the default reporting method for small businesses with a GST turnover of less than 10 million AUD. This means that you don’t need to complete a GST calculation worksheet, and if you lodge a paper activity statement or annual GST return, the sections where information is not needed can be left blank.
What dates are BAS due?
BAS due dates depend on your business GST turnover:
- GST turnover of less than 20 million AUD: BAS due date quarterly, on the 28th day of the month following the end of the financial quarter.
- GST turnover of 20 million AUD or more: BAS due date is the 21st day of the following month.
- GST turnover of under 75,000 AUD that has voluntarily registered for GST: BAS due date is 31 October.
What are the BAS due dates for 2026–27?
See the full quarterly and monthly tables above for every 2026–27 due date, including registered agent extensions. Need help staying on top of your BAS obligations? Talk to creditte and we can help you stay on track.
