Instalment Activity Statements

Stress less about your IAS

At Hatcher, we support a broad range of clients to fulfill their tax reporting obligations. As a business owner, you’ve probably heard of BAS (Business Activity Statements), but may have less experience dealing with IAS (Instalment Activity Statements).

What is an instalment activity statement?

Hatcher can help you correctly prepare and submit your IAS. In short, an Installment Activity Statement (IAS) is a type of tax reporting required by the ATO. The IAS is essentially a pre-printed form that should be completed by the following businesses:

Businesses that are not registered for GST should complete regular IAS reporting.
Businesses that prepare BAS quarterly but still remit their PAYG withholding tax monthly must also submit an IAS. (Businesses of this type are known as ‘medium withholders’, more on this below)
In some cases, trustee accounts and individually run sole trader businesses should also complete an IAS.

What does an instalment activity statement include?

Think of an IAS as the ‘BAS equivalent’ for businesses that are not registered for GST. With that in mind, it’s useful to know that IAS will summarise the following info about your business:

PAYG income tax instalments
PAYG withholding taxes
ABN withholding taxes
FBT fringe benefit taxes (where applicable)

By regularly taking stock of the taxes your business has collected and paid, the ATO recognises that you’re less likely to experience ‘bill shock’ at the end of the financial year.

How are instalment activity statements completed?

The ATO will prompt eligible businesses to complete their IAS ahead of the applicable due dates, so you have plenty of time to gather the information needed. Chat to our team if you think you may be required to complete an IAS, and are feeling unsure where to begin.

Usually, the ATO helps to give businesses a head-start on their IAS reporting, and tends to pre-fill key details such as your entity name, personal information, and so forth.

Despite a push by the ATO to move away from paper-based records, most IAS notices are still printed and completed by hand. That said, some businesses are in fact required to submit IAS electronically, as we’ll outline below.

When should I submit my instalment activity statement?

This answer usually depends on the size of tax ‘withholder’ your business can be described as. The ATO recognises the following thresholds:

Small Withholders

Withhold $25,000 in taxes or less each year
Report and pay PAYG on IAS quarterly

Medium Withholders

Withhold more than $25,000 in taxes each year
Report and pay PAYG on IAS monthly

Large Withholders

Withhold more than $1 million in taxes each year
Report and pay PAYG electronically twice each week

FAQs

While most Single Touch Payroll (STP) systems will submit information about your business’ gross wages and related tax withholdings, you are still required to complete a formal IAS notice.

That said, there are some STP systems that can help to pre-fill your IAS and reduce the possibility of calculating errors.
Just to keep you on your toes, the answer is yes! Some businesses will be required to file a combination of IAS and BAS notices. This can feel like a complex process, so ask our team for more information.
At Hatcher, we’ve got the scoop on filing your IAS, BAS, and other tax reporting obligations. Our team of experts can help support your ongoing business needs. When it comes to IAS, we recommend keeping all your financial records up-to-date and readily accessible.

To avoid admin headaches and last minute panics, it’s always advisable to stay on top of your required financial reporting and tax obligations. Keep copies of all the necessary paperwork so that you can refer back to previous information, or show the ATO if requested.

Disclaimer: Hatcher Advisory and its subsidiaries, together with its owners, managers and employees have endeavoured to ensure the information on this website is accurate. However, you must undertake your own research and seek advice from your financial advisor, broker or accountant to ascertain its application to your specific circumstances. We do not take responsibility for any outcomes based on this material.