Get your business figures for your tax return

If you're a sole trader, your business goes on your own tax return, in the business and professional items section. The tax time summary works those figures out from your books, so you can copy them across.

How do I get it?Copy Anchor Link

1. Open AccountingReportsAll reports and choose Tax time summary.
2. In Income year, pick the year. It's always 1 July to 30 June.

It's there for sole traders only. Companies, trusts and partnerships lodge their own returns, usually through an accountant.

What does it show?Copy Anchor Link

• Business income and expenses: each label the ATO asks for, like Other business income, Rent expenses and Motor vehicle expenses, in whole dollars.
• Net income or loss from business: income less expenses.
• Other figures: what customers owed you and what you owed suppliers at 30 June, and wages you paid, where your books have them.

Each line has a copy button. Open a line to see the accounts behind it, and choose an account to see every entry in it.

How does it know which label an expense goes on?Copy Anchor Link

From the account's name and type in your chart of accounts, so check the accounts behind each line. If one's on the wrong label, move the amount across when you enter it. That never changes your net figure.

What do I still need to work out?Copy Anchor Link

The summary lists what your books can't know, such as:

• income where tax was withheld, like payments where you didn't quote your ABN
• personal services income
• opening and closing stock, if you hold stock
• the private part of anything you use for both business and personal use
• adding back what isn't deductible, like entertainment and fines

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