Activity statements for clients
Prepare a client's BAS or IAS from their books and pay runs, check it, mark it ready and record it as lodged.
- Pick a period
- Prepare from books
- Check figures
- Mark ready
- Record as lodged
An activity statement is the form a business sends the ATO each month or quarter. A BAS (business activity statement) reports GST, wages and tax withheld. An IAS (instalment activity statement) is the shorter one for clients not registered for GST.
How do I prepare one?
- Open the client and go to TaxActivity statements.
- Pick the Financial year.
- Find the period and choose Prepare. Already started? Choose Open.
No periods listed? Go to the client's WorkObligations and choose Generate suggestions. The client needs to be registered for GST with a monthly or quarterly cycle.
What does the period list show?
Each period has its Type (BAS or IAS), the Due date and the Status: Not started, Draft, Ready or Lodged. The Net (9) column fills in once a statement is lodged.
The year picker here is shared with PAYG instalments, so changing it on one changes it on the other.
What's on the statement?
- GST: total sales, export and other GST-free sales, capital and non-capital purchases, and GST on sales and GST on purchases.
- PAYG withholding: wages, tax withheld from them, and tax withheld where no ABN was quoted.
- PAYG instalment: PAYG income tax instalment.
- Summary: what the client owes the ATO, what the ATO owes them, and the net amount.
The totals in bold are always worked out from the lines above, so you can't type over them. Fuel tax credits aren't on the form yet.
Where do the figures come from?
- GST comes from the client's books for the period, by transaction date. Where each line has its own tax code, it's the GST actually charged. Where books are coded by account only, it's worked out from the accounts coded for GST.
- Wages and tax withheld come from pay runs paid in the period.
- The PAYG instalment comes from the PAYG instalment worksheet, when the statement covers exactly one quarter.
If the client doesn't keep those in Billbook, type the figures in. You can type over any figure, and Billbook shows what it worked out next to your change.
To undo a change, clear the box and choose Save. The worked-out figure comes back.
A client not marked as registered for GST shows Client isn’t marked as registered for GST. You can still prepare a statement.
How do I finish it?
- Choose Save after any changes.
- Choose Mark ready when it's checked. Reopen takes it back to draft.
- Lodge it in Online services for agents, then choose Record as lodged and enter the Date lodged and ATO receipt number.
Lodging straight from Billbook Coming soon comes later.
Until it's lodged, the figures update as the client's books change. Recording it as lodged freezes them.
A lodged statement shows Locked and can't be reopened or deleted. Fix a mistake on the next statement or with the ATO.
Who can do what?
Anyone who can see the client can choose Open to view a statement. Preparing, saving and reopening need the tax permission. Recording one as lodged needs the lodging permission, which partners have.
Next
PAYG instalments
Work out a client's quarterly PAYG instalment by the ATO's rate or amount method, and vary it when income changes.
Keep a client's ATO details ready for lodging
Record a client's TFN, date of birth, occupation, refund account and ATO agent link, so nothing holds up their return.
Work in a client's books
Connect to a business that keeps its books in Billbook, then reconcile, review and report on them from the client's page.
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