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TPAR 2026: What Australian Small Businesses Need to Lodge by 28 August

TPAR taxable payments annual report​

If your business pays contractors in construction, cleaning, IT, courier, road freight, or security services, TPAR 2026 is likely on your compliance calendar. The Taxable Payments Annual Report for the 2025–26 financial year is due for lodgement with the ATO by 28 August 2026. Missing the TPAR 2026 due date can mean penalties, even if you owe no extra tax.

This guide breaks down who needs to lodge, what to report, and how to avoid the last-minute scramble.

What is the Taxable Payments Annual Report (TPAR)?

The Taxable Payments Annual Report (TPAR) is an annual report certain businesses lodge with the ATO, detailing payments made to contractors for services during the financial year. It sits separately from your BAS. Where your BAS covers GST and PAYG obligations, TPAR exists purely so the ATO can cross-check what you paid contractors against what those contractors declared as income.

Each TPAR includes the contractor’s ABN, name, address, and the total amount paid, including GST. The ATO 2026 date remains fixed: 28 August, regardless of your business size or how you lodge.

Which industries need to lodge a TPAR?

You may need to lodge a Taxable Payments Annual Report (TPAR) 2026 if your business pays contractors to provide services in any of the following:

  • Building and construction
  • Cleaning services
  • Courier and road freight
  • Information technology
  • Security, investigation, or surveillance services
If your business operates across mixed activities, you still need to lodge where 10% or more of your income comes from these services. If you provide both courier and road freight services, combine the payments for both when working out whether you meet that threshold.

What information do I need for the TPAR report?

For each contractor, you’ll need their ABN, business name, address, and the total gross amount paid during the year, including GST. Most accounting software, including Xero, MYOB, and QuickBooks, can generate this directly from your coded transactions, provided contractor payments have been tracked correctly throughout the year.This is where many small businesses run into trouble. If contractor payments weren’t consistently coded, reconstructing a full year of records in August adds unnecessary pressure. A quick contractor payment review each quarter makes the year-end job far simpler.

Are any contractor payments exempt from TPAR?

Yes. Some payments fall outside TPAR reporting, including:

  • Employee wages, which are reported through payroll, not TPAR
  • Payments for materials only, with no service component
  • Incidental, one-off helper or demonstration work
  • Payments to labour-hire workers, which the labour-hire firm reports, not you
  • Unpaid invoices as at 30 June, since TPAR only captures payments actually made
If you’re unsure whether a specific payment qualifies, it’s worth checking with your accountant before lodging, rather than guessing and risking an incorrect TPAR report.

What happens if I don't need to lodge one?

If your business doesn’t meet the TPAR reporting thresholds, you generally don’t need to take any action. However, if the ATO has previously flagged your business as a lodger, it’s worth confirming your obligation each year, since your service mix or contractor spend may have changed. Some businesses also choose to formally advise the ATO that a TPAR isn’t required, which can prevent follow-up correspondence.

What are the taxable payments annual reporting​ penalties for lodging late?

Late TPAR lodgement can attract a failure-to-lodge penalty, calculated in penalty units for each 28-day period the report remains outstanding, up to a maximum number of units. Penalties can be higher for businesses with larger turnover. Beyond the direct penalty, late or incorrect TPAR data can also delay the ATO’s contractor income-matching process, which may trigger further review activity.

Given the ATO’s continued focus on contractor compliance, lodging accurately and on time protects both your business and the contractors you engage.

Getting TPAR 2026 sorted without the stress

Between BAS, superannuation, PAYG, and instant asset write-off claims, TPAR often becomes the deadline business owners remember last. If your contractor records need tidying up before 28 August, or you’d simply rather have this handled properly, Befree’s tax team can extend your team and manage the lodgement end to end. Visit our tax services page to find out how we can help.

FAQs

When is the TPAR 2026 deadline?

The TPAR 2026 deadline is 28 August 2026, covering contractor payments made between 1 July 2025 and 30 June 2026.

Yes. Sole traders, companies, partnerships, and trusts in the relevant industries all need to lodge if they meet the taxable payments annual reporting thresholds.

No. Paper lodgement is no longer accepted. TPAR must now be lodged electronically, either through accounting software or the ATO’s Business Portal.

Review your contractor spend against the listed industries and thresholds, or speak with your accountant. Getting this wrong in either direction, over-reporting or missing an obligation, creates unnecessary admin down the track.