Finance for a tax bill

This is not a formality. Your accountant may be able to address the position directly, whether by correcting an assessment, applying a concession you are entitled to, or arranging an approach with the ATO. Any of those may serve you better than finance.

Nothing on this page is tax advice, and we are not qualified to give it. We match businesses with finance specialists, and even they will generally want your accountant involved in a decision like this.

The ATO offers payment plans in many circumstances, and that is often the first thing to explore. Whether one is available, and on what terms, depends on the business and its history, and the ATO publishes current guidance at ato.gov.au.

The considerations that usually matter when comparing an ATO arrangement with external finance are the total cost of each, the effect on your ability to get finance later, and the effect on any obligation a director carries personally. Your accountant can weigh these against your specific position.

The reasons given most often are keeping the tax position current, keeping working capital free for trading, and having a repayment schedule that is predictable and matched to how the business earns.

Whether any of that applies to you is a question for your accountant, not for a website.

There is rarely a product labelled for this purpose. In practice it is ordinary working capital finance, and it is assessed the way any working capital facility would be: on trading, on credit history, and on what is already committed.

Be aware that an outstanding ATO liability can itself affect an assessment, and that reported tax debts can appear in credit reporting in some circumstances. This is another reason to take advice early rather than late.

The position generally becomes harder to resolve the longer it is left, and options narrow as it does. Whatever route you take, taking it sooner tends to leave more of them open.