TPAR Reminder: Time to Check Your Subcontractors

As we near the end of the financial year, we want to remind our clients of a key compliance obligation that may apply to your business — the Taxable Payments Annual Report (TPAR).

If your business engages contractors or subcontractors to provide services, it’s important to take time now to review and update your records to ensure you’re well-prepared for your TPAR submission.

What is the TPAR?

The TPAR is an annual report that must be lodged with the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) by businesses that make payments to contractors in certain industries. These include:

• Building and construction

• Cleaning

• Courier and road freight

• Information technology (IT)

• Security, investigation or surveillance services

Even if only part of your business activities fall into these categories, or if you’ve only used contractors occasionally, you may still have a reporting obligation.

Why Action Now Is Important

The TPAR is due by 28 August, but leaving your review until the last minute can result in missing information, errors, or avoidable stress. We recommend checking the following details for each subcontractor as soon as possible:

• ABN and business/trading names – Make sure these are current and accurate.

• Contact details – Including phone number, address, and email.

• GST status – You’ll need to indicate whether GST was included in the invoices.

• Payment totals – Ensure you’ve correctly captured gross payments, GST, and any tax withheld.

How You Can Prepare

To help ensure a smooth TPAR process, we recommend the following steps:

Review your list of subcontractors who have been paid in the current financial year.

Cross-check their ABNs using the ABN Lookup tool to confirm their registration details.

Confirm that subcontractors are correctly set up in your accounting software (e.g., Xero, MYOB, QuickBooks).

Let your team know what’s required, so any new subcontractors are set up with the right details from the start.

If you’re using cloud-based software, many platforms now offer TPAR reporting tools that can simplify the process. However, accuracy of the underlying data is critical.

A Word on Penalties

Failure to lodge the TPAR on time can result in penalties from the ATO, starting from $313 per report. Inconsistencies between your report and the income declared by a contractor may also trigger ATO enquiries or audits.

We’re Here to Help

If you’re unsure about whether TPAR applies to your business, or if you’d like us to assist in reviewing your subcontractor records, please get in touch with our team. We’re here to help ensure your business remains compliant and avoids any unnecessary penalties.

Let’s get ahead of the deadline together.