Lodging a Tax Form

20 July 2009

There are several methods to choose from when deciding to lodge a tax form depending on how confident you are with tax forms and claiming. Choices are between tax agents, e-tax, accountants and phone lodgment.

Tax agents
Tax agents are ideal for those individuals who have more complex tax lodgments and are not confident in their own tax skills. Tax agents are able to help individual's deals with the various complications that can arise in a tax lodgment such as multiple incomes, properties or investments.

E-tax
E-tax is a free service offered by the Australian Taxation Office that allows for individuals to loge their own tax forms online in a relatively simple process. The e-tax method had over 2.2 million individuals lodged their tax return in 2008 and is rising in popularity.

The benefits of using e-tax for a tax return include:

Free for both the lodging and preparation of the tax return and any baby bonus claims
Can be adapted to suit specific working situation
Majority of refunds paid within 14 days
E-tax provides an on-demand estimate of the tax refund or tax debt
Access to Tax Office publications, examples and help screens
Built-in checks ensure tax returns are completed correctly
Receive final estimate of the return or baby bonus entitlements

E-tax is not available for Mac users.

Accountants
Accountants are the best option those with more complicated tax return with several categories to cover. Accountants are able to assist people with unusual tax situations such as executor of deceased estates, partners of partnerships, self-employed, owner of a rental property or directors of companies. What's more, accountants' fees are fully tax "deductible".

Phone Lodgment
Phone tax lodgment is able to offer you an on-the-spot estimate of what you can expect from a tax return and is an ideal method for people with a short tax return that is basically only dividends and investment income.

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