In this blog we explain the Tax Refund process and why you might still be waiting for your tax refund. Generally, you receive your tax refund from the ATO after about 14 days. If this hasn’t happened read on as there are a number of reasons it might be delayed.
So… you’ve lodge your Tax Return (well done! 😊) and now you’re patiently waiting for the cash to hit your account. But where is it? One of the most common questions faced by our Numbers Geeks during tax time is ‘Where is my refund?” So we thought it would be helpful to explain the tax refund process, as well as the estimated timeframe.
Lodging your Tax Return
One Click Life have created our online tax lodgement system to make lodging your tax return as simple as possible. During the lodgement process, we communicate directly with the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) while you wait, to make lodging your tax return as fast and simple as possible
When you hit the ‘LODGE’ button on your online Tax Return, your lodgement is sent to the ATO for review. The average time for them to review each Aussie’s Tax Return & process a refund is approximately 14 business days.
What’s next for my tax refund?
Next, the ATO process your Tax Return, then they will issue a ‘Notice of Assessment’ to you. The Notice of Assessment is a document that informs you of any changes to the refund amount and confirms the exact figure of your Tax Refund (how much money you’re getting back).
The ATO then transfers your refund to the One Click Life Trust Account. From there we deduct our fee from your refund* and then transfer you the rest directly to you within 3 business days. The direct deposit from our account to yours can take anywhere between a couple of hours, to 2 business days, depending on which bank you use.
In general, most of our clients receive their refunds faster than 14 business days. There might be delays in ATO processing or bank transfer delays, but we do our best to send your refund out within 24 business hours of it entering our Trust Account.
Our Fee for lodging the Tax Return
When you complete your tax return, you have the option to pay the One Click Life fees upfront, or alternatively select that the fees are deducted from your tax refund*. Whichever option your select, we will email you a copy of the tax invoice. If you have any questions regarding your invoice, feel free to contact us. The invoice will come out from Mobile Business Devices Pty Ltd, Trading As One Click Life.
*Additional fees apply for the ‘fee from refund’ selection.
You can find more information regarding our pricing here.
Why it might take a little bit longer…
Some Tax Returns, however, might take a bit longer than the usual for the ATO to process. Here are a couple of reasons why this might happen:
If you lodge an Overdue Tax Return
If you lodge an Overdue Tax ReturnThe ATO tends to prioritise current year Tax Returns before processing any overdue lodgements from previous years – this may lead to a slower processing time.
If you need to lodge an overdue Tax Return, check out our step-by-step guide
If you lodge an Amended Tax Return
The ATO would take more time to process this, as they would have to bring up the original lodgement and compare the differences between the two before confirming the changes made are legitimate.
The ATO want to review your Tax Return
Sometimes the ATO may want to review your tax return to ensure that your tax claims are accurate. This could be to verify a deduction, residency status, or income. Keep an eye out for any correspondence and reach out to us for assistance if you need it.
Your tax refund has been garnished by another government agency
If you have overclaimed Centrelink, or underpaid child support, these agencies will garnish (take) your tax refund, or part of, prior to it coming to you. The best thing you can do is ensure you pay your child support and update Child Support and Centrelink of any changes in your circumstances.
Reinstatement of old ATO debt
The ATO can reinstate old debt that they had previously written off if they see an opportunity to recover it.
ATO fines & outstanding tax debts
If you have outstanding tax debts from previous years’ tax returns, the ATO can take your tax refund, or part of, prior to it coming to you.
The ATO can also fine you for late lodgements. They will pay these fines prior to refunding you your tax refund. This can be argued and if this happens to you, please reach out to discuss with us.
Your Tax File Number if compromised
Data leaks have meant that more and more Aussies have a compromised tax file number. This will delay both completing your tax return and receiving your tax refund.
The ATO considers a compromised TFN to be ‘one that may have been lost,
stolen or made known to another person and is therefore in danger of being used by
another person for unauthorised or fraudulent purposes’
If you have, or suspect you have, a compromised Tax File Number (Compromised TFN), please call the ATO on 1800 467 033 to re-identify yourself.
Protect your personal identifying information
The ATO and One Click Life
Whilst One Click Life is the quickest, easiest & fuss-free ways to lodge your online Tax Return, once you’ve hit ‘lodge’, some things are out of our hands and in the ATO’s. We advocate for you as much as we can, but we are beholden to the ATO to pay your tax refund.
Check the progress of your Tax Return with the ATO
If you have any questions or problems along the way, our Life Admin team are more than happy to help & check the progress of your lodgement, so feel free to call us on 1300 707 117 or email [email protected]