Itching to file your tax return? Check out these four things first

June 28, 2026 — 5:01am

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For unabashed finance nerds like myself, the end of one financial year and the start of another is always a bit like Christmas. Suddenly, everyone is celebrating something we’re extremely into all-year round.

In Australia, though, our tax system has long been pretty confusing and unnecessarily complex for the average person to navigate. And though there have been many improvements to make it simpler and easier, there are always new things to be aware of.

During a period of sustained cost-of-living pressures especially, it’s entirely understandable that people are itching to see if they’ll get a nice return or a naughty bill.

But before you sit down and hit the “lodge return” button, here are some things to get across.

The use of AI is here to stay – consider yourself warned

For a while now, the ATO has been using increasingly sophisticated analytics, AI systems and data matching to compare the information it has on file against the information you’ve included in your return.

Unlike the olden days, when human auditors had to pore over individual files looking for inconsistencies with a red pen, the new process is infinitely faster and more sophisticated. That might sound scary, but as long as you can explain your claims, you’ll be OK.

If you are thinking about doing anything sneaky or hoping to outsmart the ATO this year, I’d seriously suggest you think twice.

Such cross-referencing covers an awful lot a lot of ground – from your health insurance, PAYG summaries, superannuation contributions and banking........

© The Sydney Morning Herald