Registering for GST in Australia: What your business needs to know

Key takeaways

• You must register if your current GST turnover is $75,000 or more, or your projected GST turnover is likely to reach that amount – $150,000 for non-profit organisations. Taxi, limousine and ride-sourcing providers must register regardless of turnover.

• Registration is generally due within 21 days of becoming aware of crossing the threshold, and the ATO can backdate your registration by up to four years.

• Exports are generally GST-free, but overseas income still needs to be converted to AUD and reported – which is where a multi-currency account like the Airwallex Global Account earns its keep.

Most Australian businesses need to register for GST once their turnover hits A$75,000 in a rolling 12-month period, or projected GST turnover is likely to reach it. Some businesses have to register regardless of turnover.

If you're a sole trader watching your income creep toward six figures, or a finance lead juggling sales in more than one currency, this guide covers exactly when registration kicks in, how to work out your turnover, and what changes once you're registered.

Who needs to register for GST?

You need to register if your current GST turnover is A$75,000 or more, your projected GST turnover is likely to reach that amount, or you fall into a category where registration is compulsory regardless of turnover.

You must register if:

• Your current or projected GST turnover is A$75,000 or more

• You're a new business expecting to reach A$75,000 in your first year of trading

• You run a non-profit organisation with turnover of A$150,000 or more

• You drive a taxi, limousine or ride-sourcing travel (Uber, Ola, DiDi and similar) – there's no turnover threshold, you register regardless of turnover

• You want to claim fuel tax credits for your business

The ATO enforces these thresholds strictly, and registering late can lead to penalties, GST liabilities, and interest. Outside of these categories, registration is optional – you can register voluntarily, or wait until you're required to.

What are the GST registration thresholds?

*The ATO calculates this period as the current month plus the previous 11 months, or the current month plus the next 11 months. 

It's also easy to misread the measurement period. The threshold applies over a rolling 12 months, not a financial year, so you need to check your turnover on an ongoing basis rather than just at 30 June.

How do you work out your GST turnover?

Your GST turnover isn't the same as your total revenue, and the ATO measures it two ways – you only need to trip one of them to be required to register.

Current GST turnover

Current GST turnover is your turnover for the current month plus the previous 11 months. If it reaches A$75,000, also assess your projected GST turnover; in limited cases, the ATO may accept that registration is not required if projected turnover is below the threshold.

Projected GST turnover

Projected GST turnover is your turnover for the current month plus the next 11 months. If that amount is likely to reach A$75,000, you generally need to register even if you have not yet received the income. If your projected GST turnover is likely to reach A$75,000, registration is generally required; a current-turnover result may be treated differently if the ATO is satisfied that projected turnover will be below the threshold.

A freelancer earning A$6,000 a month has around A$72,000 of current turnover. If signing a retainer makes projected turnover likely to exceed A$75,000, they generally have 21 days from becoming aware of that to register.

GST turnover includes:

• Taxable sales

• GST-free sales (including exports connected with Australia)

GST turnover excludes:

• Input-taxed sales, like residential rent or financial supplies

• The GST component of your sales

• For the projected turnover test, amounts from the sale of business or capital assets

• Sales not connected with the enterprise or Australia; genuinely private or hobby sales are generally outside GST turnover

When do you have to register once you cross the threshold?

You generally have 21 days from becoming aware that your GST turnover will exceed the relevant threshold to register for GST.

• Your effective registration date should reflect when you became required to register; confirm the date with the ATO or your registered tax or BAS agent.

• If you're close to the threshold, check your turnover monthly rather than waiting for your annual return

• The ATO can backdate your registration by up to four years if you should have registered earlier

• Register late and you may owe GST on sales made since the date you were required to register – even if you didn't charge your customers GST at the time

Missing the deadline isn't just paperwork – you could end up covering GST out of your own margin on already-invoiced sales, plus penalties and interest.

Should you register for GST voluntarily?

You can register for GST before you're required to, and for many sole traders and small businesses setting up a small business account for the first time, it makes sense to get ahead of it.

Reasons to register early

• You can claim GST credits on business purchases and expenses

• Larger clients and government buyers may expect suppliers to be registered

• You avoid a scramble to set up invoicing and BAS processes right as you cross the threshold

Reasons to wait

• BAS lodgement and record-keeping add an ongoing administrative load

• If you sell mainly to consumers, GST can reduce your margin if you cannot pass it through in your prices

• Once you register voluntarily, you must generally remain registered for at least 12 months

If your customers are GST-registered and the purchase is eligible for a GST credit, they may be able to claim the GST back. If you sell mainly to consumers, GST may be harder to pass through in your pricing.

Do you need to register for GST if you sell overseas?

Yes, you do need to register for GST if you sell overseas. Exports of goods and services are generally GST-free, subject to the relevant conditions.

• Exports of goods and services are generally GST-free, so you don't charge GST on them

• You still need to report those sales on your relevant BAS

• If you are a non-resident business, you generally must register when GST turnover from sales connected with Australia reaches A$75,000.

For exported goods, GST-free treatment generally requires the supplier to export the goods within 60 days of the earlier payment or invoice date. The ATO may allow an extension in some circumstances. If most of your revenue comes from overseas customers, an international business account can make it easier to receive that income accurately in the first place.

And if you're paid foreign currencies such as USD, GBP or EUR, that income still has to be converted to AUD for both the turnover test and your BAS. The exchange rate you're given – and the record you keep of it – matters as much as the sale itself, which is exactly where a multi-currency accounting setup earns its keep.

How do you register for GST in Australia?

Once you know you need to register, there are a few ways to do it.

• Online through ATO Online services for business, once you have an ABN

• By phone, through the ATO's business enquiries line

• Through a registered tax or BAS agent

However you apply, the ATO will confirm your registration and its effective date in writing once it's processed.

What happens after you register for GST?

• Update your pricing and invoices to account for GST on taxable sales

• Issue tax invoices that meet the ATO's tax invoice requirements for sales over A$82.50

• Lodge a Business Activity Statement (BAS), quarterly for most small businesses

• Pay the net GST you owe, or receive a refund if your credits outweigh what you've collected

• Keep records for five years

You can cancel your GST registration when you are no longer required to be registered; voluntary registrants generally must remain registered for at least 12 months.

How Airwallex helps GST-registered businesses stay on top of reporting

Once you're registered, clean records become part of the job – and that's largely a bookkeeping problem, not a tax one. With Airwallex, you can take care of a number of financial tasks, including:

• Sync transactions automatically with Xero, QuickBooks, NetSuite, Sage and Odoo, so your GST-relevant sales and expenses reconcile without manual entry

• Open local account details for 20+ currencies so you can collect funds from 70+ countries through Global Accounts, meaning overseas revenue stays traceable back to AUD

• Get interbank FX rates with a transparent margin from 0.5% on major currencies, so the AUD figure in your books reflects a rate you can actually point to

• Capture receipts and match them to transactions with Airwallex Expense Management

Airwallex isn't a tax agent and doesn't calculate, lodge or remit your GST – but clean, reconciled, multi-currency records can make the reporting itself far less painful. If your business collects revenue in more than one currency, opening an Airwallex Business Account and pairing it with Airwallex Billing can keep invoicing, payments and reconciliation in one place.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to register for GST if my turnover is under A$75,000?

Not usually. Registration is optional below A$75,000 for most businesses, unless you're a taxi or rideshare driver, or want to claim fuel tax credits, in which case you must register regardless of turnover.

Do I have to charge GST as a sole trader?

Only once you're registered for GST. Sole traders follow the same A$75,000 threshold as other business structures – there's no separate rule that exempts sole traders from registering.

Can I have an ABN but not be registered for GST?

Yes. An ABN and GST registration are separate. Many businesses operate with an ABN for years before their turnover reaches A$75,000 and they need to register.

What happens if I don't register for GST when I'm required to?

You may owe GST on sales made since the date you should have registered, even if you didn't charge it at the time, plus penalties and interest. The ATO can also backdate your registration by up to four years.

Does GST turnover include GST-free sales?

Yes, but the treatment depends on the connection with Australia. GST-free export sales connected with Australia can count towards GST turnover. Input-taxed sales, GST included in sales and sales not connected with the enterprise or Australia are excluded; capital-asset proceeds are excluded from projected turnover.

Can I cancel my GST registration if my turnover drops?

Yes, when you are no longer required to be registered. If you registered voluntarily, you generally need to remain registered for at least 12 months before cancelling.

Sources

• https://www.ato.gov.au/businesses-and-organisations/gst-excise-and-indirect-taxes/gst/registering-for-gst

• https://business.gov.au/registrations/register-for-taxes/register-for-goods-and-services-tax-gst