The switch-off had been planned for 1 December, which would have given many businesses only weeks to rethink how they pay their BAS and tax bills. The Government is covering the card surcharges during the extension, but there’s no promise that cards will still be accepted directly after June next year.
Our tip: use the extra time to plan
If you lean on a card to smooth cash flow at BAS time, now is a good moment to look at the alternatives:
setting up BPAY, direct debit or bank transfer for ATO payments
a separate tax savings account you top up each month
an ATO payment plan or other finance options if cash flow is tight.
It’s been just over three months since Payday Super began on 1 July 2026. For most employers, super guarantee now has to reach each employee’s fund within seven business days of payday. Paying at the end of the quarter no longer cuts it.
The first real test lands on 28 October 2026.
Which ATO risk group are you in?
Under the ATO’s first-year compliance approach, PCG 2026/1, employers are broadly sorted into three groups:
Low risk: you pay with each pay run and fix any late payments promptly.
Medium risk: you’re still paying quarterly or catching up, but every July–September shortfall is cleared within 28 days of quarter end.
High risk: any September-quarter shortfall is still outstanding after 28 October. These employers are first in line for ATO review.
28 October is also the standard due date for the July–September quarterly BAS, so it’s a busy fortnight.
Three things worth doing now
Reconcile July–September payroll against what your clearing house and funds actually received.
Chase any rejected or misallocated contributions.
Check that your payroll software and bank timing can reliably meet the seven-business-day window.
A busy week for Northern Beaches business owners: the ATO is retiring credit card payments, card surcharges are gone, rates have moved again and the first 2026-27 deadlines are weeks away.
ATO to stop accepting credit cards after 30 November
On 1 October the ATO announced it will no longer accept credit card payments for tax debts after 30 November 2026. BPAY, direct debit from a bank account and payment plans remain available. If your payment plan debits a credit card, the ATO will write to you, and you will need to switch method before your first instalment due after 30 November.
Card surcharges are off from 1 October
Under new card network rules, businesses can no longer add a surcharge when customers pay with Visa, Mastercard, American Express or eftpos, according to ACCC guidance updated on 2 October. Card costs now need to be built into your pricing, and displayed prices must be the total the customer pays. A disclosed discount for cash or PayID is still allowed, but relabelling a surcharge as a service fee is likely to be treated as misleading. Check your point of sale settings now.
Cash rate rises to 4.60 per cent
The Reserve Bank lifted the cash rate by 25 basis points to 4.60 per cent on 29 September, citing higher global energy prices. If you carry variable rate debt or equipment finance, refresh your December quarter cash flow forecast.
Key dates: 28 October BAS and 31 October tax returns
The July to September BAS and PAYG instalment are due on 28 October, with an extra two weeks if you lodge through a registered agent. Sole traders and individuals lodging their own 2025-26 return must do so by 31 October. To use a tax agent for the first time, or switch agents, the ATO says you need to be on their client list before 31 October to access later lodgment dates.
Payday Super: check your first quarter
Super on wages paid since 1 July 2026 must reach the employee’s fund within 7 business days of payday, with up to 20 business days for a new employee’s first contribution. Late contributions attract the super guarantee charge, so reconcile what your payroll software has sent against what each fund has received.
Free AI workshops in Warriewood on 27 October
For NSW Small Business Month, Northern Beaches Council is running two free AI Made Simple for Small Business workshops at 2/4 Jacksons Road, Warriewood on Tuesday 27 October: AI for Marketing from 2.30pm and AI Tools for Small Business from 6pm. Places are limited to 45 eligible local businesses. Hundreds more Small Business Month events run statewide through October.
What this means for you
Most of these changes land within eight weeks, so set aside an hour to update your ATO payment method, review pricing and diarise 28 and 31 October. This is general information only. Book a call with our Dee Why team to talk through what applies to your business.
The ATO has stepped up its crackdown on the shadow economy: businesses that under-report cash sales, pay staff off the books or operate outside the tax system. In recent weeks, ATO officers have made unannounced visits to hospitality venues, following earlier visits this year to farms in regional NSW and hospitality businesses on the Gold Coast. The ATO has reported receiving around a thousand tip-offs a week.
The ATO’s stated aim is to protect the businesses that do the right thing from being undercut by those that don’t. If you run a café, restaurant, trade or retail business on the Northern Beaches, it’s worth checking you’d be comfortable if they walked in tomorrow.
What the ATO looks at
Cash sales: are all takings going through the register and into your accounts? The ATO benchmarks businesses against others in the same industry, and figures well below the benchmark attract attention.
Wages: are all staff paid through Single Touch Payroll, with PAYG withheld and super paid? Cash-in-hand wages are a key focus.
GST registration: businesses with turnover of $75,000 or more must be registered for GST (for ride-share and taxi drivers, from the first dollar).
Money taken out of a company: if you run a company and draw funds for personal use, Division 7A rules apply. The ATO has named this as a current small business focus.
Your quick readiness check
Every sale, card or cash, recorded in your POS and banked or reconciled.
All staff set up in payroll software with STP reporting.
Super paid with every pay run under Payday Super.
Records kept for five years, including cash register reports.
Personal drawings from a company documented as wages, dividends or a compliant loan.
If something isn’t right
Coming forward voluntarily before the ATO contacts you generally leads to much lower penalties than being found in an audit. If you’re worried something in your books isn’t right, talk to us confidentially and we’ll help you fix it properly.
After years of one-year extensions announced at the last minute, the $20,000 instant asset write-off is now a permanent part of the tax system from 1 July 2026. Announced in the May 2026 Budget, the measure has passed into law and the ATO has confirmed the details.
Who can use it
Businesses with an aggregated annual turnover under $10 million that use the simplified depreciation rules.
How it works
You can immediately deduct the business-use portion of an eligible depreciating asset that costs less than $20,000.
The limit applies per asset, so you can write off several assets in the same year as long as each is under $20,000.
The asset must be first used, or installed ready for use, in the income year you claim it. Paying a deposit isn’t enough.
If you’re registered for GST, the $20,000 test is on the GST-exclusive cost.
Assets costing $20,000 or more go into the small business pool, depreciated at 15% in the first year and 30% after that. If the pool balance falls below $20,000 at year end, it can be written off too.
What it means for you
Because the threshold is now permanent, there’s no reason to rush a purchase before 30 June just in case the rules change. Buy equipment when your business needs it and your cashflow can support it.
A few reminders:
A deduction isn’t a refund. A $10,000 laptop and software upgrade saves you tax at your marginal rate, not $10,000.
Private use reduces the claim. Only the business-use portion can be written off, which matters for vehicles, phones and computers.
Keep the invoice and a note of the date the asset was first used or installed.
Planning a purchase?
Talk to us before you buy. We can confirm eligibility, compare buying outright with financing or leasing, and work out the real after-tax cost.
NSW Small Business Month starts today and runs until 31 October. Run by the NSW Small Business Commission with councils, chambers of commerce and industry partners, it’s a month of free and low-cost workshops, webinars and networking events for small business owners across the state.
What’s on
This year’s program lists well over 200 events, both online and in person, including sessions nearby on the Lower North Shore. Topics include:
Cash flow management: working out your cash position and tracking it month to month.
AI for small business: practical, no-hype sessions on using AI tools for marketing and everyday admin.
Sales, marketing and digital skills.
Networking with other local business owners.
Browse and register through the NSW Government’s Small Business Month page at nsw.gov.au. Popular sessions fill quickly, so book early.
Our tip: pick one thing and act on it
It’s easy to attend a webinar and change nothing. Choose one area where your business is feeling pressure this year, whether that’s cash flow after Payday Super, pricing after the card surcharge ban, or simply getting your books up to date, and pick a session on that topic.
And a busy month for deadlines
October is also crunch time for tax. Keep these dates in mind:
28 October: September quarter BAS due if you lodge yourself.
31 October: individual and sole trader tax returns due if you lodge yourself. Get on our lodgement list before then and you’ll generally have until May 2027.
If you’d rather spend October on your business than your paperwork, we’re happy to help.
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