No.20: Bank account details for ATO refunds

From 1 July 2013, individual tax returns with an expected tax refund that are lodged using the electronic lodgement service (ELS) will be required to nominate an Australian bank account to receive the refund. The details required include Account name, BSB, and Account number. Joint bank accounts and trust accounts are also acceptable.

(Refer link: http://www.ato.gov.au/General/Enquiry-hot-topics/In-detail/Tax-professionals/EFT-refund/).

What you need to do

If you have already provided your nominated bank account details for receipt of tax refunds and wish to continue to use the same account in the future for this purpose, there is no need for you to do anything.

However, if you have been receiving tax refunds in the past by way of a cheque from the Australian Taxation Office, this option will no longer be available to you from 1 July 2013. Accordingly, you will need to nominate an Australian bank account for the direct credit of any tax refunds due from the ATO.

If the above changes affect you, please contact your Blaze Acumen adviser at your earliest convenience to provide your preferred Australian bank account for direct crediting of ATO refunds. Please note that we will only store your bank account information for use with income tax return and BAS refunds.

In the event that you have tax payable, you will continue to have all of the usual payment options available to you. The ATO will not be authorised to debit your nominated bank account unless you specifically request this.

Alternative Options

If you do not wish to provide your bank account details for tax refund purposes, you may prefer to nominate the Blaze Acumen Trust account to receive ATO refunds in the first instance.

If you wish to provide bank account details or nominate the Blaze Acumen Trust account, please contact your Blaze Acumen adviser.