Education

Rajitha Srikhanta, the ATO's deputy chief tax counsel, set out the position at The Tax Institute's Women in Tax NSW lunch, on a panel about artificial intelligence. Her words, reported on 30 October, were: "it's not reasonable care if you just say AI told …

According to the Tax Ombudsman's Annual Report 2025–26, the office received 3,668 complaints in the year to 30 June 2026. That was a 128 per cent increase on 2024–25.

The $1,000 standard deduction for work-related expenses is legislated. The ATO's "latest news on tax law and policy" page lists the $1,000 InstantTax deductionas starting on 1 July 2026, with Royal Assent on 26 June 2026.

The $1,000 standard deduction itself is law. The ATO's "latest news on tax law and policy" page lists the $1,000 InstantTax deductionas starting from 1 July 2026, with Royal Assent on 26 June 2026.

The ATO's system maintenance page lists four scheduled windows for November 2026. All times are Australian Eastern Daylight Time.

Registered tax agents lodge under a program the ATO sets each year. It spreads the workload across several months and sorts clients into tiers by risk and by how much they owe.

Assistant Minister Andrew Leigh announced the package on 23 October, releasing exposure draft legislation for consultation. The draft is titled the Treasury Laws Amendment (PersonalInsolvencyAmendments) Bill 2026 and would amend the Bankruptcy Act 1966.