Key Highlights

  • Successful non-lodgment prosecutions rose more than 80% in one year.
  • Queensland, Western Australia and NSW accounted for most successful cases.
  • Courts imposed more than $2.7 million in fines across two years.
  • Taxpayers can use myTax to catch up on many earlier returns.

Successful ATO prosecutions for failing to lodge tax returns and other documents rose by more than 80% between 2024–25 and 2025–26, according to the Tax Office. The figures land less than three weeks before the 31 October 2026 deadline for people lodging their own 2025–26 returns. They show that, for persistent non-lodgers, the consequences can go well beyond a late-lodgment penalty and end in a criminal court.

The numbers behind the jump

The ATO published the figures in a media release titled "Out of the shadows", last updated on 17 September 2026.

Over two years, the Tax Office says, it successfully prosecuted more than 350 individuals and entities for not lodging. It reports more than 305 convictions, with convictions up nearly 60% between 2024–25 and 2025–26.

Courts imposed more than $2.7 million in fines over the period, according to the release.

The ATO frames non-lodgment as part of its fight against the shadow economy, which it separately estimates costs the community about $25 billion a year.

Unlodged returns matter to the Tax Office because they can hide income that never makes it into the system. They also leave the ATO without the information it needs to assess debts, and prosecution is a lever the ATO can reach for when its reminders keep going unanswered.

Where the ATO is taking people to court

In 2025–26, three states accounted for almost three-quarters of successful non-lodgment prosecutions, the ATO says. Queensland led with 28%, followed by Western Australia on 26% and New South Wales on 20%.

Victoria made up 17%, South Australia 7%, the Northern Territory 2% and the ACT 1%. The published shares are rounded.

WA's share stands out given its population is far smaller than Victoria's or New South Wales'. The ATO has not said why prosecutions are distributed this way, and the figures show where cases succeeded in court rather than where non-lodgment is most common.

What a conviction can mean

ATO Assistant Commissioner Tony Goding put it bluntly: "Our message to the community is clear: deliberately ignoring your obligations comes at a significant cost."

The ATO's language targets people who deliberately ignore their obligations, not someone who misses a deadline once. But prison is possible at the serious end.

The ATO's tax crime prosecution case studies, updated on 28 September 2026, include Robert Capone in South Australia, who received three months' imprisonment, and Robert Abreu in Western Australia, who was ordered to serve the remaining four months of his term.

Late is not the same as ignored

For most people who are simply late, the relevant sanction is an administrative failure-to-lodge penalty rather than prosecution.

That penalty is one Commonwealth penalty unit, worth $364 from 1 July 2026, for each 28 days a return is overdue, up to a maximum of five units, or $1,820.

Catching up on old returns

The ATO says it is "important to get up to date as soon as possible" to reduce the risk of penalties and interest.