We are announcing our 2026 compliance priorities to provide greater transparency of our key focus areas to the tax profession. These priorities are designed to support voluntary compliance, promote integrity, and instil community confidence in the tax profession. These priorities are in addition to the TPB’s enduring priorities, which will continue to remain central to our compliance efforts.

Our priorities address both emerging and ongoing risks concerning tax practitioner misconduct or unethical behaviour. 

These include tax practitioners who: 

• help clients avoid paying tax debts or engage in illegal phoenix activities, undermining employee entitlements and creditors' rights
• put clients into schemes designed to avoid tax, such as artificially shifting profits to low-tax jurisdictions, hiding income or assets in secrecy havens illegally, and misusing research and development (R&D) concessions
• facilitate shadow economy activities
• encourage clients to overclaim work-related expenses
• engage in activities that exploit vulnerable Australians
• fail to meet their personal tax obligations. 

Report misconduct

If you are aware of any misconduct by tax practitioners, you can report it using our complaints form. Individuals who make a disclosure in good faith may be eligible for whistleblower protections.  Reporting helps protect clients and supports fairness and integrity across the tax system and profession.

Mandatory breach reporting obligations

All registered tax practitioners must comply with mandatory breach reporting obligations. 

There are 2 types:

1. Self-reporting

You must notify us in writing if you have reasonable grounds to believe that you have breached the Code of professional Conduct (Code), and that breach is a significant breach. 

2. Reporting another tax practitioner

If you have reasonable grounds to believe another tax practitioner has breached the Code, and that breach is significant, you must notify us in writing. If applicable, you must also notify in writing, any recognised professional association that you know the registered tax practitioner is a member of.

Helping clients avoid paying tax debts

Tax practitioners who assist or encourage clients to avoid paying their tax debts create unfair advantages, increase financial risk and can lead to insolvency. Research shows businesses that fail to meet their tax obligations are significantly more likely to become insolvent within 12 months. 

Our compliance focus

Most tax practitioners uphold high professional standards and advise clients to pay their tax debts when they become aware of non-payment. Our focus is on tax practitioners who actively encourage or assist clients to avoid paying their tax debts. Some may even help clients adopt business models designed to avoid tax obligations and gain a competitive advantage, or fail to at when they know debts are unpaid. This behaviour undermines trust and fairness in the tax system and places clients at serious financial risk.

We work closely with the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), to identify tax practitioners whose clients show patterns of non-payment or avoidance. These patterns may indicate misconduct or poor professional practice and will be subject to additional scrutiny. 

Tax practitioner responsibilities

Tax practitioners are expected to:

• support clients to meet their tax obligations in a timely manner
• encourage clients to contact the ATO early if they are unable to pay on time
• avoid providing advice or taking actions that help clients deliberately avoid paying their tax debts.  

Engaging in illegal phoenix activities

Illegal phoenix activity occurs when company directors transfer the business of an existing company to a new company without paying fair market value, leaving debts behind. This allows the new company to operate with fewer liabilities and lower costs, giving it an unfair advantage over competitors.

This practice is particularly harmful because it deprives employees of wages and entitlements, leaves suppliers unpaid, and undermines fair competition across the business community. At the same time, Government often has to subsidise outstanding employee entitlements of liquidated companies.  

Our compliance focus

We are increasing collaboration with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, insolvency practitioners, and the Fair Work Ombudsman to identify and address high-risk tax practitioners involved in facilitating client illegal phoenix activities. 

Tax practitioner responsibilities

Tax practitioners play a critical role in supporting legitimate business restructuring and preventing illegal phoenix activity. Businesses may fail due to unforeseen circumstances, and lawful restructuring is permissible to facilitate orderly liquidation and fair treatment of all creditors. Illegal phoenixing, however, is used as an operating model to create an unfair business advantage. Sometimes, the distinction between legitimate restructuring and illegal phoenixing can be subtle. Tax practitioners should exercise sound judgment to ensure they are supporting lawful restructuring – not illegal phoenix activities. 

Tax practitioners should:

• not engage in or facilitate illegal phoenix activities
• not abuse small business restructure concessions. These concessions are available to assist small businesses manage their debts using a streamlined process, while allowing owners to remain in control. This helps small businesses survive and assists creditors, employees and the economy
• seek specialist advice from a qualified and ethical registered insolvency practitioner if a client is struggling to pay debts
• uphold compliance standards and support efforts to protect the integrity of Australia’s tax system
• educate clients about their obligations and correct false or misleading statements
• be transparent with the TPB if concerns arise – early disclosure leads to better outcomes
• contact us if you are aware of another registered tax practitioner is helping clients engage in illegal phoenix activities.

Shifting profits to low-tax jurisdictions

Tax practitioner misconduct, such as placing clients in tax avoidance schemes that shift profits to low-tax countries, undermines confidence in the tax profession and tax system. This happens when tax practitioners fail to consider clients’ circumstances, leading to large tax adjustments, penalties and interest. All clients, including multinationals, expect expert and accurate advice. Tax practitioners are expected to take reasonable care to avoid exposing clients to significant audit adjustments.

Our compliance focus

We are working closely with the ATO to identify and address potential misconduct by tax practitioners involved in multinational arrangements that shift profits to low tax jurisdictions (BEPS-related practices). Multinationals rely on their tax practitioner to provide expert and accurate advice on tax compliance. Like all taxpayers, multinationals as clients are the ones who ultimately bear the consequences of tax adjustments when tax practitioners fail to uphold the standards of the profession. 

Our compliance focus will look at tax practitioners who:

• fail to take reasonable care in advising their clients
• fail to tailor advice to a client’s individual circumstances, instead using a templated approach
• fail to disclose or explain key tax risks to clients
• design or promote tax schemes that unreasonably expose clients to potential tax adjustments.

Our compliance priorities reflect a strong commitment to:

• detect and address misconduct
• promote transparency and ethical conduct across the tax profession
• support a level playing field for all taxpayers.

Tax practitioner responsibilities

Tax practitioners play a critical role in maintaining the integrity of Australia’s tax system. 

To meet their obligations tax practitioners should:

• avoid involvement in arrangements that shift profits to low tax jurisdictions, including secrecy havens or income alienation schemes and other tax avoidance structures
• clearly disclose key tax risks to clients to ensure they understand potential implications
• promote transparency and ethical conduct by meeting their personal tax obligations and supporting a culture of integrity
• review their services regularly and stay informed through ongoing professional education
• ensure their advice is compliant and consistent with tax laws.

Hiding income or assets in secrecy havens

Tax practitioners are expected to advise clients to act lawfully in relation to their tax affairs. Tax practitioners who assist clients in hiding income or assets in secret offshore havens are breaching the Tax Agent Services Act 2009 and are acting unlawfully. Tax arrangements that rely on information being kept away from authorities for its effectiveness is unlawful. Tax practitioners must not knowingly assist clients in unlawful activities. 

Our compliance focus

We work closely with the ATO and other government agencies to identify and address potential misconduct by tax practitioners who facilitate or are wilfully blind to schemes using secrecy havens to hide income or assets. Australian authorities are equipped with advanced data matching, analytics, and global intelligence-sharing networks. These tools enable the detection and disruption of even the most sophisticated offshore evasion scheme. 

We will investigate and apply sanctions where tax practitioners are found to be facilitating secrecy haven schemes. This includes:

• concealing income or assets offshore
• structuring transactions to obscure beneficial ownership or income sources
• advising clients on how to exploit secrecy jurisdictions. 

Tax practitioner responsibilities

Tax practitioners must ensure offshore income is properly declared and provide accurate advice on client’s tax obligations. Tax practitioners should:

• review their services and advice for exposure to secrecy haven risks
• Update client guidance to ensure complete disclosure of offshore income
• engage transparently with us and the ATO if concerns are identified. 

Misusing R&D concessions

R&D concessions encourage innovation, contributing to Australia’s productivity and economic growth. However, tax practitioners who promote the abuse of R&D concessions undermine government policy and community confidence in accessing these concessions.

Our compliance focus

We are working closely with the ATO and the Department of Industry, Science and Resources to identify and address misconduct by tax practitioners who promote or facilitate arrangements involving the abuse of R&D claims. In particular, we will focus on tax practitioners who:

• help clients make R&D claims for non-existent R&D activities and results
• put clients into R&D schemes that do not have a legitimate basis resulting in large audit adjustments
• help clients make R&D claims based on unrealistic valuations
• do not take reasonable care when advising clients on R&D matters which results in large audit adjustments.

Tax practitioner responsibilities

Tax practitioners are in a unique position to detect and prevent misconduct relating to unlawful, ineffective and risky R&D arrangements. Tax practitioners are encouraged to contact us if they are aware of anyone facilitating these risky R&D arrangements that undermine community confidence in R&D concessions. Those found to be actively involved will be held to account. If you have clients who may be involved, encourage them to contact the ATO as soon as possible. 

Tax practitioners should also:

• exercise reasonable care when interpreting and applying tax laws - ask additional questions if client claims appear unusual
• avoid promoting or facilitating unlawful arrangements - including those exploiting legal loopholes or misleading clients.

Facilitating shadow economy activities

The shadow economy includes both legal and illegal activities that go unreported and untaxed, often driven by opportunistic or deliberate attempts to avoid tax or exploit regulatory gaps. 

These behaviours undermine workers’ rights, disadvantage compliant businesses, and reduce funding for essential public services such as health, education and infrastructure. The shadow economy can also facilitate organised crime.

The impacts of shadow economy activities may include: 

• workers missing out on wages, leave entitlements, and protections
• honest businesses being undercut by those avoiding tax and super obligations
• reduced funding for community infrastructure and disaster response.

Our compliance focus

We are committed to tackling shadow economy activities and supporting a fair and transparent tax system.  

Through proactive referrals and collaboration with the ATO and law enforcement agencies, we will help address tax practitioners who facilitate or enable unreported income, money laundering or other shadow economy activities.

Tax practitioner responsibilities

Tax practitioners play an important role in identifying and preventing shadow economy risks. Tax practitioners are expected to uphold compliance standards and act with integrity. 

Tax practitioners should:

• Take reasonable care when interpreting and applying taxation laws – ask additional questions if client claims appear unusual and tailor advice to client circumstances.
• Avoid facilitating shadow economy behaviours, such as:
  • enabling undeclared income or sales
  • overclaiming or fabricating deductions
  • underpaying wages or superannuation
  • exploiting regulatory gaps deliberately or opportunistically.
• Help clients understand their obligations and correct false or misleading statements.

Tax practitioners who are aware of clients involved in shadow economy activities should not turn a blind eye. They are expected to ensure clients take reasonable care to comply with their tax obligations.

Tax practitioners who know of other tax practitioners facilitating shadow economy activities should notify us through significant breach reporting or a tip-off.

Overclaiming work-related expenses

Registered tax practitioners play a crucial intermediary role between taxpayers and the ATO. Taxpayers generally seek their expert services to help with personal tax compliance. However, where tax practitioners do not take reasonable care with, resulting in clients having large audit adjustments for overclaimed work-related expenses, it undermines community confidence in the tax system and client trust in the tax profession. 

Our compliance focus

We continue to work with the ATO to identify high rates of overclaimed work-related expense claims. While some overclaiming stems from genuine errors or misunderstandings, deliberate overclaiming is unlawful and undermines community confidence in the tax system.

We do not expect tax practitioners to audit their clients’ work-related expense claim. However, where things do not make sense, tax practitioners should ask further questions.

Our focus is on tax practitioners whose clients often have large work-related expense claims adjusted by the ATO. We will be looking at whether reasonable care was taken and how well the work was supervised.

Acting against tax practitioners who are involved in fraudulent activities promotes a capable trusted and well-regulated tax profession.

Tax practitioner responsibilities

Tax practitioners must:

• take reasonable care when interpreting and applying tax laws
• ask additional questions if client claims appear unusual
• ensure advice is tailored to the client’s circumstances
• consider the lawfulness of acting on client instructions and decline to act if it would be unlawful.

Activities that exploit vulnerable Australians

Protecting vulnerable Australians is a central focus for our compliance agenda. Some schemes exploit financial hardship, misinformation or have a limited understanding of tax and superannuation obligations. 

These schemes often involve:

• inappropriate promotion of illegal early access to superannuation, through self-managed super funds
• tax-time loan products that mislead individuals into risky financial arrangements.

Promoters often target individuals experiencing financial pressure or coercion, encouraging actions that breach tax and superannuation laws and jeopardise long-term financial security. The consequences can include audits, penalties, and even identity theft, while also undermining community confidence in the tax system. Financial abuse on the victim can also be committed through the tax system. Tax practitioners have an important role to play in helping identify potential victims of financial abuse that involves the tax system. 

Our compliance focus

By identifying and addressing these behaviours, we aim to safeguard vulnerable Australians and protect retirement savings while reinforcing fairness and integrity across the tax profession. 

We are working with the ATO and other government agencies to identify tax practitioners who:

• offer or promote products and services that appear to assist clients to engage with the tax system but in reality exploit their vulnerability
• facilitate or ignore the financial abuse of vulnerable clients.  

Our proactive approach to compliance includes issuing public warnings, engaging with impacted clients and tax practitioners, and publishing details of those found to have engaged in this behaviour. Our complaints system also enables us to identify and address tax practitioners who facilitate or ignore the financial abuse of vulnerable victims.

Tax practitioner responsibilities

Tax practitioners are in a unique position to detect and prevent financial abuse. 

Tax practitioners should:

• be alert to clients who appear unaware of their tax affairs or show signs of coercion or distress
• exercise reasonable care and ask additional questions if claims or instructions seem unusual
• avoid facilitating abuse, only lodge returns with informed consent
• refer clients to the ATO, if necessary and appropriate
• help clients correct material errors in documents provided to the ATO.

Help and support

Financial abuse and other forms of family and domestic violence can be difficult to discuss. If you or someone you know is in distress or immediate danger, please call 000. 

For information support and counselling you can contact the following organisations: 

• 1800RESPECT – national sexual assault, domestic and family violence counselling service
• Well Mob – social, emotional and cultural wellbeing online resources for Aboriginal 
  and Torres Strait Islander peoples
• Full Stop Australia – national trauma counselling and recovery service for people of all ages and genders experiencing sexual, domestic and family violence
• MensLine Australia – a telephone and online counselling service offering support for Australian men
• National Debt Helpline – a free, independent and confidential service that helps people tackle their debt problem.

Failure to meet personal tax obligations

Registered tax practitioners are responsible for managing their clients’ tax affairs and are also expected to lead by example in meeting their personal tax obligations. 

Tax practitioners who do not comply with their obligations risk undermining community confidence in the tax system. Failure to attend to personal tax affairs can also raise questions about a tax practitioners’ ability to meet the standards expected of a registered professional.

A tax practitioner who meets their personal tax obligations demonstrates integrity and professionalism, essential qualities for maintaining trust in the tax profession.

Our compliance focus

We continue to work closely with the ATO to identify and address tax practitioners who fail to comply with their personal tax obligations. Using data matching and intelligence sharing, we take timely and proportionate action on tax practitioners who do not comply.

Tax practitioners who fail to lodge, pay or address outstanding tax debts may face sanctions. This can include a suspension or termination of registration, and in some cases, the refusal of registration or renewal applications. 

Taking action in these cases reinforces confidence in the integrity of the profession and ensures all tax practitioners are held to the same high standard, levelling the playing field.

Tax practitioner responsibilities

In addition to general tax laws under Code item 2 tax practitioners must comply with tax laws in the conduct of their personal affairs. 

This includes:

• lodging personal income tax returns on time
• lodging instalment or business activity statements on time
• paying tax debts or arranging a payment plan with the ATO.

By doing so tax practitioners uphold professional integrity and set the right example for their clients and peers.