It’s time for small tax practitioners (with 100 or less employees) to get ready to ensure that you are complying with the 8 new Code of Professional Conduct (Code) obligations from 1 July 2025. As you know, these new Code obligations were introduced by the government under the Tax Agent Services (Code of Professional Conduct) Determination 2024 (Determination).

The new Code obligations have already commenced for large tax practitioners (with over 100 employees) from 1 January 2025.

The new obligations seek to enhance the high professional and ethical standards expected by the community of registered tax practitioners, with the objective of:

• improving transparency and accountability
• giving the public greater confidence and trust in the integrity of the tax profession
• strengthening tax system integrity and the regulation of the tax profession.

We urge you to review your processes, procedures and practices now, and implement any changes necessary to meet the new requirements. 

Resources to guide you

There are a range of helpful materials available on our website to help you understand and comply with these new obligations.

Refer to the following Information sheets explaining the new obligations and how you can comply with them:

• TPB(I) 44/2024 Upholding and promoting the ethical standards of the tax profession
• TPB(I) 45/2024 False or misleading statements
• TPB(I) 46/2024 Managing conflicts of interest when undertaking activities for government and maintaining confidentiality in dealings with government
• TPB(I) 47/2024 Obligation to keep proper client records of tax agent services provided
• TPB(I) 48/2024 Supervision, competency and quality management under the Tax Agent Services Act 2009
• TPB(I) 49/2024 Keeping your clients informed.

You can also refer to our complementary web content and frequently asked questions – see ‘Further information’ section below for links to these resources.

Our compliance approach

We will take a pragmatic and practical approach when enforcing compliance with these new obligations for all tax practitioners who are trying to do the right thing. Our compliance approach has always been to achieve compliance through education and support, with investigations and sanctions reserved for the high risk and serious cases of non-compliance.

Webinars

On 12 June we held a webinar Complying with the Code Determination where our Chair, Peter de Cure AM shared some practical guidance and examples on the new obligations. Our webinar resources hub also has recordings, copies of the presentation slides and useful hyperlinks documents for our Code Determination webinar series which includes:

• Code Determination guidance - false or misleading statements
• Code Determination guidance - upholding and promoting ethical standards and keeping clients informed
• Code Determination guidance – conflicts of interest and confidentiality with government, keeping proper client records, competency, and quality management systems.

Further information

• FAQs - Code Determination
• Upholding and promoting the ethical standards of the tax profession
• Code obligations when making or preparing statements
• Code obligations when undertaking activities for or in dealings with government
• Obligation to keep proper client records
• Supervision, competency and quality management
• Keeping your clients informed.