Suitable for: Anyone who is registered for GST

Tax Difficulty: Easy

Airtax Experience: First-time users

Time to read: 2-3 minutes

Common Airtax warning messages and what to do

As you’re working on your Airtax BAS lodgement, you may come across one of our features which has been implemented to help ensure you’re lodging accurately: warning messages. In this article, we will explain the circumstances in which you may see these warnings appear, what they mean, and what you should do about them.

What does the warning message look like?

These appear next to certain expense categories and are a red triangle with an exclamation mark within it.

What should I do if I see a warning message next to an expense?

1. If you’ve set a 100% business use percentage:
   • Consider what this means: you are claiming that you did not have any personal use for this expense. This is fine if true, however, you need to feel confident that you would be able to prove or explain this to the ATO if they were to question your lodgement. For example, in order to claim a 100% business use percentage for an expense item that relates to the running of your car (e.g. fuel, or car insurance), you should have a logbook which proves you have not used the vehicle for personal use.

2.  If the expense amount you are claiming is high relative to your income:

   • Simply check and make sure that the expense is accurate, and that you have a tax invoice/receipt to support your claim.
   • Perhaps also check to make sure you have listed the correct amount of income, and that you aren’t missing anything. You can include other sources of business income that you have earned under this in the ‘Other Income’ field

   (Do not include salary income, or any income not earned through your ABN on your BAS)

            

   If you have done one or both of the above checks, and the warning message is still appearing, you are welcome to proceed with completing your BAS. The warning messages will not stop you from submitting the BAS.

Please note: these messages are designed to help ensure you are not making any mistakes. They are not telling you that you have done something wrong, or that there is an error that absolutely needs to be fixed. You should not feel as though you can only submit your BAS when there are no warning messages. As long as you are sure your BAS is correct, and you are comfortable explaining your claims if the ATO were to question them, there is no problem submitting your BAS.

Not sure your claims are correct?

If you feel like you need more detailed guidance as you complete your BAS, you can book a phone appointment to speak to a qualified tax specialist through our Business Assist service. You’ll be able to talk about any warning messages you see, and your tax specialist will help ensure your claims are correct.

Feedback from our users suggests that this service is a great way for you to learn and understand how the Airtax BAS form works, so that you can lodge independently in future periods. You can find out more about Business Assist, and instructions to book an appointment here

What you’ve learned:

• • What the BAS warning messages are, and what they mean
  • The circumstances in which you may see these warnings
  • What you should do when you see a warning message on your BAS
  • How you can get more detailed help with your Airtax BAS lodgement

Where you can get more help:

• Feel free to search for other topics in the Help Centre
• If interested, consider using our Business Assist service to discuss with a qualified Tax Specialist about your BAS (recommended for first time users)

• If you want to speak to someone about your current Airtax income tax return, book in a Tax Assist call or Tax Professional call with a tax specialist.