Quick answer
The ATO can report a business's tax debt to credit reporting bureaus if the business has an ABN, isn't an excluded entity, owes $100,000 or more that's been outstanding for over 90 days, isn't effectively engaging with the ATO, and has no active Tax Ombudsman complaint about the reporting. It sends a written notice first, and you have 28 days to act. Paying in full or entering and keeping to a payment plan prevents or removes the listing.
Key points
- The trigger is a business with an ABN owing $100,000 or more in tax that's been outstanding for over 90 days.
- The ATO sends a written notice first; then you get 28 days to respond.
- A payment plan you're complying with counts as effectively engaging, which prevents disclosure.
- Once reported, the listing is removed when you pay in full or effectively engage.
- Cash-flow difficulty alone generally isn't treated as an exceptional circumstance.
For years, a tax debt was something between a business and the ATO. That’s no longer always true. Under the ATO’s disclosure rules, a large enough overdue debt can end up on the business’s credit report, where suppliers, landlords and lenders can see it. If your business carries significant tax debt, understanding the trigger — and the 28-day window before it’s pulled — could protect your ability to borrow when you most need to.
When can the ATO report a business tax debt?
The ATO may disclose a business’s tax debt information to credit reporting bureaus when all of the following are true:
| Criterion | What it means |
|---|---|
| ABN and not excluded | The business has an ABN and isn’t a deductible gift recipient, complying super fund, registered charity or government entity |
| Debt threshold | $100,000 or more, outstanding for over 90 days |
| Not engaging | The business isn’t effectively engaging with the ATO about the debt |
| No Ombudsman complaint | No complaint about the ATO’s intention to report is open with the Tax Ombudsman |
Before disclosing, the ATO sends a written notice. You then get 28 days to respond.
What counts as “effectively engaging”?
This is the part that matters most, because it’s how most businesses stop a disclosure. The ATO treats you as effectively engaging if you have, among other things:
- a payment plan that you’re complying with;
- you’ve applied to be released from the tax debt;
- you’ve lodged an objection to a tax decision that’s still being considered;
- a review still under way at the Administrative Review Tribunal, or an appeal before a court; or
- a Tax Ombudsman complaint about the debt that’s still open.
A payment plan is the most common route. Businesses owing $200,000 or less can usually set one up themselves online or through the ATO’s self-help phone line; above that, or in more complex situations, you’ll need to call.
What doesn’t stop a disclosure?
The ATO can defer disclosure in exceptional circumstances outside your control — the examples it gives include family tragedy, serious illness and natural disasters. But it’s clear that tight cash flow or financial hardship usually won’t count as exceptional circumstances on their own. Hoping for leniency because times are tight isn’t a strategy.
Why does a disclosure matter so much?
A listed tax debt is visible to anyone who checks your business’s credit report through the bureaus the ATO works with. The ATO lists six, including Equifax, Experian and CreditorWatch. In practice that can mean:
- Suppliers tightening trade terms or asking for payment upfront.
- Landlords hesitating over a new lease or renewal.
- Banks and unsecured lenders declining or reducing applications, because a listed tax debt is a clear signal of cash-flow strain.
- Customers on larger contracts seeing it in their own due diligence.
In other words, the listing can make the underlying cash-flow problem harder to solve.
If you’ve received a notice: a 28-day plan
General steps — your accountant should confirm what fits your situation.
Days 1–3: Confirm the facts. Check the amount and which accounts it relates to. Make sure lodgements are up to date, because unlodged returns and activity statements complicate every option.
Days 3–10: Pick your route. Broadly there are three:
- Enter a payment plan and keep to it. Cheapest if the ATO accepts terms you can genuinely meet. Remember that ATO interest charges keep running, and those incurred from 1 July 2025 aren’t tax-deductible.
- Pay in full from existing resources. Cash reserves, a refund, or selling a non-core asset.
- Pay in full with borrowed funds. Property-secured borrowing, such as a caveat loan, can clear a large debt quickly and pay the ATO directly.
Days 10–25: Execute. Set up the plan, or arrange the funds. If borrowing, allow time for valuation and signing — and don’t leave it until day 27.
Before day 28: Confirm with the ATO. Make sure the ATO has recorded the payment or plan so the disclosure doesn’t proceed.
Weighing up option three? The Caveat Loan Feasibility Checker has an ATO-debt setting, and you can talk to a specialist about paying the ATO directly.
When is borrowing better than a payment plan?
Borrowing costs money, so it has to earn its keep. It tends to make sense when:
- A plan isn’t available on workable terms, perhaps because of previous defaults or the size of the debt.
- Other pressure is building — a director penalty notice or garnishee action, for example. Our ATO debt page covers how those interact.
- You need a clean credit report soon, because a lease, tender or bank refinance depends on it.
- There’s a clear exit, such as a property sale, a refinance once the listing is gone, or a large receivable.
A payment plan tends to be better when the debt is manageable from ongoing cash flow, no other escalation is happening and you don’t need your credit report clean in the short term.
What happens after a debt has been reported?
The ATO says your tax debt information is removed from a bureau’s credit report when you no longer meet the criteria — for example, once you’ve paid in full or started effectively engaging with the ATO about the debt. Keep evidence of payment or your plan, and check your business credit report afterwards to confirm the update.
A past listing doesn’t automatically shut the door on property-secured finance. Caveat lenders assess equity and exit first, and consider credit history case by case — see caveat loans with bad credit.
An illustrative example
Illustrative only.
A Melbourne wholesale business owes the ATO $185,000, with $140,000 of it more than 90 days overdue. A notice of intent to disclose arrives. The business had a payment plan last year but defaulted when a major customer paid late. The owners are about to renew the lease on their warehouse, and the landlord will check credit. They take a caveat loan over their home, pay the ATO in full within two weeks, and plan to repay the loan from a large seasonal receivable and a refinance. The debt is never listed, and the lease renewal goes through.
What should you check on your business credit report?
Whether or not you’ve had a notice, it’s worth knowing what your business credit report says. Several of the bureaus the ATO works with offer business credit reports. When you look at yours, check:
- Whether any tax debt is listed, and whether the amount and date look right.
- Other defaults or court actions against the business.
- Credit enquiries — a run of recent applications can worry lenders on its own.
- Company details such as directors and registered address, which should match ASIC’s records.
If a tax debt listing is still showing after you’ve paid or entered a plan you’re complying with, contact the ATO’s disclosure enquiries line and the bureau with your evidence. Getting it corrected can matter for a lease, a tender or a refinance.
How does this interact with other ATO action?
Disclosure is one of several tools the ATO can use on overdue debt, and they often arrive together. A director penalty notice can make directors personally liable for unpaid PAYG withholding, GST and super guarantee charge, and the ATO can issue garnishee notices to banks and others who owe you money. If you’re facing more than one of these, deal with them as a single plan rather than one letter at a time. Our ATO debt page sets out how a property-secured loan can address several of them at once.
Getting ahead of the ATO? We can move within your 28 days
If you’ve received a notice, or you can see the $100,000 and 90-day marks approaching, now is the time to decide — not day 27.
Enquiring takes about a minute and there’s no credit check involved. Your information isn’t passed around to a crowd of lenders; one specialist reads it and calls to go through the ATO figures, the property and the exit. Please give us the exact amounts and the date on any notice — the timetable depends on them.
Frequently asked questions
Which credit bureaus does the ATO report to?
The ATO lists six credit reporting bureaus that have signed agreements with it, including Equifax, Experian and CreditorWatch. The full list is on the ATO's disclosure page.
Does the ATO warn me before reporting my debt?
Yes. The ATO sends a written notice if it intends to disclose, and you then get 28 days to respond, for example by paying or setting up a payment plan.
Can I stop the disclosure with a payment plan?
Yes, if you enter a payment plan and comply with its terms. The ATO treats that as effectively engaging with it, which is one of the ways to avoid disclosure.
Will the listing come off if I pay the debt?
The ATO says your tax debt information is removed from the bureau's report when you no longer meet the criteria — for example, when you pay in full or effectively engage with the ATO to manage the debt.
Does financial hardship stop the ATO reporting?
The ATO can defer disclosure in exceptional circumstances outside your control, such as a natural disaster or serious illness, but says cash-flow issues or financial hardship generally aren't considered exceptional circumstances.
Can I still borrow if my tax debt has been reported?
Often, yes, particularly against property. Caveat lenders focus on equity and exit, and clearing the ATO debt with the loan can be part of the plan.