Accounting & tax — Sole traders
Sole Trader Tax Return Accountant
Sole-trader and ABN tax returns prepared by a Chartered Accountant and registered tax agent — the business schedule, deductions and substantiation, GST/BAS and PAYG instalment coordination, and superannuation for the self-employed, prepared alongside your individual return as one engagement.
- ABN sole traders
- Contractors
- Freelancers
- Business schedule
- GST & BAS
- PAYG instalments
Eternity Group Accountants is a registered tax agent (TPB 25523469). Information on this page is general in nature and does not constitute personal tax advice. Before acting, consider whether the information is appropriate to your circumstances and seek advice from a qualified tax professional.
Scope of work
What's included in your sole trader tax return.
Your business and your personal tax handled as one engagement — the business schedule, the deductions that stand up to scrutiny, the GST and instalment moving parts, and superannuation for the self-employed, all reconciled into a single individual return.
Business schedule within your individual return
Income · expenses · depreciation
Your business income and the expenses that relate to earning it are prepared as the business schedule inside your individual income tax return — reconciled against your bank, invoicing and any BAS already lodged, with depreciation on business assets brought in. Because a sole trader and the individual are the same taxpayer, this sits within one return rather than a separate entity lodgement.
Deductions & substantiation
Home office · motor vehicle · tools
Work-related claims reviewed properly — a home-office portion, motor vehicle running costs for business travel, tools and equipment, and other expenses incurred in earning your income. As a general matter these need to relate to the business rather than be private, and you generally need records to support them, so we test each claim against your circumstances rather than guessing.
GST / BAS & PAYG instalment coordination
Registration · activity statements · instalments
Where you are GST-registered, the BAS position is reconciled so the annual return and the activity statements tell the same story. We also coordinate any PAYG instalments — generally pre-payments of tax on business income — so they are credited correctly at year end. Whether GST registration applies, and how instalments are calculated, depends on your circumstances and the relevant rules.
Superannuation for the self-employed
Concessional contributions · timing
Sole traders generally fund their own superannuation rather than receiving employer contributions, and personal concessional contributions can, in general terms, be deductible where the contribution rules and caps are met. Whether contributing is worthwhile, and how much, depends on your circumstances and the relevant rules, so we raise it as part of the return rather than leaving it for later.
Suited to
Sole traders we prepare returns for.
ABN sole traders
Anyone running a business under their own ABN — from consultants and allied-health practitioners to online sellers and service providers. The business schedule, deductions, GST position and your individual return are prepared together so the whole picture lines up in one engagement.
Contractors & freelancers
Contractors and freelancers invoicing clients directly, often with irregular income and a mix of work and private expenses to untangle. We sort the deductible from the personal, reconcile any GST, and keep an eye on whether the personal services income rules apply to your circumstances.
BAS & GSTTradespeople
On-the-tools operators with tools and equipment, a work vehicle, materials and travel between sites. We work through vehicle running costs, depreciation on plant and tools, and the substantiation those claims generally require so the return is defensible rather than optimistic.
Side-business & second-income earners
People earning salary alongside a growing side business — the side income, its expenses and any GST threshold question folded into the same individual return as the day job, so both income streams and the overall tax position are reflected in one place.
Process
From records to lodgement — one clear sequence.
A document-driven engagement where you always know what is next, what the fixed fee covers and when lodgement happens. We also coordinate with the rest of your accounting work — see all our accounting services.
Records & reconciliation
We gather your business records — bank data, invoicing, expense receipts and any BAS already lodged — and reconcile them so business income and expenses are settled before any deduction work begins. Clean source data is what keeps the return defensible.
Business schedule & deductions review
The business schedule is prepared and each deduction is reviewed against your circumstances and the substantiation behind it — home office, motor vehicle, tools and depreciation — then folded into your individual return alongside your other income.
Lodgement & next-year planning
The return is finalised and lodged through the tax-agent portal. We then flag the year ahead — any PAYG instalment obligations and superannuation contribution timing — so the next year is planned rather than reactive. This is general guidance, not personal advice.
Frequently asked questions
Sole trader tax return — common questions.
As a general guide, a sole trader can generally claim expenses that directly relate to earning their business income — things like materials, tools, software subscriptions, motor vehicle running costs for work travel, and a portion of home-running costs where part of the home is used for the business. Two conditions usually matter: the expense must relate to earning your assessable income rather than being private, and you generally need records to substantiate it. What is deductible, and to what extent, depends on your circumstances and the relevant rules, so we review each claim rather than applying a blanket assumption.
Related
Where this fits in the bigger picture
A sole trader return connects to the rest of your tax and business position — your individual return, any partnership you are part of, the BAS cycle, advisory as the business grows, and lending where it becomes relevant.
- Tax & Accounting
Individual tax return
A sole trader return is part of your individual return — salary, investment income and personal deductions all sit in the same lodgement as the business schedule.
- Tax & Accounting
Partnership tax return
If you run the business with someone else rather than solo, a partnership return distributes the net result to each partner, who then reports their share in their own return.
- Business Services
BAS preparation & lodgement
For GST-registered sole traders, the quarterly or monthly BAS cycle prepared and reconciled so the activity statements and the annual return stay consistent.
- Business Services
Business advisory & Virtual CFO
As the business grows, management reporting, cashflow and an outsourced finance function that sits over the annual return and supports decisions through the year.
- Guide
Guide: sole trader tax deductions
A plain-English explainer on what sole traders can and cannot generally claim — the basic rule, common categories, home-office and motor-vehicle methods, and the records to keep.
- Guide
Guide: Australian tax brackets
How the resident income-tax brackets, the tax-free threshold and marginal vs effective rates work — useful background for sole-trader income. General information.
- Mortgage Broking
Self-employed home loans
Once your returns are prepared, the same practitioner can scope a self-employed home loan separately and on its own merits — a caveated option, not a sales pitch.