ATO is providing targeted support to eligible businesses that are unable to meet their payment obligations due to high fuel costs.

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) recognises that high fuel costs are affecting some businesses and will provide targeted support to eligible businesses that are unable to meet their payment obligations for three months, until 30 June 2026:

• Streamlined access to more flexible payment plan arrangements, including longer payment terms, no upfront payment, and access to general interest charge (GIC) remission where payment and lodgment conditions are met.
• Remission of GIC and other penalties: high fuel costs will be a relevant factor in consideration of additional requests for remission.
• Support to vary pay as you go (PAYG) instalments where there has been a reduction in taxable income.

During this period, the ATO’s compliance approach will be guided by careful consideration of taxpayers’ circumstances and the current environment.

Businesses and their tax professionals can now assess their eligibility and notify the ATO of their interest in accessing a tailored payment plan and intention to vary PAYG instalments through the ATO’s online services. The ATO will then contact these businesses or their representatives with more information and next steps.

The ATO will continue to monitor the situation and communicate whether it plans to continue or change its approach beyond 30 June 2026 as appropriate.

As an eligible taxpayer you can access the ATO fuel response payment plan with the following conditions:

• No upfront payment
• A 3-year payment plan period of 36 equal monthly instalments
• General interest charge remission (GIC). We will make a decision to remit any general interest charge that has accrued from the time of your application to the date of the third monthly instalment provided you
  • pay all instalments agreed under the payment plan for 3 months
  • bring any outstanding lodgments up to date in that period.

Note: The ATO fuel response payment plan is available by application until 30 June 2026. You will not have to make a further application for GIC remission for this period.

The ATO will continue to assess the situation and support options available. Updates will be made to this information if the ATO will continue or change this support beyond 30 June 2026.

What to do before accessing the ATO fuel response payment plan

Before applying you must:

• Consider whether you are eligible for an ATO fuel response payment plan
• Gather information and evidence supporting your eligibility.

If you are not eligible, you should prioritise the following actions:

• Pay your employees their wages and ensure you pay their super guarantee entitlements as a priority.
• Pay your creditors so they can pay their employee entitlements.
• Keep up to date with your lodgments and if you are expecting a refund, lodge as soon as you can.
• If you owe money, pay what you can as soon as you can. For the remaining debt you can setup a normal payment plan through online services.
• Contact your registered tax or BAS agent to discuss the options that are right for you.

Eligibility to apply for the ATO fuel response payment plan

You are eligible to apply for the ATO fuel response payment plan if you are an ABN holder who meets the following 4 criteria:

1. You have experienced an increase in business operating costs and these costs are either
   1. directly attributable to higher fuel costs
   2. indirectly attributable to high fuel costs because of increased transport, logistics or other supply chain costs.
2. You have a new tax debt, or you are unable to service an existing tax debt.
3. You can demonstrate a reduced capacity to pay due to the high fuel prices. This is separate from a general downturn in business or ordinary cashflow issues. This means that if fuel prices hadn’t been so high, you anticipate you would have been able to meet your payment obligations, including your instalments under existing payment plans.
4. Your lodgments are up to date within 3 months of the payment plan being set up. We may cancel your payment plan if lodgments are not up to date within this period. Up-to-date lodgments are also required for us to make a decision to remit GIC under the fuel response payment plans.

The ATO fuel response payment plan is available by application until 30 June 2026.

You can review the Privacy notice for the ATO fuel response payment plans.

Reach out to our team if you need assistance navigating your way through this opportunity from the ATO in this challenging period of fuel insecurity.

Contact Indigo Financial on (08) 8212 8585 if you need help with any of your accounting, taxation and business development needs.

Note: The material and contents provided in this publication are informative in nature only. It is not intended to be advice and you should not act specifically on the basis of this information alone. If expert assistance is required, professional advice should be obtained.