ATO announces closure of old tax and BAS agent portals

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) announced it has reached the end of the transition period from the old tax and BAS agent portals to Online service for agents ahead of the widely anticipated date in March next year, when myGovID is set to replace AUSkey.

“The portals have not been updated with new services for several months, and with major systems upgrades commencing shortly, the portals will soon no longer carry accurate information. Therefore, they will close at 11.30pm AEDT, Friday, 29 November 2019,” the ATO said.

According to the Tax Office, over 70 per cent of tax agents and 84 per cent of BAS agents have already transitioned to Online services for agents. If you are one of the few agents that have not transitioned, the ATO cautioned that you will need to start familiarising yourself with it now.

“The system has inbuilt help, and we have a range of support material to assist you transition.”

The ATO acknowledged, however, that some functions in Online services for agents are not yet the same or better than the tax and BAS agent portals.

“As we work on this, we continue to welcome your feedback about how we can further improve the service.”

Some portal services the ATO is working on as a priority to provide in the first half of 2020 or sooner include deceased estates, tax type summary reports, non- lodgement advice for non-individuals, and activity statement account transactions navigation.

“We will work to ensure our website is up to date with information about the services available through Online services for agents or the PLS,” the ATO said.

Online services for agents is a new secure system to access services agents use in the tax and BAS agent portals.