Financial hardship - what you need to know

What happens next

Once you provide us with the necessary information and your request is approved or finalised, your refund is generally processed within five (5) working days. We will contact you if we require further information. Hardship processing turnaround times may be affected if you have debts with the ATO or other government departments such as Department of Human Services - Centrelink or Child Support and any refund will be reduced accordingly. Hardship processing turnaround times may also be longer if there are multiple returns to be processed, for example, more than one year's tax return.

Applications for hardship processing do not guarantee a refund and may result in a debt if you have debts with the ATO or other government departments.