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Expecting a refund?

Why we may retain your refund and how we will pay your business activity statement (BAS) refund if you're due one.

Last updated 27 February 2026

When we hold a refund

From 1 January 2025, the ATO has discretionary power to retain certain refunds for up to 90 days where we don't have your financial institution details (FID).

Currently this applies to:

  • income tax refunds
  • fringe benefits tax refunds.

If we retain your refund, we'll contact you to update your FID to receive your refund by electronic fund transfer (EFT).

We'll contact you by sending:

  • a letter to your tax professional using Online services for agents
  • a message in myGov
  • an email
  • a letter.

When you update your FID, your refund will issue via EFT. EFT payments are faster and more secure than cheques.

If your details aren't updated within 90 days, your refund will issue as a cheque.

If your refund is deposited into your registered tax professional's bank account, you'll need to make sure their details are also up to date.

We'll only use these account details to deposit refunds and ATO-held super. We don't use them for direct debits.

Refunds can be retained while they are checked

Although most tax returns lodged online will be processed in 2 weeks, some may take longer to process if additional verification is required.

If you are a full self-assessment taxpayer (such as a company or superannuation fund, but not a sole trader or partnership lodging individual tax returns), we may retain your income tax refund to verify details on your tax return. This ensures the refund amount has been correctly claimed.

To complete this verification, we may request the records you used to prepare your tax return. Providing the requested information promptly will help us process your refund quicker.

If your refund is retained, you have the right to object to our decision. The objection period starts 90 days after you lodge your tax return and ends when you receive an amended assessment. If we ask you to provide additional information, we'll extend the objection period for the time you take.

For more information about when we can retain a refund, see Practice Statement Law Administration PS LA 2011/22.

How we pay your BAS refund

If you have an Australian business number (ABN) we'll pay refunds directly into your nominated financial institution account.

Generally, this account needs to be at an Australian branch and held either:

  • in your company, business or trading name (this can also be held jointly with another business or individual)
  • by a registered tax agent.

Your financial institution may offer real-time payment services using Osko or PayID.

However, although we're working towards improving available payment options, currently:

  • we can't pay using a PayID
  • refunds from us won't be real-time.

If you're expecting a BAS refund but haven't received it, see Where is my BAS refund?

Changing your account details

You can change your account details, including FID:

QC33702