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Making adjustments on your activity statements

How to make changes to current or past activity statements to increase or decrease the amount of GST to be paid.

Last updated 1 June 2020

You may have to make changes on your current activity statement to increase or decrease the amount of GST you must pay for a reporting period. These changes are known as 'adjustments'.

There are two types of adjustments:

  • increasing adjustments, which increase how much GST you must pay for a reporting period
  • decreasing adjustments, which decrease how much GST you must pay for a reporting period.

Making GST adjustments is different from correcting GST errors made on an earlier activity statement. A GST adjustment relates to a reported sale or purchase that was correct at the time of lodgment, whereas a GST error relates to an amount that was incorrect at the time of lodgment.

Example

Johnny K Entertainment intends to hold a concert in April. In February, they sell 2,000 tickets for $110 each including GST. They remit the $20,000 GST in their February monthly activity statement.

In March, they cancel the concert and refund all ticket holders $110 each. In their March activity statement they include a decreasing adjustment of $20,000 (1/11th of the refunded amount).

End of example

See also  

An adjustment event may occur on a sale or a purchase.

Work out what type of adjustment to follow.

Generally, you need a valid adjustment note before you can make a decreasing adjustment.

Work out how to make adjustments through different methods.

QC17537