GST Registration Threshold in Australia

The GST registration threshold is the annual turnover level at which a business is legally required to register for GST with the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). The threshold has been $75,000 since GST was introduced on 1 July 2000 and has not changed since.

Once your business reaches this threshold — or you reasonably expect it will — you must register within 21 days. Your registration is effective from the date you exceeded the threshold, not the date you applied.

Your GST turnover is your gross business income (excluding GST) over a rolling 12-month period. The ATO uses two measures, and you must register if either one reaches the threshold:

Turnover includes:

• All taxable sales (standard 10% GST applies)
• GST-free sales (e.g. exports, most basic food, medical services, education)
• Sales connected with your enterprise

Turnover excludes:

• Input-taxed sales (e.g. residential rent, financial supplies like interest and share trading)
• Sales not connected with your enterprise
• Private or hobby sales
• The GST component of any sales (turnover is always GST-exclusive)
• Sales of capital assets (e.g. selling a business vehicle)

You are required to register for GST if any of the following apply:

• Your current turnover is $75K+ — your rolling 12-month turnover has already reached or exceeded the threshold. Register within 21 days.
• Your projected turnover will hit $75K+ — you reasonably expect your turnover for the current month plus the next 11 months to reach the threshold. Register before exceeding it.
• You drive a taxi, ride-sourcing vehicle, or limousine — you must register before your first fare, regardless of how much you earn. This includes Uber, Didi, Ola, and similar platforms.
• You are a non-profit with turnover above $150K — the higher threshold applies to organisations that are registered charities, gift-deductible entities, or government schools.

If your turnover is below the threshold, you can still choose to register. Whether this makes sense depends on your business model, your customers, and your expense profile.

Rule of thumb: If most of your customers are businesses (B2B), voluntary registration usually makes sense — your clients can claim back the GST you charge, so it does not affect their cost. If most of your customers are individuals (B2C) and your expenses are low, staying unregistered keeps your prices lower and avoids admin overhead.

Once registered, you take on ongoing obligations. Missing BAS deadlines or failing to charge GST can result in penalties and interest charges.

Most small businesses lodge BAS quarterly. The due date is the 28th of the month after each quarter ends. If you lodge electronically, you get an extra 2 weeks for Q1, Q3, and Q4 (but not Q2, because its due date already includes a one-month extension).

You can cancel your GST registration if your GST turnover falls below $75,000 (or $150,000 for non-profits) and you are not required to be registered for another reason (e.g. taxi/ride-sourcing).

Key rules for cancellation:

• If you voluntarily registered, you must wait at least 12 months before cancelling
• Apply to cancel within 21 days of no longer being required to be registered
• Lodge a final BAS for the period up to your cancellation date
• You may need to pay GST on business assets you hold at cancellation (as the ATO treats these as a "deemed sale")
• If you close your business entirely, cancel your GST registration within 21 days of stopping business activities

If you fail to register for GST when required, the ATO can:

• Register you automatically and backdate your registration to the date you were required to register
• Assess you for unpaid GST on all sales made since that date — even if you did not charge GST to your customers
• Charge a failure to register penalty, which is calculated based on the amount of GST you should have collected
• Apply general interest charges (GIC) on any unpaid amounts

In practice, the ATO is more lenient with businesses that self-report late registration compared to those discovered during an audit. If you realise you should have registered earlier, contact the ATO promptly.