Need help?
If you are having trouble creating or accessing your report, please call us on 1800 735 060 (+61 2 6252 8814 overseas) Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm AEST.
You can also find help for technical difficulties on the ABS Business Reporting Troubleshooting page, including help with passwords and navigating through ABS Business Reporting.
Ready to complete your report?
Click the link below to log into ABS Business Reporting:
ABS Business Reporting
ABS Business Reporting offers a new way for small and medium businesses to report financial data to the ABS.
We know it can be difficult and time consuming for small businesses to complete ABS survey forms. This is why we are working to make it easier for small businesses to provide us with their information.
ABS Business Reporting is a web application where businesses can connect securely to their accounting software to prepare a report to submit to the ABS. Once they authorise a connection, businesses will see information from their accounts to help complete a report more easily.
ABS Business Reporting is open to eligible businesses from March 2023 as a trial to gather feedback and refine the process for wider use.
The March trial is open to small businesses using Xero accounting software. ABS Business Reporting will expand to integrate with other accounting software in the future.
If you have not yet received an invitation for the trial and would like to take part, please email deregulation@abs.gov.au.
Information from small business can inform big decisions
What you report to the ABS for a small business will feed into major economic indicators, such as Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and contribute to statistics in Australian National Accounts: National Income, Expenditure and Product and Business Indicators, Australia.
These statistics are used by industry, government and individual businesses to understand what is happening in Australia’s economy and to make informed decisions which may affect your community or business.
Small businesses play a critical role in the economy and are essential for local communities. They have specific characteristics and can be impacted by events in different ways to larger businesses. Information reported to the ABS by small businesses ensures our statistics tell the whole story.
Visit www.abs.gov.au to see more about what statistics ABS produce.
Your data is important, but we understand your time is important too
This is why the ABS has developed ABS Business Reporting to make it quicker and easier for small businesses to report.
Why we need your information by the due date
Industry, business and government rely on the timely availability of key economic indicators to make decisions which impact Australian businesses and communities.
We need your information by the due date to make sure these indicators are as accurate and timely as possible.
We recognise that your accounts may not be final at the time your ABS report is due. Near final accounts are still helpful to produce timely statistics. Manual entries may be used to include estimated values not yet final in your accounting software. We also encourage you to use the comments fields to indicate if accounts are not complete or final at the time of reporting.
If your ability to report by the due date has been impacted by recent events, please contact us on 1800 735 060 (+61 2 6252 8814 overseas) and we will assist you.
Your information is safe, secure, and confidential
We take the security of the information you provide to us very seriously.
ABS Business Reporting uses a number of tools to protect your information including website security, encryption and firewalls. The system is secured and approved in compliance with standards provided by the Australian Cyber Security Centre and Commonwealth Government guidelines for interacting securely online.
Your completed report and personal information will remain strictly confidential to the ABS. Your information is used to calculate statistics, and these are only released as aggregated data, which groups together information from a number of businesses. Information is collected through ABS Business Reporting under the authority of the Census and Statistics Act 1905. Under the Act, ABS staff are mandated to maintain the confidentiality and privacy of information provided.
We comply with the Privacy Act 1988 and Australian Privacy Principles. If you believe we have breached these principles, please see the information on how to lodge a complaint about privacy matters, contained within our privacy policy.
Further information
How businesses are selected to report to the ABS
Businesses chosen to report to the ABS are randomly selected. Each business chosen represents others that are similar in size, industry and location. Together, chosen businesses represent the wider business community in Australia. Including a range of businesses means statistics produced by the ABS accurately reflect business in Australia.
Accessing previously submitted figures using ABS Business Reporting
The first time you use ABS Business Reporting, you will not be able to see information reported previously.
After reporting for one quarter using ABS Business Reporting, you will be able to download a copy of previous reports from the ‘Dashboard’ screen.
Other ways to report to the ABS
ABS Business Reporting is the quickest and easiest way for small business to report to the ABS. If you would like to hear about other options for reporting, please call us on 1800 735 060 (+61 2 6252 8814 overseas).
What to report in ABS Business Reporting
Questions asked in ABS Business Reporting
Questions asked in Business Reporting include:
- Income
- Employment
- Labour costs and other expenses
- Operating profit
- Inventories.
Sales and services income
Please report all gross income generated from the sale of goods or provision of services from all state/territories in which your business operates. This excludes the Goods and Services Tax (GST), and is net of any discounts given.
Please include all sales and service income that contributes to the business’ gross turnover, such as:
- Sales or transfers to related businesses or to overseas branches of this business
- For long term contracts include progress payments billed
- Export sales (f.o.b.)
- Rent, leasing and hiring income
- Income from consulting services
- Repair and service income and fees
- Contract, subcontract and commission income
- Management fees/charges from related and unrelated businesses
- Sponsorship income
- Income from operating leases
- Delivery charges separately invoiced or itemised to customers
- Commission earned from providing the service of travel bookings
- Total income earned from tours directly provided
- Commission earned from providing services
- Income earned from the provision of labour hire or recruitment services.
Please exclude:
- Excise and duties received (on behalf of the government)
- Sales of assets
- Export freight charges
- Interest income (include this in Interest income)
- Income from finance leases
- Payments received under hire purchase arrangements
- Royalties income (include this in Remaining income)
- Natural resource royalties income (include this in Remaining income)
Reporting labour costs
For labour costs, please report:
- All Pay as you go (PAYG) wages and salaries, including provisions for employee entitlements - gross (i.e. before tax)
Please do not report:
- Payments made to another business for the supply of staff on a fee or contract basis, where the staff entitlements are paid by the business supplying the employees
- Any costs incurred by your business in the conduct of its own recruitment processes (e.g. payment directly to newspapers for running job vacancy advertisements)
- Payments made to contractors or sub-contractors operating under their own ABN
For superannuation, please only include employer contributions paid into superannuation. This does not include personal superannuation contributions for business owners not drawing a wage.
Provisions for employee entitlements
Provisions for employee entitlements includes wages, annual leave, sick leave, superannuation contributions, and long service leave. These liabilities are measured at the present value of management’s best estimate of the expenditure required to settle the present obligation.
People working for the business under contract
Contractors and subcontractors who are separate businesses (i.e. have their own ABN and are paid on a fee for service or commission only basis) should not be counted in the Wages section of your report.
If your business paid another business for contract staff, and those persons were on the payroll of the other business, they should not be counted in the Wages section of your report.
People employed on a fixed term contract; e.g. temporary staff or workforce, should only be included if they were paid through the payroll during the reference pay period and Pay as you go (PAYG) tax was deducted for them.
Inventories and how to report them
Inventories include all materials, work in progress and finished goods owned by the business, whether held at locations of the business or elsewhere (except overseas).
Inventories should be reported at book value at the end of the reference quarter and split into the following three categories:
- Raw materials - goods that a business holds with the intention of using to produce other goods, or in rendering services. For example, iron ore to produce steel (produce a good) or raw food to make a restaurant meal (provide a service).
- Work-in-progress - goods that still require work to reach the condition they are to be sold in, such as partially assembled machinery. The value of work-in-progress inventories should be reported net of progress payments billed.
- Finished goods - goods that are to be sold in their current condition, including goods for resale.
Inventories do not include depreciable assets of the business or inventories held overseas.
How to report employment
Employment is a headcount of all people who worked for the business as proprietors, partners, salaried directors, or other employees in the reference pay period. It excludes contractors, as well as casual, or seasonal employees, who are on the payroll, but did not work during this pay period.
Reporting where there have been changes to your business structure
Reporting for businesses sold before or during the quarter
If the business was sold before the beginning of the quarter, please call us on 1800 735 060 (+61 2 6252 8814 overseas) to let us know.
If the business was sold during the reference period and you still have access to the accounts up to the sale date, report what you have and provide a comment to indicate the date of sale. Please also indicate the name of the new business owners if known.
If you no longer have access to the accounts, us on 1800 735 060 (+61 2 6252 8814 overseas) to advise us of the date of sale, and the name of the new business owners if known.
Reporting for a business that was still operating but did not trade during the quarter
If a business was operating but did not trade during the quarter, you will still need to submit your report with zero figures. A comment to indicate the business did not trade will also help us to understand your situation. Mapping your accounts in ABS Business Reporting will produce a report with zeros in all fields. When the business resumes trade in future, the mapping you have done can be reused.
Reporting for a business that has gone into liquidation or administration during the quarter
If a business has gone into liquidation or administration during the quarter, please call us on 1800 735 060 (+61 2 6252 8814 overseas) to advise the name of the liquidator or administrator.
Accessing previously submitted figures using ABS Business Reporting
The first time you use ABS Business Reporting, you will not be able to see information reported previously.
After reporting for one quarter using ABS Business Reporting, you will be able to download a copy of previous reports from the ‘Dashboard’ screen.
Accessibility
We are committed to providing access to ABS Business Reporting to the widest possible audience.
We are working to comply with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 to Level AA, which describe how to make web content more usable and accessible for everyone. We want to provide our information for everyone, including people with a disability.
If there's information you need that you can’t get, please contact us on 1800 735 060 (+61 2 6252 8814 overseas).
Known issues
ABS Business Reporting is currently a beta release. Trials for March and June quarters will help us to identify issues and improvements. Issues we are aware of include:
- Tablets and mobile phones are not supported and are not recommended for use with ABS Business Reporting.
- ABS Business Reporting is a beta release and has not been widely tested with assistive technologies.
We expect these issues to be resolved in future releases of ABS Business Reporting and will provide updates here as we resolve these issues.
Please contact us on 1800 735 060 (+61 2 6252 8814 overseas) if you are experiencing issues accessing our content or forms.
Help and support services
Help in your language
To speak to someone in your language please call the Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS National) on 131 450.
Blind or have low vision
For people who are blind or have low vision, ABS Business Reporting is compatible with screen readers.
Deaf or find it hard to hear or speak with people
If you have hearing or speech loss visit the National Relay Service website or phone 1300 555 727 then ask for 1300 135 070.
Assistive technologies
ABS Business Reporting has been tested with JAWS 2021 on PC running Windows 10.
Supported browsers and devices
We recommend accessing ABS Business Reporting using the latest version of the following compatible browsers:
- Microsoft Edge
- Google Chrome
- Mozilla Firefox
- Safari
Tablets and mobile phones are not supported and are not recommended for use with ABS Business Reporting.
Feedback
Providing feedback about ABS Business Reporting
ABS Business Reporting is a new tool we are continuing to develop. We want to hear about your experience to help us improve.
Once you have submitted your report, we will be in touch to arrange a short interview to hear your views. If you would like to contact us sooner, please call us on 1800 735 060 (+61 2 6252 8814 overseas).