BAS due dates for the 2026–27 income year: quarterly and monthly lodgement

Quarterly BAS due dates for the 2026–27 income year

Standard quarterly lodgers lodge and pay their business activity statement by the 28th day of the month after the quarter ends. The ATO sets the same four dates for every standard quarterly lodger.

Quarter 2 already has a longer window to account for the Christmas and New Year period. The ATO states that a later lodgement and payment date does not apply to Q2 on top of that.

Extension when lodging through a BAS or tax agent

Businesses that lodge quarterly activity statements electronically through a registered BAS or tax agent generally get extra time under the ATO’s BAS agent lodgment program. For 2026–27, the published concession dates are:

• Q1 (Jul–Sep 2026): 25 November 2026
• Q2 (Oct–Dec 2026): no concession — the 28 February 2027 date applies
• Q3 (Jan–Mar 2027): 26 May 2027
• Q4 (Apr–Jun 2027): 25 August 2027 (to be confirmed when the 2027–28 program is published)

Those concession dates line up with lodging and paying about four weeks after the standard due date. The concession applies only when the activity statement is lodged electronically through Online services for agents or the Practitioner Lodgment Service. A business lodging on paper, or lodging online itself without an agent, does not pick up those concession dates automatically.

Two-week online concession

Businesses that lodge their own quarterly BAS online (for example through Online services for business or the business portal) may get an extra two weeks on top of the standard due date, according to the ATO’s BAS due dates page. That concession does not apply to Q2.

Monthly BAS due dates

Businesses that report GST monthly — either because turnover is $20 million or more, or because the business has chosen to report monthly — lodge the BAS by the 21st of the following month. For the 2026–27 income year, that gives twelve due dates:

Weekend and public holiday rule

The ATO applies a single rule for every lodgement and payment date on the activity statement. If the due date falls on a weekend or public holiday, lodgement and payment are due by the next business day. A few 2026–27 dates fall on weekends — for example 21 November 2026 (a Saturday) and 28 February 2027 (a Sunday) — so the next business day applies. State and territory public holidays can also move the date for a business in that jurisdiction.

Paying the BAS

Lodgement and payment share the same due date. The ATO publishes payment options including BPAY, direct debit, credit or debit card, and electronic transfer. The payment reference number is on the BAS. Paying by the due date keeps the account free of the general interest charge.

Changing the BAS cycle

A business can usually choose to report GST monthly, quarterly or annually if the turnover rule allows. Monthly reporting is mandatory for a GST turnover of $20 million or more. Quarterly is the default for most small businesses. Annual GST reporting is only available in limited cases — for example, voluntary registrants below the $75,000 turnover threshold who have elected to pay GST annually.

Common timing issues

A few patterns show up in BAS cycles each year.

• Mixing up original and agent concession dates. The agent concession applies only when the BAS is lodged electronically through Online services for agents or the Practitioner Lodgment Service. A paper lodgement, or an online lodgement by the business itself, follows the original 28th-day due date (with the possible two-week online concession where available).
• Weekends and public holidays. Several 2026–27 dates fall on a weekend. The next business day applies for ATO purposes, but internal payment runs may need to be scheduled a day or two earlier so cleared funds reach the ATO on time.
• Christmas and New Year on Q2. Q2 already carries a longer window to cover the holiday period. The ATO does not extend it further through the agent program.
• End-of-financial-year Q4 lodgement. Q4 is due 28 July 2027, close to year-end work on the 2026–27 income tax return. Having the books clean through June helps both tasks run together.

Record keeping for a clean BAS

The ATO requires business records to be kept for at least five years, and the records that support each BAS — tax invoices, bank statements, payroll records and GST adjustments — are a core part of that. Keeping Xero or QuickBooks reconciled to the bank each month usually means the quarter closes with less rework when the BAS is prepared.

Where Nella fits

Nella is an AI finance assistant for small businesses, built by the accountants at AccTek Ltd. Once Xero or QuickBooks is connected, it surfaces BAS lodgement and payment dates in plain English alongside the numbers behind them, and does not prepare or lodge the BAS — that work sits with a registered tax or BAS agent. For a view of upcoming lodgement dates in context with cash, see BAS due dates and the cash-flow forecast feature.

Sources

• ATO u2013 Due dates for lodging and paying your BAS
• ATO u2013 BAS agent lodgment program 2026u201327
• ATO u2013 Activity statement due dates by topic
• ATO u2013 Monthly GST reporting

Nella provides financial information and education, not accounting or tax advice. Nella shows you the numbers. When a question needs professional judgement, such as a filing or a tax decision, Nella says so and points you to a qualified accountant.