End of financial year checklist for small businesses before 30 June

An end of financial year checklist for small businesses before 30 June helps business owners review tax planning, payroll records, superannuation, BAS, GST, stock, deductions and cash flow before the financial year closes. EOFY is not just about lodging a tax return later. It is the final opportunity to make practical decisions that may improve your tax position, strengthen compliance and give your business a clearer start to the new financial year. 

As 30 June approaches, small businesses have a limited window to review what has happened across the year and identify what still needs to be actioned. At Sageon, our team works closely with small to medium sized businesses to support financial accuracy, proactive tax management and long term business confidence. Explore our small business accounting services.

Start with super and payroll

Review wages, PAYG withholding, leave balances and super settings before your final June pay run so you are not trying to fix payroll data in July. If cash flow allows and you want the deduction in the current financial year, make employer super contributions early enough for the fund to receive them before 30 June rather than assuming a last-minute payment will clear in time. It is also worth checking how you will handle the shift to Payday Super from 1 July 2026, especially because the ATO says the Small Business Superannuation Clearing House closes on 30 June 2026.

For the rules behind that, check the ATO’s super guarantee rates, review the ATO’s super payment due dates and read the ATO’s Payday Super overview. If you want hands-on help, tighten your payroll and super workflow with Sageon.

Reconcile payroll to STP

The ATO requires an end-of-year finalisation declaration by 14 July each year, so the cleaner your payroll is before 30 June, the less rushed your July becomes. Check that gross wages, PAYG withheld, allowances, director fees and super accruals agree across payroll reports, the general ledger and your STP data. It is a simple review, but it reduces the risk of amendments, employee confusion and late fixes.

For business owners who want the process tightened up before year end, get year-end compliance support from Sageon or read our BAS and payroll checklist.

Look hard at receivables and bad debts

EOFY is the point where business owners should separate slow-paying accounts from debts that are genuinely unlikely to be recovered. The ATO says you need to decide to write off a bad debt and record that decision in writing before the end of the income year if you want to claim the deduction.

If your business accounts on an accruals basis, this is also the time to review your debtors and creditors on 30 June. Done properly, this is not just a tax exercise; it gives you a clearer picture of cash flow heading into July. If cash flow visibility is a wider issue, build stronger forecasting with Sageon’s CFO support. To confirm the technical rules, read the ATO’s bad debt guidance.

Review asset purchases before the year closes

Do not buy equipment simply for tax, but if a genuine business purchase is already planned, timing matters. For the 2025–26 income year, the ATO says eligible small businesses can immediately deduct the business-use portion of eligible depreciating assets costing less than $20,000 if they are first used, or installed ready for use, by 30 June 2026. Assets at or above that threshold generally go into the small business pool instead of being written off immediately. That makes June the right time to check open purchase orders, delivery timing and whether the asset will actually be ready for use before year end.

If you want to turn that into a broader year-end strategy rather than a rushed purchase, explore Sageon’s proactive tax planning. For the ATO detail, see the instant asset write-off rules here.

If you carry stock, review inventory properly

Under the ATO’s simplified trading stock rules, if the value of your trading stock has changed by $5,000 or less, you may not need a formal stocktake. Even so, many small businesses still benefit from checking quantities, obsolete lines, shrinkage and margin pressure before 30 June.

A cleaner stock position supports a cleaner tax result and better purchasing decisions in the new financial year. For a practical guide to the rule, check the ATO’s trading stock guidance.

After that, turn to GST and BAS.  

EOFY is a smart time to reconcile sales to bank deposits, confirm GST coding, review mixed-use expenses and make sure you have support for input tax credit claims. The ATO says lodging all BAS before lodging your tax return helps reconcile your figures, and its BAS guidance highlights reconciling sales with bank statements, using the correct GST accounting method and keeping tax invoices and GST records.

If you are a quarterly lodger, the April to June BAS is due on 28 July. If you uncover an older BAS mistake, deal with it before it turns into a bigger clean-up job. For a practical refresher, use the ATO’s BAS and GST tips and apply Sageon’s BAS workflow.

Review your structure and any trust distributions before 30 June

The ATO’s structure guidance makes it clear that sole traders, partnerships, companies and trusts all carry different tax obligations, and EOFY is the natural moment to check whether the current set-up still supports cash flow, asset protection and growth. If you operate through a trust, do not leave year-end resolutions until the last minute.

The ATO says trustee resolutions need to make beneficiaries presently entitled by 30 June, and it has also reminded closely held trusts to make sure beneficiary TFN details are in place before making distribution resolutions for 30 June 2026. If the structure question has become more commercial than administrative, talk strategy with Sageon’s tax planning team. For the official background, review the ATO’s business structure guide here and check the ATO’s trustee resolution checklist.