ATO Community (2024)

FAQs

How do you fight ATO? ›

You have the right under tax law to go to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) or Federal Court to challenge some of our decisions. In most cases, you must lodge an objection and be dissatisfied with the outcome before seeking an external review.

You need to link your myGov account to the ATO before you can access ATO online services. If you have previously linked your account to the ATO, return to the myGov homepage, select View and link services to check your ATO link status: If not showing as linked, select Link to begin the linking process.

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Australian Taxation Office / Customer service

Large data breaches

We assure you that ATO systems have not been affected.

You can use your Australian visa (including electronic visas) to set up your myGovID if you're a permanent or temporary resident of Australia.

To link your myGov account to us you must sign in using either: myGovID – set up to a Standard or Strong identity strength. Get a code by SMS using an Australian mobile number. myGov Code Generator app to generate a one time code.

As it can become busy during the day, it's recommended to contact us first thing at 8am or later in the evening by 6pm and have your TFN and letter with you when you call.

Why would ATO call me? ›

Verify a scam

Scammers often pretend to be from trusted organisations like the ATO. We will sometimes contact you by phone, email, SMS and post. If you're not sure whether it's really us, do not reply. You should phone us on 1800 008 540 to check.

When you need access to our online services, you'll need to speak to someone in our client identity support centre where they can lift the block allowing you time to access it for a certain amount of time.

It only takes a few minutes to make a tip-off and you can remain anonymous. If you know or suspect phoenix, tax evasion or shadow economy activity, report it by: completing the tip-off form (the form is also available in the Help & support section in the ATO app) phoning us on 1800 060 062.

ATO stands for authorization to operate, also known as “authority to operate.” Because there is no perfect, risk-free software system, the ATO process is aimed at minimizing and managing risk responsibility. This process mostly comes from the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA).

Account Takeover (ATO) is an attack whereby cybercriminals take ownership of online accounts using stolen passwords and usernames. Cybercriminals generally purchase a list of credentials via the dark web – typically gained from social engineering, data breaches and phishing attacks.

File a Petition: If you disagree with the assessment of tax deficiency, you have 90 days to file a petition with the Tax Court. The petition form and rules for filing are available for download at www.usataxcourt.gov. The completed form can be eFiled at http://www.ustaxcourt.gov/dawson.html.