Small business debt: partly effective oversight

ANAO Report No. 45, 2025–26 · Oversight finding

The national auditor identified weaknesses in performance measures, benchmarks, communication and the use of debt data.

Finding

Management of small business collectable debt was assessed as partly effective, with eight recommendations.

Qualifications and outcome

Collectable debt excludes amounts under objection or appeal, insolvency or on hold. This audit does not establish the cost or merits of individual contested tax cases.

Agency response

The ATO agreed to all eight recommendations. Implementation outcomes remain to be tracked here.

Affected party

Multiple / confidential taxpayers · Aggregate oversight

Aggregate oversight or confidential case review; no identifiable recovery defendant is entered.

Sources

• Australian Taxation Office Management of Small Business Collectable Debt

  The national auditor identified weaknesses in performance measures, benchmarks, communication and the use of debt data.

• NSW ordered-cost benchmark, 24 October 2023

  Non-binding legal rate bands for costs assessment. These are comparison rates, not the ATO’s invoices or historical engagement terms.