ATO portal statements for a lender: what they show and how they're read

“Do you owe the ATO anything?” It’s one of the first questions a business lender asks, and the ATO account statement is how the answer is proved. Whether the balance is zero or substantial, having a current, clearly dated statement ready makes the conversation faster and more credible. This page explains how to get it, what lenders look for and how to present a balance if there is one.

What is an ATO account statement?

The ATO keeps separate accounts for a business’s different tax obligations. In Online services for business, you can view a list of all accounts with their balances and overdue amounts, see transaction histories for activity statement, income tax and super guarantee accounts, and download transactions in CSV or HTML format. That export — or a printout of the account summary — is what lenders call the ATO statement or “portal statement”.

How to download it

1. Log in to Online services for business (or ask your tax or BAS agent to log in through their agent portal)
2. Open the accounts and payments area
3. Select the activity statement account and view transactions for the last 12 months or more
4. Download or print the transactions and summary
5. Repeat for the income tax account and, if relevant, the super guarantee account
6. Note the date on each file — “ATO activity statement account, as at 3 October”

If there’s a payment plan, the payment plan view shows the arrangement; include that too.

What lenders look for

What they check	What it tells them
Current balance on each account	Whether there’s a debt, and how large
Overdue amount	How much is past due, as opposed to not yet due
Trend over 12 months	Growing, stable or being paid down
Payment plan details	Whether the business is engaging and keeping to it
Lodgement credits and debits	Whether BAS amounts are being lodged and paid as they fall due
General interest charge entries	How long amounts have been outstanding

A zero or credit balance is the simplest answer. A balance with a kept plan and a clear cause is often manageable. A growing, unmanaged balance with missed lodgements is the hardest to place.

Why the ATO position matters more now

Two recent developments raise the stakes:

• Interest is no longer deductible. Since the start of the 2025–26 financial year, the interest the ATO charges on late amounts (GIC and SIC) has stopped being deductible. Carrying a balance costs more after tax than it used to.
• Credit reporting of business tax debts. Where a business with an ABN has $100k or more sitting overdue for over 90 days and isn’t working with the ATO (a kept payment plan counts as working with it), the debt details can be passed to credit reporting bureaus.

So a lender may see an ATO debt on a credit report even if you don’t mention it. Disclosing it yourself, with the statement and an explanation, is far better.

Payment plans and lending

Businesses can set up a payment plan online for debts of $200,000 or less; larger debts need direct contact with the ATO. For lenders, a plan that’s being kept:

• Shows the business is engaging
• Gives a known repayment to factor into servicing
• Can be refinanced by the new loan if that suits

Our owners’ page on weighing a payment plan against a loan compares the two paths.

Presenting a balance well

If there’s a balance, attach a short factual note with the statement:

• The amount and the account it’s on
• How it arose (one sentence)
• What’s been done — plan entered, lodgements current, cause fixed
• What the business would like to do with it, if anything

Our page on explaining red flags gives example wording.

Common mistakes with ATO statements

• Sending an old printout. Balances change quickly around BAS dates. Download a fresh copy just before you apply.
• Only sending one account. If there’s an income tax balance as well as an activity statement balance, the lender will want both.
• Not mentioning a pending lodgement. If a BAS is due next week with a large amount payable, say so — it’ll be on the next statement anyway.
• Confusing “not yet due” with “overdue”. Explain which part of a balance is simply a recent BAS that isn’t due yet.

How the ATO statement links to loan types

Situation	Typical direction
No ATO balance, lodgements current	Supports both unsecured and secured options
Small balance on a kept plan	Often workable for cash flow lending
Larger balance, plan being kept	Lender-dependent; property security often helps
Large, unmanaged balance	Usually property-secured, with the debt cleared from the loan

Owners with property often use a secured facility (anywhere from $20k up to $5m) to clear a tax balance and repay it over a longer term; without property, the usual ceiling is about $500k.

Show the lender where you stand

A current ATO statement turns one of the hardest questions into a simple one. When you’re ready, start a 60-second enquiry and tell us the ATO balance, if any, and whether there’s a plan. There’s no credit check to enquire, your details go to one matched lender rather than a list, and a real specialist calls you to go through the options. Accurate figures — especially the ATO balance — let us link you to the right lender the first time. Check your options.