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Last updated 15 Apr 2026 · 295,840 views

How do I check my tax return's status?

No need to call us – simply check your tax return status by using the ATO app, or in just a few clicks check online via myGov. Easy as!

Remember, most tax returns lodged online can take 2-4 weeks to process. Paper returns can take 7 weeks to show in the system.

To check the progress in the app:

  • log in to the ATO app

  • select Your tax return for 2023–24 and your status will display.

To check the progress in myGov:

  • sign in to myGov

  • select ATO from your linked services

  • from the home page select Manage tax returns

  • then select the income year you are checking and your status will display.

What does balancing account mean in ATO online services?

Balancing account means that we have the result of your return, and we’re working out your refund or bill amount based on your account balance.

If you have a debt or a credit with us or another Australian Government agency, it'll be taken into account at this stage. Your return will still take a few more days while we review your accounts.

Why is my tax return showing as ‘cancelled?’

A cancelled transaction on your income tax account doesn’t necessarily mean your return has stopped processing, your return may be on hold.

We may be reviewing your return to ensure you have included all the information that has been reported to us. As a result, your return might show as cancelled for 24-48 hours.

It’s important you don’t lodge again while this is happening, this can slow things down. Please allow up to 2 weeks for your electronically lodged return to be finalised.

What does ‘extra time processing’ mean?

There are many reasons your return may take some extra time to process.

It’s important to not lodge again or lodge an amendment before your return finishes processing.

Calling us won’t speed up the process. If we do need more information from you or your tax agent to help us finalise your return, we’ll reach out.

What’s the difference between ‘processed’ date and ‘effective’ date?

The processed date is the date we finish processing your return and update your tax account.

If you’re entitled to a refund, the effective date is usually the date we send your refund to your financial institution. You’ll need to check with your financial institution to find out how long it may take for them to process your refund.

If you have a tax bill, the effective date will be the date your payment is due.

Why is my refund lower than my estimate?

Your estimate is just that – an estimate. This can change based on a few reasons:

  • you have amounts owing to other government agencies like Centrelink or child support

  • your study loan balance is different to what you input

  • you over claimed your private health insurance rebate

  • you made a mistake on your return and we needed to correct it to match the information reported to us from another source (like your bank)

It’s best to wait until your return has finalised so you can review the changes on your Notice of Assessment.

If your Notice of Assessment shows a different amount to your account balance, refer to your Statement of Account.

If you do find yourself with a bill you can’t pay in full, don’t stress. Head to our article to help with  Setting up an ATO payment plan. It can all be done online – easy as that.

What’s the status on my tax return mean?

Your return goes through different phases. If we need extra information throughout the process, we’ll contact you. You might see one or more of these statuses as it processes:

This status might pop up at two points during processing.

  • We’ve got your return and started processing it

  • We’ve finalised your return and will issue your notice of assessment.

We’re getting all the information we need to finish up your return.

Your return is being reviewed manually. This takes time and can involve checking your past returns.

We’ve got the result of your return and are working out your refund or bill. We also check the result of your return with other Australian Government agencies – this can take a few extra days.

We need more time to finish processing your return.

We’ve finished processing your return. You can view your estimated assessment issue date using the drop-down arrow.

Your return is processed and, you can see your refund or bill. If you have a bill, select the Notice of assessment link to view the due date. Can’t pay it in full? Check out our article Setting up an ATO payment plan.

Kevmairu-2(Newbie)Newbie
20 Jan 2026

Hi ato team I have lodged my amended return for the year 2023-2024 it’s been 6 Months and the status is still saying balancing account


what should I do

RachelATO(Community Moderator)Community Moderator
22 Jan 2026

Hi @Kevmairu-2,


The 'balancing account' status means we've got the result of your amended return and we're working out your refund or bill amount based on your account balance. If you have a debt or credit with us or another Australian Government agency, it'll be taken into account at this stage.


An online amendment typically takes about 20 business days to process. Since it's been 6 months, this is longer than expected and we'd need to look into what's happening with your specific accounts.


We can't access your account here in Community. If you can call our individual enquiries team we can take a look and provide you with an update on what's causing the delay.

26 July 2025

@mytaxreturn

Is there an issue with returns getting stuck in the system? As mine has been on the same status and date for weeks. I'm seeing alot of comments from people with the same problem and the help information just tell us it will be a few days and not to call as you can not help so do we just hope its not a systems issue and at some point it will progress without intervention? Issue date showing as 15/07/2025 but still showing as balancing account. (just 2 weeks longer then the 48hour !note advises) Plus the same year return is showing as original assessment not lodged despite being listed in history also.

BrookeATO(Community Support)Community Support
28 July 2025

Hi @AshNeedsAnswers


Sometimes tax returns may be delayed due to many different reasons - which you can read more about on our website. We don't have access to your account here on this platform so we can't tell you why yours is taking longer than usual. Best thing for you to do is wait, if there's any issues on our end, we usually let you know about it.


If you're still concerned, the individuals team has access to your account if you wanted to reach out to them.

Mzliftie(Initiate)Initiate
8 Sept 2025

@AshNeedsAnswers


I have had the exact same thing, I even went to the complaints team to see if they could move anything along. But unfortunately I was told it could take 15-50 days.


Last night I was just like this is absolutely ridiculous, I have been waiting since the 8th of July, I have called that many times and told i just have to wait. Manual checks need to happen to proceed and they just haven't been allocated!, how long does it take to allocate the manual checks to someone. But last night I had enough. And I was lucky enough to get an amazing agent on the other end after waiting 30 mins for someone to pick up, she assisted so much and he support officer as well. They actually seem to have gotten my account moving. Unfortunately @AshNeedsAnswers its luck of the draw. I have made multiple calls to the ATO, I was always told "I just have to wait" and also this agent i swear she was the luck of the draw for me because she was fantastic. IM SO SORRY youre having to go through this. I know how frustrating people not telling you anything, and then not having any communication from the ATO, yet they say that if it goes after 30 days youre meant to get told if it takes longer than 30 calendar days. But I never was. But unfortunately you may need to keep making the calls to the ato to try to get to the right person who is willing to lend a hand in stead of just shoving you off to tell you "you just have to wait".



To Tell you what numbers I pressed when calling to speak to my magnificent person on the other end of the phone is I rang 132865

Waited to go past the superannuation part of the call Then if you have a voice print saved it will ask you to confirm your identity via your voice. Then its says options 1 to speak with someone in regards to something then 2 for something else. Then I pressed 3, after that it asks if you want to check your return and see how far it has processed for number 1, but i clicked 2 as it asks if you want to talk to someone about your lodgement or anything to do with it. So make sure you press 2. And then I explained how incredibly frustrated I have been and the numerous times I rang and got told nothing not anything to what had been going on, I was not given any communication of any sort, and my complaint had notes on my account and then they hadn't even emailed or texted me the reciept number to my complaint. And the lovely lady on the other end of the phone understood how frustrated I was and honestly she was the best I encountered other than about a month ago, a very kind man had helped me and went through my whole account with me. So unfortunately its luck of the draw. But good luck.. and I hope you get your return processed asap.

Billy.stew00(I'm new)I'm new
26 July 2025

Hi! I lodged my tax return on July 1st and the status still shows as processing. I haven’t received a notification saying it may take longer than 4 weeks. Can i expect it to be processed within 4 weeks?

foreign_slave(I'm new)I'm new
25 July 2025


Hello, ATO

I'm commenting on the ATO online request service because it doesn't help anything.


7 Jul 2025

11 Jul 2025

Cancellation of Tax return Individuals - Income Tax for the period from 01 Jul 24 to 30 Jun 25



5 Jul 2025

11 Jul 2025

Tax return Individuals - Income Tax for the period from 01 Jul 24 to 30 Jun 25


Nothing has changed since then, but if there is a reason for the delay, you should at least let me know the reason by e-mail, should I just wait?









BrookeATO(Community Support)Community Support
28 July 2025

Hi @foreign_slave


Without access to your account, we can't tell you why your tax return has been cancelled. But you should check out this similar post, RileyATO has provided some great info as to what this status means.


If you're still concerned, you should reach out to our individuals team who'll be able to look into your account and find out what's going on.

JRY850(Enthusiast)Enthusiast
3 Aug 2025

Hi. Did yours get rectified? I lodged on 8/7/25, got cancelled on 8/7, it’s now 3/8/25 & still in cancellation mode but in progress and processing.

PoppyD(Newbie)Newbie
13 Feb 2025

Hi ATO Team,


I'm at a loss in how to proceed. Everything I have read online I've done and all I ever do is get hung up on by a robot.


I'm trying to find out where my refund is 31 weeks after lodgement.


log in to ato and it says balancing account. Now that seems to mean you require extra time to manually process it by checking with other government agencies and should take no longer than 10 weeks..... 31 weeks on still nothing.


I have never delt with Centre Link as i have never needed their services. I don't have any biological kids so no child support to chase up. The ATO and Medicare are the only government agencies I deal with, and I owe Medicare nothing.


I followed the suggestions of calling the self-help line 13 28 61 and 13 28 65 (suggested by the ATO website). Which lead to being hung up on the robot.


How do you speak to an actual person? It's ridiculous how you can't communicate with the ATO.


PoppyD

BrookeATO(Community Support)Community Support
5 Mar 2025

Hi @PoppyD


We're sorry you're having trouble getting in contact with us.


We're unable to access your account here as this is an anonymous platform, so the only way to get an update is to call our individuals team. We'd suggest calling either early in the morning or later in the evening to avoid long wait times.

rodribn(Newbie)Newbie
26 Nov 2024

Hi ATO team,


I lodged my Tax in early July, and it still shows a balancing account. I tried calling individual support, but it gave me that bot response with the same content viewed on my ATO account.


I spoke to my tax agent, who got a protocol # from my case ([removed by moderator]). He told me that the ATO confirmed that it would be clear soon. This feedback was received two weeks ago.


I'm unsure what else is pending, as I have no outstanding debts from any Australian Service. I'm seeking this refund to pay for my kid's public school (2025 1st term) since we are not permanent residents yet.


I would appreciate proper feedback with clear instructions.

AnitaATO(Community Support)Community Support
28 Nov 2024

Hi @rodribn,


We can't tell you what the holdup is either. As this is a public forum, we don't have access to your personal info.


You'll need to speak with our individual's area. They'll be able to look into it further for you.



Sazman71(Newbie)Newbie
11 Nov 2024

They really don’t give a rats @&$

I did my tax return. Last year July forgot had to amend did the right thing .

My return was calculated i got the sms were processing need extra time don’t need to contact us we will contact you Blah Blah October 24 1 year snd 3 months later never heard anything no email no letter nothing did this years return before Oct 31 had to ring to re establish my my gov account waz told that my return was still there and she’s going to get the audit team to prioritise? Ok thank you that’s good to know after 15 months of nothing and You Guessed it the Balancing account again on this years return so like everyone else caught up in this legal way to hold money without any repercussions to the ato but be late and we’re going to fine you $330 per month .

I wish I could fine them $330 a month

Im not bothering to call them or contact anyone in the ato it’s not anyone’s doing or a personal thing against me it’s the system itself

Im unemployed now in need of that money to pay bills etc

I did this years just in time not to let them have another excuse and fine me they have no intention of refunding anything a law unto themselves. I will be making a complaint to the tax ombudsmen so hopefully this ridiculous manipulation of there legal wording to do as they wish

Why would you do this again the return was simple and straight forward

BALANCING ACCOUNT I know what it means checking with other gov etc

May take 2weeks to process online

The penny dropped when the lovely lady on the phone said about the aug 2023 amendment which was not in my benefit in anyway which apparently still has not been balanced that they have not even done anything to even do a refund now there’s a credit from last year a credit from this year a balancing account from both years and let’s say that it’s ok they don’t need to do anything and I’m sure they may complete it whether it’s a debit or credit the whole point of this complaint to the ombudsman is DONT TREAT PEOPLE LIKE WERE IDIOTS OR EVERYONE IS A TAX EVADER .

Threaten with fines that’s ok if it’s warranted but then to just do nothing about people’s tax returns 1-2 years for your own reasoning without any consequences or care.


So lovely people of Australia understand what your dealing with it’s not corrupt in anyway it’s unjust and has this fear factor that we are the ato and we’re balancing accounts and going to fine you


i Think it works both ways 2 wrongs don’t make a right no hang on it’s 1 right 1 wrong makes a right

No it’s 1 right and 1 wrong makes 2 wrongs 1 right 3 undecided a balancing pending debit credit account interest added for late fines the teams going to prioritise the return and we have added last years to this years so I may get an outcome once they work out to credit and make it a debit in 3 yrs time

One must turn a joke into a joke and really don’t worry about a ruthless relentless gov body so we can pay back china all the money we’ve borrowed I hope my few thousand helps out


MThomas(Newbie)Newbie
6 Nov 2024

I submitted my tax return on 22 October and on 4 November I logged in to my account and can see that my status as of 30 October is "Issued". I have not received my refund and come to think of it I have not received any SMS or email communication either. How long would it normally take to go from "Issued" to having the refund in my account?

AnitaATO(Community Support)Community Support
6 Nov 2024

Hi @MThomas,


Have you checked to see if you've received anything in you myGov inbox.


If it's showing as issued it means, it's been processed. You should be able to see a processed date and effective date when you look at the account summary. The effective date is the date it will be sent to your bank, it depends when they process the payment as to when you'll receive it.

jobbl(Newbie)Newbie
1 Nov 2024

Lodged mine 12 September and have an Issued notification from 19 September. The return is still not in my account and all my bank details are correct. Where is my return!!!

AnitaATO(Community Support)Community Support
5 Nov 2024

Hey @jobbl,


There are many reasons why there may be delays. We could be waiting on info from other government agencies. e.g., Services Australia, Child Support Agency etc.


You may have previously had a debt with us or currently have a debt with us, or you've lodged more than one return at a time.


Continue to check the progress of your return via online services as things do change often. Also check out why there may be a delay on our website for more info.

BMako(Newbie)Newbie
28 Oct 2024

Hello,

I've lodged my Tax on 14 of July, And it's still on balancing account. Tried calling the individual support but it just having that autonomous response about the same thing that is viewed on my ATO account. Got no mail, email, or sms from ATO since 10 of August. And there is no message either on my ATO account or myGov account.


Can you shed any light on this because it's been long time now.

AnitaATO(Community Support)Community Support
28 Oct 2024

Hey @BMako,


As we don't have any access to your records here it's hard for us to shed some light on it for you.


Balancing account does mean we have the outcome of your return but we're waiting info from other government agencies. This could be from child support, or Services Australia. We need confirmation from them that you don't owe them money before we can release your refund.


You may need to speak with our individuals' team for further info on what's holding it up.



BigcuteCat(Initiate)Initiate
20 Oct 2024

lodged on July 20,still says "balancing account".

AnitaATO(Community Support)Community Support
21 Oct 2024

Hey @BigcuteCat,


Balancing account means that we have the outcome of your return. It's just that we're waiting on info from other government agencies. This could be child support or Services Australia.


As it's been so long you may be best to speak with our individual's area to see if they can shed some light on what's holding it up.

Chastle(I'm new)I'm new
30 Aug 2024

Lodged on the 15th of July online and still says " in Progress - Under Review" today. Why has my tax return taken longer than 30 calendar days and it seems that it’s not progressing.

AnitaATO(Community Support)Community Support
1 Sept 2024

Hi @Chastle,


We can't say for sure how long it's going to take. When it's under review it means we're manually processing it and there are checks that we need to do.


This could be checking the info you've reported on your tax return with what's been reported to us. We could be checking with your employer, bank, Services Australia etc.


If you have concerns, you can speak with our individuals' team to see if they can look further into it for you. If the delay is causing financial hardship, you may be eligible for priority processing.

theoneandonly(Initiate)Initiate
26 Aug 2024

Loged on the 25th of July online and still says "Balancing Account" today. I need the ATO Notice of Assessment for the settlement of my home loan as the loan is currently condition to ATO notice of assessment. Please help

Floraa(I'm new)I'm new
10 Aug 2024

Hi there!


I did my tax return period 2022-2023 on February of this year but I didn’t receive the money, also the app doesn’t show me the process of this transaction. Could you please help me?


Than you in advance.

25 July 2024

Hi I did my tax loadgement on 1st of July and I press mistakely 2times and it's gone on amendment so may be it's gone in manually but I try to call many times because I am going through financial hardship and still didn't get any tax back


Nashiwdq(Newbie)Newbie
27 Feb 2024

I stumbled into this place by accident and surprised to see so many people are experiencing the same pain.


I submitted my tax return in mid October and still waiting endlessly! The status has been stuck in “balancing account’ forever! Called ato once couldn’t find an answer. I was told that someone was going to call me back, of course it didn’t happen.


I can’t comprehend why it would need so long to process. I’m only a hard working person earning simple income. Why wasting so much time and resources on me? The more confusing thing is that they have been holding a considerable amount of objection refund that I overpaid to ato several years ago. I’d like to ask ato: Can you imagine the financial impact and mental stress that I have to endure? Do you understand or care at all? Obviously not.


Honestly right now I feel in despair and suspicious about what our government is doing to our money? Investment? I hope you win. It would be appreciated if we received the equivalent amount of interest that the banks have charged.


Now we’re heading to March. I really hope that I don’t have to wait for much longer.

7 Feb 2024

Probably won't get a meaningful response here but I'll just vent anyway.


My accountant lodged my tax return on 13th November 2023. Now it has been nearly 3 months. It's still "in progress" and "under review", with no communication from ATO side.


I've called ATO and no one can give me any useful information.


Is government doing this intentionally to tame inflation? :D


Can I request interest payment on the delayed return?


But seriously it is a significant amount and it has caused much stress as we all have bills to pay.


If it is delayed any further, we are almost into the next financial year's tax return!!!

Anonymous2(Newbie)Newbie
26 Jan 2024

I have been waiting for tax return for 5 months now. I received 2 messages from ato saying that my they need extra time to process the tax return. Everyone has received their tax return. No changes to the progress in the Ato website. Am I never going to receive an outcome? I have read the comments and not many of them had been very helpful to me. I just hope that this years Tax return 2023-24 won’t be like tax return 2022-23

24 Jan 2024

lodged my return back in August and it is now January and I still haven’t received my tax return or any update on what’s happening. Has been stuck on balancing account for months now! Starting to believe I’ll never hear from them or get my return was counting on that money to help pay for bills but guess not :(

Qplum(Initiate)Initiate
3 Jan 2024

@Aqua32 Did you ends up getting any updates or outcome?


I have lodged on 31 October 2023 and tried to call the 13 general line in December and today. Today I was given a 1300 number by the operator saying this team will know everything about lodgments that are under review. It is unclear if he meant for my return or for everyone, even i have asked if they had a chance to look at my return yet. The answer was the same, this team knows all about it. When I called, it said in the voice recording, do not call unless they have contacted me and please hang up. I waited but it took too long so I had to hang up.


I only wanted to know what dates tax lodgments have ATO under review got up to? Is it near those who lodged in Oct yet?


Anyone has any idea?

Aqua32(Initiate)Initiate
20 Dec 2023

I lodged my return on the 24th of October and still have not received my refund. status shows in progress and outcome states under review. It's been 8 weeks already - why the delay and why no update from the ATO?

JoshM(Newbie)Newbie
11 Dec 2023

I did my tax return on the 24th of July and now it's December and I still haven't yet got my return, I spoke with my tax agent and they contacted ATO to get an update and said my TFN has been locked and under investigation as it may have been compromised, and I haven't passed any information on to anyone who I shouldn't be passing on to. This has been an inconvenience for me as I need money to pay for things, and when I check my ATO in Mygov app, it still says in progress and balancing account.


Dr2016(Newbie)Newbie
4 Dec 2023

My Tax return was lodged 24th September, it is now 4th December I log into my ATO app almost every week to it still saying “Extra time needed”. It has been like that for 11 weeks, how much longer do I have to wait for?

Was really depending on my Tax Return for Christmas but after calling ATO I was just told “It’s just a waiting game and hopefully it comes before Christmas” what kind of update is that. I am so disappointed as I waited on hold for a hour.


Previous years I have always got my return within a week, this year I’ve been waiting almost 4 months. What is going on?

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Where's my tax return? | ATO Community