A bit of background: I am a sole trader (retired/graphic designer) and have a hobby/business/ABN/registered business name, which I commenced in July 2024. This will be my first business submission to the ATO this year. I sell my designs online via a print on demand platform that sells tees & other merchandise (Redbubble). The platform pays me [ie. an artist margin] when my items sell and the funds clear from the buyer, and they will only generate a payment to me via a Remittance Advice, once my sales reach over AUD$20. So payment to me goes from Redbubble to PayPal. My Business A/c is linked to PayPal, and I can transfer funds to my account at any time. Redbubble provide: Sales History (CSV Excel file of sales per calendar month, distributed quarterly via email); Earnings Summary (an online snapshot in graph form); Remittance Advices (this is when I get paid by Redbubble and it goes into my PayPal account); and monthly Invoices (for monthly account keeping fees). To-date, I've been using the Remittance Advices as my record of payment on my Balance Sheets, as these documents indicate my income from Redbubble, however, they can include sales data from 2 months, and also can include Redbubble account keeping fees from 2 months. The Remittance Advices can split over 2-3 months, depending when I get sales that add up to over $20. At the end of June 2025, there are 2 sales recorded in the Excel spreadsheet for 16 June and 27 June, totalling an artist margin of $6.97, but because this is under $20, I won't be paid this figure until I get enough sales to push this over the $20. So on my Excel spreadsheets and Earnings Summary, it will show that I made sales for the month of June 2025, but I won't physically get the income until next financial year sometime. I want to know which figures the ATO will be looking at: the income I actually earn (ie. as per the Remittance Advices), or, with the ATO be wanting the Excel spreadsheets showing the sales that happen each month, even when some of the sales are carried over to the next financial year? I've gone on the assumption that the ATO is only interested in the income I earn, so I've been using the Remittance Advices as the information I've been recording on the Balance Sheets. Would love some clarification around this, so my records to you are accurate [even though I made a loss this year]!! Sorry for the long explanation, but it was necessary. Thank you :)
279 views
2 replies
279 views
2 replies
All replies
Hi @MiloJRT,
Great question, and well done for taking the right steps towards keeping your business records up to scratch!
You report the income when it’s paid, not when it’s earned. You have statements from Redbubble that show when you are/were paid, so just keep those records for your tax return if you ever need to provide them 😊
Thanks so much for your reply :) That is very helpful. All records are now up-to-date for Tax. Have a great day!! :)
Featured articles
15 Apr 2026 · 4 min read time
16 July 2025 · 5 min read time