Fixing a mistake after finalising¶

You have finalised your payroll for the year — and then you spot an error. Maybe an amount was wrong, or a figure was missed. It is a common worry at tax time, and the good news is simple: it can be fixed.

Finalising is not a locked door. If you find a mistake afterwards, you make an adjustment in your payroll and finalise again. The corrected figures flow through to the ATO and update the employee's income statement.

In one line

Found an error after finalising? Adjust it in your payroll and finalise again — the corrected figures flow to the ATO and update the employee's income statement.

Why this matters¶

It is far better to fix a mistake than to leave it. A wrong figure can flow into an employee's tax return and cause them problems later. The ATO lets you correct finalised figures, so there is no reason to leave an error sitting there.

Knowing this takes the fear out of finalising. You do not have to get every number perfect on the first try, because the process is designed to be corrected.

What you will learn¶

That mistakes found after finalising can be corrected
How adjusting and re-finalising updates the ATO
Why you should tell the employee about the change

Understanding the concept¶

When you finalise, you tell the ATO that your year-to-date figures are complete and correct. If you later find they were not, you do not undo the finalisation — you correct it.

The steps are straightforward:

Make the adjustment in your payroll so the year-to-date figures are now right.
Finalise again. This sends the corrected figures to the ATO.
The ATO updates the employee's income statement with the new figures.
Tell the employee, so they know their income statement has changed.

That last step matters. The ATO makes the updated figures available to the employee. If they have already lodged their tax return using the old figures, they may need to correct it — so let them know as soon as you can.

The ATO says corrections should be made as soon as possible after you find the error. There is no need to wait, and no need to panic. You are not starting over — you are simply sending an updated, correct set of figures.

For accountants & bookkeepers

A post-finalisation correction is reported to the ATO and made available to the payee through their income statement. Notify the employee of any change, as they may need to amend a lodged return that used the earlier figures. Corrections should be made as soon as practicable after the error is identified. Finalised STP information can be amended for a number of years after the end of the financial year — confirm the current amendment window against the ATO's guidance for the year concerned.

Example¶

A small business finalises its payroll on 10 July. A week later, the owner notices that one employee's pay was recorded with the wrong amount for a couple of pays during the year, so the year-to-date total is too low.

The owner does not panic. She corrects the figures in her payroll so the year-to-date total is now right, then finalises that employee again. The corrected total flows to the ATO, and the employee's income statement is updated. She sends the employee a quick message to say the figures have changed, so the employee can use the correct numbers in their tax return.

Common mistakes¶

Assuming finalising is final and the error cannot be fixed — it can.
Leaving a known error in place rather than correcting and re-finalising.
Fixing the figures but forgetting to finalise again, so the ATO never gets the update.
Not telling the employee, who may then lodge a tax return using old figures.

How this works in myaccountant¶

In the app — if you spot an error after finalising, you make the adjustment in your payroll so the year-to-date figures are correct, then finalise that employee again. myaccountant sends the updated finalisation to the ATO, and the employee's income statement is updated with the corrected figures. Let the employee know so they use the right numbers.

Key points¶

Finalising is not permanent — mistakes found afterwards can be corrected.
To fix an error, adjust the figures in your payroll and finalise again.
The corrected figures flow to the ATO and update the employee's income statement.
Make the correction as soon as possible after you find the error.
Tell the employee, as they may need to correct a tax return that used old figures.
It is always better to fix and re-finalise than to leave an error.

Learn next¶

General information only — not tax, super or financial advice.

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