Australia / Guides / The GST registration threshold, and the data that actually answers it
Australia · guideThe GST registration threshold, and the data that actually answers it
The short answer
A business (other than a non-profit) must register for GST once its GST turnover is $75,000 or more; a non-profit organisation's threshold is $150,000. The test looks at both current GST turnover (the last 12 months) and projected GST turnover (the next 12 months), so a business can be required to register before it has actually banked $75,000, purely on a reasonable expectation of reaching it. Once that point is reached or expected, registration must happen within 21 days. One category is exempt from the turnover test entirely: anyone providing taxi, limousine or ride-sourcing travel (Uber, DiDi and similar) must register for GST regardless of turnover, before their first trip.
Key facts — verified dates on each
What the $75,000 threshold actually measures
GST turnover is not the same figure as revenue on a profit and loss statement. It is gross business income, excluding GST itself, and it also excludes input-taxed sales (most residential rent and some financial supplies) and sales not connected with Australia. Two businesses with identical bank deposits can land on different sides of the threshold depending on what portion of their income falls into those excluded categories, which is one reason the number on a bank statement is a starting point for the calculation, not the answer to it.
Below $75,000, registration is optional — a business can register voluntarily to claim GST credits on its own purchases, taking on the same lodgment obligations as a business that registered because it had to.
Current turnover and projected turnover are two different tests
The ATO tests GST turnover two ways, and either one can trigger the obligation to register. Current GST turnover looks backward: the value of supplies made in the current month plus the previous eleven months. Projected GST turnover looks forward: the value of supplies likely to be made in the current month plus the next eleven months.
That forward-looking test is the one that catches businesses off guard. A business does not have to wait until it has actually invoiced $75,000 to trigger the obligation — if it can reasonably be expected to reach that figure over the coming year, the projected-turnover test is met and registration is required, even if year-to-date income is still well under the line. A new business signing a single large contract in its first month can meet the projected test immediately, before a second invoice is ever raised.
Certain one-off events are carved out of the projected calculation so they do not force registration on their own: the sale of a capital asset and any transfer made solely because of ceasing or downsizing an enterprise are excluded from projected turnover, so a one-time asset sale does not, by itself, push an otherwise-small business over the line.
The $150,000 threshold for non-profit organisations
Non-profit organisations — a category that includes charities, clubs, associations and similar bodies as recognised by the ATO for GST purposes — work off a higher figure: $150,000 of GST turnover, tested the same current-and-projected way as the standard threshold. Below that figure, a non-profit is not required to register, though it may choose to.
The higher threshold reflects that non-profits often run revenue through channels — membership fees, grants, fundraising receipts — that behave differently from ordinary trading income, and Parliament set a separate, higher bar for them rather than applying the standard business threshold across the board. Confirming whether a particular organisation qualifies for the non-profit threshold, as opposed to the standard $75,000 figure, is itself a determination the organisation's registered tax or BAS agent should make against its specific structure and ATO endorsement status.
The exception that ignores turnover entirely: taxi and ride-sourcing
One category of business is carved out of the threshold framework altogether. Anyone who provides taxi travel, limousine travel, or ride-sourcing services — which the ATO defines to include rideshare platforms such as Uber and DiDi — must register for GST regardless of GST turnover. A driver earning a few hundred dollars a month through a rideshare app has the same registration obligation as one earning six figures; the $75,000 line simply does not apply to this category.
For ride-sourcing specifically, the ATO requires registration to be in place before the first trip is provided, not within 21 days of crossing a threshold, because there is no threshold to cross. This is a narrow, name-based exception — it applies to the transport-for-fare activity itself, not to every gig-economy or platform-based income source, so a person driving for a rideshare platform and also doing unrelated freelance work still applies the standard $75,000 test to that other income.
Voluntary registration, and why "should we register" is not this guide's call
Below the threshold, registration is a choice, and the trade-offs run in both directions. Registering lets a business claim GST credits on what it buys, which can matter with significant GST-inclusive expenses and few GST-free sales. It also means charging GST on sales and filing a Business Activity Statement on a recurring cycle — obligations that do not disappear just because turnover stays below $75,000.
Whether a specific business is better off registering early, waiting until it must, or structuring its activities a particular way is a tax position, and this guide does not make tax positions. That determination — like the underlying question of whether current or projected turnover has actually crossed the line for a given business — sits with the business's registered BAS agent or tax agent, who deals with the ATO directly and is authorised to lodge on the business's behalf.
What is not a judgment call is whether the books are in a state that lets that determination get made accurately. Revenue recognised consistently, excluded categories (input-taxed sales, overseas supplies) coded and separated out rather than folded into one turnover figure, and a running current-and-projected view rather than a number reconstructed at year-end — that is a bookkeeping question, and clean records are what let an agent answer the registration question quickly instead of guessing at it from bank statements.
The figures, and when we checked them
These numbers change by year or by notification. Each one shows the date we last verified it against the source — if that date looks old, check the source before relying on it.
Questions on this
What is the GST registration threshold in Australia?
A business must register for GST once its GST turnover reaches $75,000. Non-profit organisations have a higher threshold of $150,000. Both figures are tested against current turnover (the last 12 months) and projected turnover (the next 12 months).
What counts as "GST turnover" — is it the same as total revenue?
No. GST turnover is gross business income excluding GST itself, and it also excludes input-taxed sales (such as most residential rent) and sales not connected with Australia. It can differ from the revenue figure on a profit and loss statement, which is one reason the calculation is worth having a registered agent confirm rather than reading off a bank statement.
Can I be required to register before I have actually earned $75,000?
Yes. The projected GST turnover test looks forward 12 months, so a business that can reasonably be expected to earn $75,000 or more over the coming year can be required to register even if year-to-date income is still below that figure.
How long do I have to register once I hit the threshold?
Registration is required within 21 days of becoming aware that GST turnover has reached, or is expected to reach, the applicable threshold.
Does selling a business asset count toward the projected turnover test?
Generally no. Proceeds from selling a capital asset, and transfers made solely because a business is ceasing or substantially downsizing, are excluded from the projected GST turnover calculation, so a one-off asset sale does not by itself force registration.
Why is the non-profit threshold higher than the standard one?
Non-profit organisations work off a $150,000 threshold rather than the standard $75,000 figure. Whether a particular organisation actually qualifies as a non-profit for this purpose, as opposed to being treated as a standard business, depends on its structure and ATO endorsement status — a question for its registered tax or BAS agent, not a self-assessment from the turnover figure alone.
Do rideshare and taxi drivers really have to register no matter how little they earn?
Yes. Taxi, limousine and ride-sourcing services (including platforms like Uber and DiDi) are exempt from the turnover threshold entirely — registration is required regardless of GST turnover, and a ride-sourcing driver must be registered before providing their first trip.
Does the ride-sourcing exception apply to all gig-economy income?
No. It is specific to taxi, limousine and ride-sourcing transport-for-fare activity. Other gig-economy or platform income (delivery driving, freelance marketplaces, and similar) is tested against the standard $75,000 threshold like any other business income.
Should I register for GST voluntarily even if I am under the threshold?
That is a tax position specific to the business — it depends on the mix of GST-inclusive expenses, GST-free sales, and the ongoing Business Activity Statement obligations that come with registration. It is a determination for the business's registered BAS agent or tax agent, who deals with the ATO directly, rather than something this guide can answer in general terms.
What does CapEasy do around GST registration, and what does it not do?
CapEasy's Australian bookkeeping support keeps revenue coded consistently — separating out input-taxed and overseas sales, and maintaining a running current-and-projected turnover view — so the registration question can be answered from accurate records. CapEasy does not ascertain a business's GST or tax position, does not lodge with the ATO, and does not determine whether or when a specific business must register; that determination sits with the business's registered BAS agent or tax agent.
Primary sources
- business.gov.au — Register for goods and services tax (GST)
- Australian Taxation Office — Registering for GST
- Australian Taxation Office — Ride-sourcing: registrations
Last reviewed 2026-08-14. Statutes and schedules change — the sources above are authoritative, this page is orientation.
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