Regulatory change is nothing new for accountants, but it can mean that a little extra time and resource is needed to help prepare clients for what is coming. 2026 is shaping up to be a significant year, with ATO changes looking set to affect employers, individuals and retirement planning strategies alike.
While the coming changes are set to strengthen the national superannuation system and improve transparency, they also bring some new admin and advisory challenges. For accounting firms, this means not only guiding clients through the changes, but also managing internal capacity, workflow pressures and evolving compliance processes.
This guide outlines practical steps accountants can take to help clients prepare, while also ensuring your own firm is ready.
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The new tax measures and other changes coming into effect in 2026 include:
From 1 Feb 2026, the rules around concessional pension contributions are changing, putting a cap on the amount that can be put into a pension before potential additional tax consequences. This change is most likely to affect middle and high-income earners, especially those who are approaching retirement and had intended to rely on making larger contributions in the final few years to boost their retirement balance. It means that individuals (and their accountants) will need to carefully record and track contributions if they wish to stay below the cap.
From 1 July 2026, employers will be required to pay superannuation at the same time as wages, rather than paying it quarterly as done previously. The change aims to reduce unpaid super, increase transparency for employees and improve retirement outcomes, but does bring challenges for businesses. It means a major shift in payroll processes, reporting obligations and could well have an impact on cash flow too.
From 1 July 2026, the 16% tax rate (on incomes between $18,201 and $45,000) will be reduced to 15%. The reduction will apply automatically for employees and will be followed by another 1% reduction in 2027. Tax rates for the higher income tax brackets will remain unchanged, so while all taxpayers will benefit with a lower rate on earnings of up to $45,000, income above that will continue to be taxed at the current rate.
The move to payday super is primarily a cash flow shift. Instead of quarterly payments, super contributions will need to be remitted in line with payroll cycles.
This creates:
As a result, businesses may need to update forecasts to ensure they understand net impacts on profitability and liquidity. The timing differences between payroll obligations and tax liabilities may require careful planning.
Both payday super and tax rate changes require payroll system updates.
Businesses will need to:
While many payroll systems will be able to update automatically for these changes, it’s important that every business checks and tests this in advance to make sure it is operating correctly. Clients relying on manual payroll processes or legacy systems may find this transition a lot more complex.
For those individuals affected by the retirement savings changes from February 2026, accountants will need to consider areas such as:
Helping clients to navigate changes like these can be time-consuming for accounting firms, but can result in building stronger trust and deeper client relationships.
Not every client will be affected significantly by the upcoming ATO changes, so it makes sense to segment your clients into groups so that your communications can be targeted and highly relevant. Your groups could include:
Ensuring that the messaging you send out is carefully tailored helps to ensure that the right information reaches the right clients, without overwhelming those it’s not relevant to.
Don’t wait for your clients to come to you with questions. Sending some top line proactive information means that your clients get the important facts and can then get in touch if they need anything clarifying or expanding on. Keeping your accounting communications clear and straightforward is important, so you might want to consider:
For some clients, scenario modelling can be a great way to highlight any potential issues well ahead of the changes coming into force. This helps to turn the uncertainty of change into informed decision making.
It can be useful to walk them through:
This can be an ideal opportunity to review the tools and systems being used by clients, to see if there are any upgrades which can offer useful new features, or simple changes that can perhaps reduce the admin burden and make the whole transition smoother. Some of the areas to review could include:
The operational challenges that clients might face with the upcoming ATO changes can have a noticeable impact on your accounting firm’s workload, especially in the final weeks before a new change comes into force. Some of the areas you can review in preparation include:
As implementation dates approach, your firm may see:
Even clients who were informed early can often delay action until deadlines loom.
Internally, you’ll need to ensure that you:
When combined with existing compliance cycles, this can sometimes create bottlenecks, which can negatively affect other service delivery.
To avoid last-minute strain and stress, your accounting firm can:
Preparing as much as possible can help reduce the stretch, but you may also benefit from working with a specialist partner to expand your capacity, services and workforce without having to recruit more internal staff.
Transitioning your firm and your clients through new tax measures and other ATO changes can be challenging, but strategic outsourcing can be a solution that provides the operational support you need without compromising on service quality. Some of the benefits include:
By outsourcing routine bookkeeping, payroll processing and compliance preparation, your firm can redirect experienced team members toward:
This ensures your clients receive tailored and thoughtful guidance when they need it most.
Regulatory deadlines create predictable surges in demand. A trusted outsourcing partner can provide scalable support at all times, helping your firm to:
Outsourcing partners that operate in cloud-based environments can assist with:
This strengthens compliance and reduces error risk during changeovers.
The right outsourcing partner should feel like an extension of your accounting firm’s internal team, offering high-quality services that will benefit you and your clients. At times of change especially, clients look to their accountant for clarity and direction, so providing proactive and structured guidance will help to reinforce your strategic value to the businesses and individuals you work with.
If you’d like to find out more about how outsourcing accounting servicescould work for your firm, book a callwith our team today.
