Legal

Terms and conditions

Last updated 31 August 2026

Please read before publishing. This is a plain-English update of the previous (March 2022) terms. It adds the Tax Practitioners Board disclosures now required of registered tax agents, an Australian Consumer Law carve-out, and a link to a privacy policy. It is not legal advice — have your professional body (IPA or NTAA, both of which provide member templates) or a lawyer confirm it before it goes live. Items marked [CHECK] need your input.

1. Who these terms are with

These terms and conditions (the Agreement) set out the terms on which you use the vipaccountingau.com website (the Website) and any related products and services (the Services).

The Services are provided by Collective Business Services Pty Ltd, ABN 36 168 655 730, trading as VIP Accounting (we, us or our). We are a registered tax agent, number 25478670.

In this Agreement, you means the person or entity using the Website or Services. If you are agreeing to these terms for a business or other entity, you confirm you are authorised to bind that entity. If you do not agree to these terms, you must not use the Website or Services.

By using the Website and Services you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Agreement and agree to be bound by it. This Agreement is a contract between you and us even though it is electronic and is not physically signed.

2. Your rights: the TPB register and how to complain

Checking our registration. The Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) keeps a public register of registered tax agents and BAS agents. You can search it at any time — including to confirm our registration and to see any sanctions on the public record — at tpb.gov.au/public-register.

If you are unhappy with our service. Please contact us first at info@vipaccounting.com.au or 02 4017 0160 so we can try to put it right. You also have the right to complain to the TPB at any time about a tax agent service you have received. Complaints to the TPB are made in writing using their online form at myprofile.tpb.gov.au/complaints. Include as much detail and supporting documentation as you can.

We will also tell you if anything happens that we are required to disclose to you under the Tax Agent Services Act 2009 and the TPB's Code of Professional Conduct.

3. The services we provide

We provide bookkeeping and accounting, payroll, financial reporting, tax planning and preparation, business advisory and NDIS plan management services. The specific services we provide to you, and what they cost, are set out in the engagement or quote we agree with you. [CHECK — confirm this list matches what you currently offer, and whether you issue a separate engagement letter.]

4. Taxation services — our authority

Once you provide the information we request, you authorise us to access your records through the ATO portal for confirmation purposes, in keeping with our legal obligations. Requested information may be provided through our website, by email, by telephone or in person.

You authorise us to contact you by telephone, email or SMS about your tax records. We may ask you questions about your income, expenses and deductions.

5. Your obligations

You declare that you will give us correct and complete details of your income, including income from salary, capital gains, government allowances and pensions, interest, dividends, royalties, business income and foreign income.

You declare that, before giving authority to lodge your tax return with the Australian Taxation Office, we have explained the provisions of the income tax law regarding income and expenses that apply to you. You understand that taxation laws provide heavy penalties for giving false or misleading information.

You declare that you hold the necessary receipts and records for the deductions and rebates claimed in your tax returns. It is your responsibility to keep evidence of income and deductions for at least five years. The ATO may impose a penalty or prosecute you if you cannot produce receipts, or if a tax return is incorrect or misleading.

To obtain the benefit of "safe harbour" protections, you must give us all relevant taxation information so that we can prepare accurate statements for the ATO. For work-related expenses, you need written evidence if your total work-related claims exceed $300.

All income, deductions and rebates included in your tax return are based on your instructions and on your confirmation that you meet the relevant taxation requirements. To the extent permitted by law, you release and indemnify us and our staff from liability arising from any audit or investigation in respect of undeclared income or excess claims made in your tax return.

6. Proving your identity, and the records we keep

Before we act for you, we are required to verify your identity, and we must keep records of those checks. We keep client records — including proof of identity records — for at least five years after our engagement with you ends, as required by the TPB.

7. Fees and invoicing

Our invoice is sent together with your tax return. The invoice needs to be paid, and the tax return needs to be signed, before we lodge your tax return. [CHECK — add payment terms, for example how many days to pay, accepted payment methods, and whether any late fee or interest applies.]

8. Your information and privacy

We collect sensitive personal information in order to provide our services, including tax file numbers, dates of birth, bank details and identity documents. How we collect, use, store, disclose and secure that information — and how you can access it or complain — is set out in our privacy policy, which forms part of this Agreement.

We will not share your personal information with third parties unless we are required to do so by law, or unless it is necessary to provide the services you have engaged us for.

9. Online forms and file uploads

When you submit an online form to us, we retain the information in that form and use it to provide the services we advertise. Although we take reasonable steps to protect information sent to us, no transmission over the internet can be guaranteed to be completely secure. If you would prefer not to send sensitive information online, please contact us to arrange an alternative.

10. The Website

Your use of the Website is provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis. We do not warrant that the Website will be free from error, complete, current, uninterrupted or secure.

From time to time we may need to suspend access to the Website for maintenance without notice. We are not liable if the Website is unavailable at any time.

11. Links to other websites

The Website may link to resources operated by third parties. We do not imply any approval, association, sponsorship, endorsement or affiliation with a linked resource unless we say so. We are not responsible for the content, products or services of third parties, and we do not warrant that third-party content will be free from error, complete, current, uninterrupted or secure. You should review the terms and privacy policies of any third-party resource you use. Linking to off-site resources is at your own risk.

12. Intellectual property

This Agreement does not transfer to you any intellectual property owned by us or by third parties. All rights, title and interest in that property remain with us. All trade marks, service marks, graphics and logos used on the Website are our trade marks or those of our licensors, and your use of the Website gives you no right or licence to reproduce or otherwise use them.

13. Limitation of liability

Nothing in this Agreement excludes, restricts or modifies any guarantee, right or remedy you have under the Australian Consumer Law or any other law that cannot lawfully be excluded. Where our liability cannot be excluded but can be limited, our liability is limited (at our option) to resupplying the services, or paying the cost of having them resupplied.

Subject to the paragraph above, and to the fullest extent permitted by law, we are not liable for any indirect, incidental, special, punitive or consequential loss — including loss of profits, revenue, goodwill, anticipated savings or business opportunity — however caused, even if we were advised of the possibility of that loss.

Subject to the paragraph above, and to the fullest extent permitted by law, our total liability arising in connection with the Services is limited to the fees you paid us for the service that gave rise to the liability, in the twelve months before the event giving rise to it. [CHECK — confirm this cap. Your previous terms capped liability at one dollar, which is unlikely to be enforceable and reads poorly to clients. Your professional indemnity insurer may also have a view.]

14. Changes to these terms

We may change this Agreement at any time. When we do, we will update the date shown at the top of this page, and we may also notify you using the contact details you have given us. Changes take effect as soon as the updated Agreement is posted, unless we say otherwise. Continuing to use the Website and Services after that date means you accept the changes.

15. Governing law

This Agreement is governed by the laws of New South Wales, Australia. You submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of New South Wales. The United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods does not apply.

16. Contact us

If you have any questions, concerns or complaints about this Agreement, please contact us:

Collective Business Services Pty Ltd trading as VIP Accounting · ABN 36 168 655 730 · Registered Tax Agent 25478670