Bookkeeping, Melbourne VICFreeMyCloud is Australian owned, with its Australian office in Melbourne, and has looked after small business books since 2010. The bookkeeping is done remotely: a university-qualified graduate accountant, employed by FreeMyCloud and based in our Manila office, works inside your own Xero, MYOB, QuickBooks or Reckon file during Victorian business hours. Typically 50 to 70% less than a local equivalent, no lock-in contract, no setup fee.
Small business bookkeeping Melbourne, the short answer
Last updated 22 October 2026. Checked against the State Revenue Office Victoria and the Portable Long Service Authority on 22 October 2026, and the Fair Work Ombudsman and the ATO on 1 October 2026. The payroll tax, public holiday and super figures below come from those pages, linked beside each one.
Everything a bookkeeper in Melbourne would do, without the desk. Your dedicated accountant codes the bank feed, reconciles bank, card and merchant accounts, enters supplier bills, sends invoices and follows up the overdue ones, prepares each pay run with its Single Touch Payroll report and super payment for your approval, closes the month, and prepares the BAS figures and workpapers your registered BAS or tax agent reviews and lodges.
Our Australian office is in Melbourne, but your accountant is not: the work is done from our Manila office, inside your cloud accounting file. That is the reason the price is lower, and it rarely matters, because a bookkeeper who logs in to your file does the same work from Manila as from the Melbourne CBD. If your books live on paper, or someone needs to count cash on site, a local Melbourne bookkeeper will suit you better.
We work with Melbourne businesses from sole traders to companies paying Victorian payroll tax, in the industries listed below. Outside Victoria, see bookkeeping in Sydney, bookkeeping in Brisbane and on the Gold Coast, or bookkeeping services for small business Australia-wide. Payroll on its own is on payroll services Melbourne.
VIC rules
Most bookkeeping rules are national: GST, BAS, Single Touch Payroll and super guarantee are the same in Melbourne as in Sydney or Perth. Two things are not: payroll tax, which is a state tax, and the public holidays that drive penalty rates and the super due date count.
| Item | What applies in Victoria | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Payroll tax threshold | $1,000,000 of annual Australian taxable wages | State Revenue Office Victoria, Payroll tax current rates, updated 29 September 2026 |
| Payroll tax rate | 4.85% | Same source |
| Monthly threshold | $83,333 | Same source |
| Other points | Regional employers pay a lower rate, and two surcharges (mental health and wellbeing, and the COVID-19 debt surcharge) apply to the Victorian share of wages once Australian wages pass $10 million a year. | Same source |
| Public holidays that affect penalty rates and super due dates, July 2026 to June 2027 | Friday 25 September 2026, Friday before the AFL Grand Final; Tuesday 3 November 2026, Melbourne Cup; Friday 25 December 2026, Christmas Day; Monday 28 December 2026, Boxing Day holiday; Friday 1 January 2027, New Year’s Day; Tuesday 26 January 2027, Australia Day; Monday 8 March 2027, Labour Day; Friday 26 March to Monday 29 March 2027, Easter; Sunday 25 April 2027, Anzac Day (no additional day in Victoria); Monday 14 June 2027, King’s Birthday | Fair Work Ombudsman, 2026 public holidays and 2027 public holidays |
| Super guarantee due date | Received by the fund within 7 business days of payday; whole-of-state public holidays anywhere in Australia do not count as business days | ATO, Payment deadlines for Payday Super, updated 29 September 2026 |
| GST registration | Required once turnover reaches $75,000 ($150,000 for not-for-profits) | ATO, Registering for GST |
| Long service leave | Long service leave in Victoria is governed by the Long Service Leave Act 2018 (Vic), administered by Wage Inspectorate Victoria. | Victorian Government, Long service leave |
Figures as at 1 October 2026. Your registered BAS or tax agent confirms what applies to your business; your FreeMyCloud accountant keeps the records those decisions rely on.
Industries
Melbourne small businesses are mostly hospitality, construction and trades, health, community services, professional services and retail. Each has its own bookkeeping rules, and we already have a page for most of them.
Daily takings reconciliation, Hospitality Award penalty rates, and loadings for Grand Final eve and Melbourne Cup Day.
TPAR, GST on progress claims, subcontractor records and retention tracking.
Medicare and private billing reconciliation, GST-free and taxable services split, associate payments.
NDIA claim reconciliation, SCHADS Award payroll, and the Victorian portable long service scheme.
Time billing, retainers, project work in progress, receivables follow-up and monthly management reports.
Shopify, Square and payment gateway reconciliation, stock, and GST on mixed sales.
Also: law firms and real estate agencies, franchisees, IT companies, clubs and not-for-profits. See the related pages below.
Get in touch
Tell us a little about your business and what you need looked after. We reply within one business day, Australia-wide, and fifteen minutes on the phone is enough to say whether a dedicated bookkeeper suits you and what it would cost.
Prefer to talk? 1300 66 88 14
Local knowledge
| Situation | What it means for the books | How FreeMyCloud handles it |
|---|---|---|
| A business approaching $1 million in wages | Victorian payroll tax starts at $1,000,000 of annual Australian taxable wages at 4.85%, with a lower rate for regional employers and a monthly threshold of $83,333 (State Revenue Office Victoria, updated 29 September 2026). | Wages are tracked against the threshold each month so registration and monthly returns happen on time. |
| A Melbourne employer with staff on penalty rates | Victoria has two public holidays no other state has: the Friday before the AFL Grand Final (25 September 2026) and Melbourne Cup Day (Tuesday 3 November 2026), which applies in metropolitan Melbourne while some regional councils swap it for a local holiday (Fair Work, 2026 public holidays). | Both are loaded into your payroll software before the pay run so penalty rates are paid correctly. |
| A community services, contract cleaning or security business | Victoria runs a portable long service leave scheme for workers in community services, contract cleaning and security. Employers in those industries register with the scheme and lodge a return each quarter (Portable Long Service Authority). | Covered workers are flagged in the payroll file and the figures for each quarterly return are prepared from it. |
| Staff in both Victoria and another state | Payroll tax is worked out state by state on where the work is done, and each state has its own threshold. | Wages are tagged by state in the payroll file from the first pay run. |
| A business on paper records or counting cash on site | Remote bookkeeping needs scanned receipts and bank feeds. | A receipt-capture app and a weekly scanning routine fix most of it; if not, a local bookkeeper suits better. |
Choosing
| Local bookkeeper or franchise | Dedicated FreeMyCloud accountant | |
|---|---|---|
| Where the work is done | Your premises or their home office in Greater Melbourne | Our Manila office, inside your cloud accounting file |
| Who does it | One person, often with other clients the same day | The same graduate accountant every day, employed by FreeMyCloud |
| Hours | By arrangement | VIC business hours |
| Cost | Local hourly or package rates | Typically 50 to 70% less than a local equivalent |
| Cover for leave | You arrange it | Arranged by FreeMyCloud |
| Suits | Paper records, cash counts, front desk work, two hours a month | Steady weekly volume in cloud software |
When a local bookkeeper is the better choice. If your records are on paper that never gets scanned, if cash is counted on site, or if you want someone at the front desk, hire locally. Many Melbourne businesses use both: a local person for the physical work and FreeMyCloud for the daily bookkeeping.
Software and security
Your accountant logs in to your own accounting file with a user account you create, at the permission level you choose. You can remove access at any time. Your data stays in your accounting software.
Every engagement starts with a signed non-disclosure agreement. Changes in the file are recorded against the user who made them, so you and your registered agent can see who did what and when.
Manila is on the same time as Perth and two hours behind Melbourne for most of the year, so your accountant is at work when you are.
Your accountant works in the Xero file your business already uses, with bank feeds, receipt capture and Xero payroll. See Xero bookkeeping.
MYOB Business and AccountRight files, including MYOB payroll and Single Touch Payroll. See MYOB bookkeeping.
Whichever platform your Melbourne business already uses.
User permissions set by you, removable by you.
In place before any work begins.
Approvals, payment runs and reporting dates stay as you have set them.
Small business bookkeeping Melbourne firms usually charge by the hour. A dedicated FreeMyCloud accountant typically costs 50 to 70% less than a local equivalent. The figure for your business depends on hours and transaction volume, and the cost page sets out how it is worked out.
Getting started
Most Melbourne clients are running within three business days of the first call.
You describe the business, the software and the work that needs doing.
We match a graduate accountant to your software and workload.
The NDA is signed and you invite your accountant into your file.
Your accountant follows your existing process from the first day.
Related pages
Frequently asked questions
No. FreeMyCloud is Australian owned and its Australian office is in Melbourne, but your dedicated accountant works from our Manila office, remotely, inside your cloud accounting file during Victorian business hours. That is why the cost is typically 50 to 70% less than a local equivalent. If you need someone on your premises, a local bookkeeper will suit you better.
Mostly not. GST, BAS, Single Touch Payroll and super are national rules. What is local is Victorian payroll tax, the Grand Final eve and Melbourne Cup public holidays, and the portable long service scheme for community services, contract cleaning and security workers. Your accountant applies all three in your file.
A dedicated FreeMyCloud accountant typically costs 50 to 70% less than a local Melbourne equivalent, with no setup fee and no lock-in contract. The figure depends on hours and transaction volume. The cost page explains how it is worked out and the savings calculator gives an estimate.
$1,000,000 of annual Australian taxable wages, with payroll tax at 4.85% on wages above it and a monthly threshold of $83,333, as published by the State Revenue Office Victoria and checked on 22 October 2026. Regional employers pay a lower rate, and two surcharges apply to the Victorian share of wages once Australian wages pass $10 million a year.
Yes. Pay runs, Single Touch Payroll reports and super payments are prepared inside your payroll software for your approval, with Victoria public holidays applied to penalty rates and the 7 business day super deadline counted correctly. The outsourced payroll page has the detail.
No. Only a registered BAS agent or tax agent can provide BAS services for a fee in Australia (Tax Practitioners Board). Your FreeMyCloud accountant keeps the records current and prepares the BAS figures and workpapers. Your registered agent reviews them and lodges.
Cafes, restaurants and bars, Builders and tradies, Medical, dental and allied health, NDIS and community services providers, Professional services and agencies, Retail and online stores, and others. The industry pages linked above explain the specific obligations in each.
Most clients are running within three business days of the first call: a 30-minute call, an accountant matched to your software and workload, the NDA signed, and your accountant invited into your file.
This page is general information about bookkeeping for Melbourne businesses, current as at 1 October 2026. It is not tax, financial or legal advice. FreeMyCloud is not a registered tax agent and does not prepare or lodge tax returns. Rates, thresholds and dates change. Confirm your own position with your registered tax or BAS agent.
Fifteen minutes on the phone is enough to tell you whether a dedicated accountant suits your business, and what it would cost.
