Bookkeeping for tradies, AustraliaA dedicated, university-qualified graduate accountant keeps your trade business books current every week: invoices and supplier bills entered, bank accounts reconciled, pay runs and super prepared, and BAS and TPAR figures ready for your registered BAS or tax agent. Your bookkeeper is based in the Philippines and works in your Xero, MYOB or QuickBooks file during Australian business hours.
What a trade business has to keep up with
Electricians, plumbers, carpenters, builders and other trades share the same six jobs in the books. Each one is simple when it is done weekly.
Jobs finish and the invoice goes out days later, then nobody chases it. Your bookkeeper sends invoices from your job app or accounting software and follows up overdue accounts each week.
A business must register for GST once its GST turnover reaches $75,000 (ATO). BAS figures are prepared from reconciled accounts, so they are ready before the due date.
Building and construction businesses that pay contractors for building and construction services report those payments in a Taxable payments annual report, due 28 August each year (ATO).
For earnings paid from 1 July 2026, super must be received by each employee's fund within 7 business days of payday. Pay runs, payroll reports and super are prepared together.
Fuel, tools, equipment and vehicle costs are recorded with their receipts as they happen, so your accountant has complete records to work from at tax time.
Monthly profit and loss, balance sheet and cash flow reports show what each month earned and what customers still owe you.
Key dates
| Obligation | Who it applies to | When it is due |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly BAS | GST-registered businesses that report quarterly | 28 October, 28 February, 28 April and 28 July |
| Monthly BAS | Businesses with GST turnover of $20 million or more, or that choose to report monthly | The 21st day of the following month |
| Taxable payments annual report (TPAR) | Building and construction businesses that pay contractors for building and construction services | 28 August each year |
| Super guarantee under Payday Super | Employers, for earnings paid from 1 July 2026 | Received by the fund within 7 business days of payday |
| Single Touch Payroll report | Employers | On or before each payday |
Dates as published by the ATO at 29 September 2026: BAS due dates, TPAR, Payday Super deadlines and Single Touch Payroll. Different dates can apply when you lodge through a registered tax or BAS agent. Confirm your own dates with your agent.
What is handled
One person working in your software, during your business hours, on the jobs that otherwise wait until Sunday night.
Bank feeds coded, receipts matched and accounts reconciled every week.
BAS figures and workpapers prepared each quarter for your registered BAS or tax agent to review and lodge.
Pay runs, Single Touch Payroll reports and super payments prepared for your approval.
Invoices sent promptly and overdue accounts followed up on a set schedule.
Payments recorded against each contractor and their ABN through the year, so TPAR figures are ready in July.
Profit and loss, balance sheet and cash flow, written so they can be read in five minutes.
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
Job management apps
Most trade businesses already quote, schedule and invoice in a job management app. ServiceM8, Tradify, NextMinute and Simpro each connect to Xero, so jobs, invoices and payments can flow into the accounts without being typed twice.
Your bookkeeper is able to work with the connection you already have and keeps both sides reconciled. There is no need to change apps or accounting software.
Quoting, scheduling and invoicing for field service businesses.
Connects to Xero
Job management for trade and contracting businesses.
Connects to Xero
Job management for small trade and service businesses.
Connects to Xero
Job management for larger trade and construction businesses.
Connects to Xero
Your bookkeeper is a university-qualified graduate accountant with Australian experience, employed by FreeMyCloud and based in our Manila office. The same person works on your file every day and is ready to start within three business days.
FreeMyCloud is Australian owned and was founded in 2010, with offices in Melbourne and Manila.
A dedicated FreeMyCloud bookkeeper typically costs 50 to 70% less than a local equivalent. The figure for your business depends on hours and transaction volume.
Getting started
Four steps, and none of them need you off the tools for more than a few minutes.
You describe the business, your software and what is behind.
We match a graduate accountant to your software and workload.
The NDA is signed and you invite your bookkeeper into your file.
Books every week, reports every month, BAS figures every quarter.
Guides for trade businesses
FreeMyCloud provides bookkeeping for tradies and trade businesses in every state and territory, from individual operators and sole traders to companies running several crews. Because the work is done inside your cloud accounting file, it makes no difference where the business is based.
A trade business deals with GST on materials and labour, progress claims and retentions, subcontractor payments, vehicle and tool costs, and payroll that now includes super every pay run. None of it is difficult. It is the volume that catches up with owners who are on site all day.
Builders and construction companies have extra obligations around progress claims and retentions. Those are covered on the builders and construction page.
Frequently asked questions
A bookkeeper for a trade business enters invoices and supplier bills, reconciles bank and card accounts, follows up overdue customer accounts, prepares pay runs and super, records subcontractor payments, and produces monthly reports. Each quarter the BAS figures are prepared for a registered BAS or tax agent to review and lodge.
The ATO requires a business to register for GST when its GST turnover is $75,000 or more, or when a new business expects to reach that figure in its first year. GST turnover is gross business income, not profit, and excludes GST. The rule is set out on the ATO's Registering for GST page (as at 29 September 2026).
A business that operates primarily in building and construction, has an ABN and pays contractors or subcontractors for building and construction services lodges a Taxable payments annual report by 28 August each year. Our TPAR guide explains which payments are reportable.
A dedicated FreeMyCloud bookkeeper typically costs 50 to 70% less than a local equivalent, with no setup fee and no lock-in contract. The figure depends on the hours and transaction volume your business needs. The cost page explains how it is worked out.
Yes. Your FreeMyCloud bookkeeper keeps the accounts reconciled and prepares the BAS figures and workpapers. Your registered BAS or tax agent reviews them and lodges. Only a registered BAS agent or tax agent can provide BAS services for a fee in Australia, wherever the bookkeeping is done.
FreeMyCloud bookkeepers are able to work with Xero, MYOB, QuickBooks and Reckon, and with job management apps such as ServiceM8, Tradify, NextMinute and Simpro. There is no need to change the software you already use.
Your bookkeeper works inside your own accounting file using a user account you create, at the permission level you choose. You can remove access at any time. Every engagement begins with a signed non-disclosure agreement.
Most clients are running within three business days of the first call. The steps are a 30-minute call, matching a bookkeeper to your software and workload, signing the NDA and inviting your bookkeeper into your file.
This page is general information about Australian bookkeeping and reporting obligations, current as at 29 September 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 bookkeeper suits your trade business and what it would cost.
