Individuals: Tax Time FAQ’s - Payment Summaries

1. What do you do if you are missing one of your payment summaries?

You are expected to make all reasonable attempts to contact your employer to get a copy of your payment summary. If you can’t get a payment summary, you can ask your employer to sign a letter stating the income and tax withheld throughout the income year.

If all attempts to get your payment summary are unsuccessful, you can complete a statutory declaration and use this in place of the missing payment summary. To complete this declaration, you may need to refer to your bank records or payslips to estimate your income and tax withheld.

The Gross pay estimator may help you calculate your income for the financial year


2. What if your payment summary is incorrect?

You should contact your payer and ask them for an amending letter on business letterhead that shows the correct details. You should keep this letter with your original payment summary.

If your payer is unwilling or unable to provide you with this amending letter, you should complete a general statutory declaration (available from most Post Offices and the Attorney General's website at www.ag.gov.au). You should keep this with your original payment summary.


3. What can you do if you lose your payment summary?

You will need to request from your employer a signed copy of the payment summary. This copy needs to be certified by the employer as 'true and correct'. If the employer no longer has a copy of the payment summary, you can request the details that were contained in the summary be provided to you on business letterhead.

If your payer is unwilling or unable to provide you with this amending letter, you should complete a general statutory declaration (available from most Post Offices and the Attorney General's website at www.ag.gov.au). You should keep this with your original payment summary.