Accountant & tax agent in Tatura

Tatura is a dairy and irrigation town first and a commuter town second. The tax questions that come out of it, from milk income that swings with the season to water that is bought, sold and leased separately from the land, are ones we deal with every year. SMT Accounting serves Tatura from Shepparton North and, for most clients, from a phone.

Working with SMT from Tatura

Our office at 53 Mootwingee Crescent, Shepparton North is about 24 minutes' drive from Tatura along the Midland Highway, and we see clients there by appointment. In practice a Tatura dairy farmer in the middle of calving does not want to drive anywhere, so we built the practice around phone, WhatsApp, email and video: photograph the documents, talk it through when the milking is done, sign on your phone. You deal directly with Sohail Yasin (CPA, registered tax agent) and Syed Shah (IPA member).

Tatura's economy and the clients we see

Tatura grew up around the Goulburn irrigation system, and the dairy farms on the channels around it still supply the town's largest employer. Tatura Milk Industries, established in 1907 and now a wholly owned subsidiary of Bega Cheese Limited, processes local milk into cream cheese, powders and infant formula at its Hogan Street plant. Around that core sit irrigation and water-management contractors, dairy service businesses, orchards and cropping to the north and west, and a main street of retail, trades and professional services.

The work that follows from that is distinctive:

• Dairy farmers: primary production returns with income averaging, Farm Management Deposits, livestock valued at cost, market selling value or replacement value, and immediate deductions for fencing, water facilities and fodder storage such as silos and hay sheds.
• Irrigators and water traders: the capital gains tax treatment of water entitlements traded permanently or temporarily, and the deduction for water facilities such as channels, pipes and pumps.
• Food-processing and plant workers: shift workers with protective clothing, laundry, union and phone claims, and sometimes an overtime meal allowance to reconcile.
• Agricultural contractors and transport operators: fuel tax credits for off-road fuel, equipment depreciation and payroll for drivers and seasonal staff.
• Main-street businesses: GST, employees, leases and the structure question of whether to keep trading as a sole trader or move to a company or trust.

For the farm-specific rules in full, read our guide for farmers, orchardists and primary producers, which cites the ATO page behind each point.

Services that matter most in Tatura

• Business and company tax for farming partnerships, family trusts and companies, including the primary production schedules.
• BAS, GST and IAS with fuel tax credits worked out using the ATO calculator for each period, because the rate changes every February and August.
• Bookkeeping set up so milk statements, stock movements and water transactions land in the right place.
• Payroll and STP for farm hands and casual staff, with super paid each payday so the 7-business-day Payday Super deadline from 1 July 2026 is met.
• Individual tax returns for workers and families.

What to have ready

• Photo ID and tax file number for the identity check we must complete as a registered agent.
• For farms: milk processor statements, livestock numbers at 1 July and 30 June (purchases, sales, births and deaths), water trade and allocation statements, FMD statements, fuel purchases and how the fuel was used, and invoices for fencing, water or fodder-storage work.
• For employees: income statement through myGov (we can access it after nomination), receipts, and a record of any work-from-home hours.
• For any business: bank feed access or statements, last year's return and financial statements, and the asset register if one exists.