Tax debt is money owed to the ATO that hasn’t been paid by the due date. Common types of tax debts include unpaid amounts for:

• income tax 
• goods and services tax (GST)
• pay as you go (PAYG) withholding 
• PAYG instalments 
• super guarantee charge (for unpaid staff super). 

Tax debt also includes general interest charge (GIC), shortfall interest charge and penalties for late lodgment.

The above list doesn’t include all types of taxes. Some small businesses may have tax debts for other types of taxes such as fringe benefits tax (FBT) or wine equalisation tax (WET).

Tax liability versus tax debt

A tax liability is an amount of tax you owe the ATO. It has a due date in the future and you have a legal responsibility to pay the amount on time. 

A tax liability becomes a tax debt when it hasn’t been paid by the due date.