How to Prepare Your BAS

10/27/2026

Reading time 20-30 minutes

intermediate

Your BAS figures come from your bank transactions and the receipts and invoices matched to them. Follow these steps to go from your bank transactions to a finished BAS report, with sales, purchases and GST mapped to the ATO labels (G1, G3, G10, G11, G14, 1A and 1B). Instant Receipts prepares the figures but does not lodge your BAS.

Prerequisites

✓You are registered for GST and know your BAS period (quarterly or monthly)
✓A connected bank account (paid plans) or an imported PDF bank statement for the period
✓Receipts and invoices for the period, if you have them

Outcome

Your BAS figures for the period, mapped to ATO labels
Anything that needs your attention flagged before you lodge
A BAS report your accountant can use, by link or by connection

Steps

Get Your Bank Transactions and Receipts In

For the full steps, see How to Import Bank Statements and How to Import Expenses.

Open the BAS Page

The BAS page shows how your bank transactions add up for a BAS period.

Choose Your Period and Basis

Pick the period you are lodging for and how you account for GST.

Your Documents Are Matched for You

Instant Receipts matches your receipts and invoices to your bank transactions automatically. There is nothing for you to do in this step.

Check the BAS Figures

The BAS figures card shows your totals for the period.

Create Your BAS Report

You can also generate a BAS Summary from the Reports page, which works from your imported PDF bank statements. See BAS Summary as PDF and BAS Summary as Excel.

Share With Your Accountant

You can send this report to your accountant, or connect them to your account so they see your records without waiting for emailed files.

Lodge Your BAS or Hand It Over

Instant Receipts prepares your BAS figures. It does not lodge your BAS. Check your due dates with the ATO.

Troubleshooting

I can't connect my bank

Live bank feeds are only available on paid plans. On the free plan, import a PDF bank statement instead.

I can't see the BAS button

The BAS button appears on a connected bank account in Banking. Select the account first.

A credit isn't counted as a sale

A credit with no type is never guessed to be a sale. Open Needs review and choose what it is.

A purchase is flagged

Purchases over $82.50 with no receipt or invoice are flagged. Match a document to the transaction, or add a note.

I can't invite my accountant

Connecting an accountant needs a paid plan, and only the workspace owner can invite. You can have one accountant connection at a time, so cancel the existing one first.

My share link stopped working

The link has expired or reached its download limit. Create a new link from Notify your accountant or from Reports.

Need more details?

See How to Generate Tax & Compliance Reports for the complete workflow and all available options.