{"id":4070,"date":"2025-07-03T15:15:06","date_gmt":"2025-07-03T05:15:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.amt.org.au\/?p=4070"},"modified":"2025-07-03T15:15:23","modified_gmt":"2025-07-03T05:15:23","slug":"deliberately-keeping-your-income-under-75k-to-avoid-having-to-deal-with-gst-you-might-want-to-rethink-that","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.amt.org.au\/index.php\/2025\/07\/03\/deliberately-keeping-your-income-under-75k-to-avoid-having-to-deal-with-gst-you-might-want-to-rethink-that\/","title":{"rendered":"Deliberately Keeping Your Income Under $75k to Avoid Having to Deal with GST? You Might Want to Rethink That"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

by Anna Mitchell<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Disclaimer: This content is for general educational purposes only and does not constitute tax advice. Please speak to a registered BAS or tax agent about your specific tax circumstances.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBetter not earn too much or I\u2019ll have to register for GST!\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sound familiar?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a common practice in the massage therapy world: keeping your income under $75,000 so you don\u2019t have to register for GST.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019ve ever slowed down your bookings, kept prices low, or avoided marketing just to stay under the threshold, you\u2019re not alone. But here\u2019s the kicker: that strategy might be costing you more than you think, and not just financially.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Avoiding GST obligations makes sense to many sole trader massage therapists: you avoid another tiresome registration process; you don\u2019t have to modify your invoicing and accounting systems to add GST to client invoices; you don’t have to separate GST out of purchases and expenses; and you don\u2019t have to lodge that quarterly \u2013 or worse, monthly \u2014 BAS. And you don\u2019t have to spread yourself even thinner to allocate precious time and energy to these things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But is it actually a good strategy for your business long-term?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s take a look, from both a numbers and a mindset perspective.<\/p>\n\n\n

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If you think it\u2019s not worth the effort, you\u2019d be right\u2026 at $75k<\/mark><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s say your annual revenue is $75,000 and then pretend that GST registration is voluntary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Annual Revenue $75,000, Not Registered for GST<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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    Assuming 20% of that revenue goes to business expenses, here\u2019s how the numbers stack up:<\/p>\n\n\n\n