Annual reporting
ORIC reporting services
We prepare the reports your corporation must lodge with the Registrar each year under the CATSI Act, and we work alongside your independent auditor to get them signed and lodged on time. Reports are due within six months of your year end — 31 December for a 30 June year.
What we prepare
Which of these apply to your corporation depends on its registered size and its income for the period. We confirm your obligations against the Registrar’s current reporting guide before any work starts, so nobody is guessing.
- General report — the corporation’s details as at year end.
- Financial report — the accounts themselves, prepared to the applicable standards.
- Directors’ report — the board’s account of the year.
- Audit report — prepared by your independent auditor, not by us. We manage their queries.
If your reports are overdue
Late lodgement is common and it is fixable. Corporations that have not lodged appear on a public list, so the position is visible — but it is also recoverable. The first step is simply establishing which years and which reports are outstanding, which we can do from the public register before you commit to anything.
Why we don’t audit
An accountant who prepares a corporation’s accounts cannot independently audit those same accounts. ORIC also requires the auditor to be a registered company auditor or an authorised audit company. We prepare; your auditor audits. That separation is what makes the audit worth having, and we would rather say so plainly than blur it.
Frequently asked questions
When are ORIC reports due?
Reports must be lodged within six months of the end of your corporation’s reporting period. Most corporations run a 1 July to 30 June year, which makes the deadline 31 December. If your corporation uses a different financial year, the six-month rule still applies from your own year end.
Which reports does our corporation actually need?
It depends on your corporation’s registered size — small, medium or large — and its consolidated gross operating income for the period. Not every corporation lodges every report. Rather than guess, we check your position against the Registrar’s current reporting guide and tell you exactly what applies before any work starts.
Who can sign the audit report?
ORIC requires the auditor to be a registered company auditor or an authorised audit company, independent of the corporation’s management and staff, with knowledge of the laws and accounting practices relevant to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations. We are not your auditor — we prepare the financial report and work with whoever your corporation appoints.
What happens if we lodge late?
Corporations that have not lodged appear on a public list maintained by the Registrar, and continued non-lodgement can lead to compliance action. It is a recoverable position, but it does not resolve itself. If you are behind, the useful first step is establishing exactly which years and which reports are outstanding.
Can you take over from our current accountant mid-year?
Yes. Changing accountants part-way through a year is routine — we request the handover information from your existing accountant, review what has been done, and pick up from there. Your board should not have to wait for a year end to get the reporting under control.