Privacy Policy

Exploiting you and your client’s information is not what we’re all about. We are committed to maintaining the integrity of your personal information.

What we do

Lifestyle Tax & Accounting Pty Limited (LTA) provides tax preparation and advisor support services to you, the advisor and your clients. This allows you to address your client's tax needs as part of your advice solution.

Our commitment to you

We will handle you and your client’s information in compliance with the Privacy Act 1988 and the Australian Privacy Principles.

Information needed to do what we do

Personal information relates to information of people (not companies or other entities). LTA will also need certain details when dealing with other entities. We may need to collect personal information of individual directors, shareholders, trustees, beneficiaries and limited personal information of employees. We may need to collect the following:

Information Personal Entity
TFN/ABN ✓ ✓
ACN ✓
Date of birth ✓
Residency ✓ ✓
Address ✓ ✓
Bank details ✓ ✓
Personal ID ✓
Income ✓ ✓
Deductions ✓ ✓
Union memberships ✓

The information highlighted blue in the previous table is sensitive information/information that is subject to additional privacy requirements. This information is collected only with the individual’s prior consent. The information is kept secure and access restricted (see the ‘Information storage & management’ section below).

The information we use will be collected through any publicly available information, and through you, the advisor or the client directly (with your prior consent).


How we use your information

LTA uses your client’s information to:

  1. Prepare simple and complex tax advice;
  2. Prepare and lodge tax returns, BAS and IAS;
  3. Prepare financial statements;
  4. Process accounting work, including debtors and creditors;
  5. Process employee payroll and superannuation entitlements;
  6. Communicate with the ATO on you and your clients’ behalf.

Due to the nature of LTA’s services, LTA will require full disclosure of you and your client’s identity without use of pseudonyms.

Disclosure to third parties

LTA will only disclose your information if permitted to do so by law, or as necessary to perform our services.

LTA will share documents with the ATO and other government bodies only as necessary and with your authority. If LTA has been engaged to prepare tax returns, these will be lodged with the ATO electronically.

LTA is a registered tax agent (tax practitioner ref. 24232009). As a company, LTA must appoint at least one individual tax agent. Stefanie Seco is the registered tax agent of LTA (Tax Practitioner ref. 58334009).

LTA may disclose you and your client’s personal details to other registered tax agent companies that have appointed Ms Seco as the registered agent to assist in performing the services offered to you and your clients.

LTA is Australian owned and operated. You and your clients’ information won’t be sent overseas for preparation by foreign workers. All work is done in Australia.

How you can comply with your privacy obligations to your clients

As the advisor, you are responsible for obtaining your client’s consent to disclose the above information to LTA. You can do this by:

  1. Ensuring you have a privacy policy that is available to your clients, e.g. on your website;
  2. Requiring clients to ‘opt in’ to the tax services in writing. This can be by client engagement letter, disclosing use of LTA. Client must sign and return the letter.
Access to information

Client records will be retained by LTA for a period of up to 7 years. During those 7 years, we will provide you with access to you and your client’s personal details on request.

Sometimes we won’t be able to provide the information requested for example where this would impact on the privacy of others, the access is unlawful or the request is frivolous or vexatious. If we are unable to provide access to personal information, we will explain why in writing within 30 days of the request. We reserve the right to charge you a fee for access to personal information.

If you or your clients are of the view that the personal information we hold is incorrect, please notify us by email at admin@ltax.com.au. We may correct that information in accord with your instructions.

Complaints

Any privacy complaints can be directed to admin@ltax.com.au, in the first instance.

If you are not satisfied with the response, you may complain to the Tax Practitioner’s Board online https://www.tpb.gov.au/om_complaints_external.

Direct marketing

We may use you and your clients’ personal information for direct marketing. LTA will do so until you and/or your clients opt out by informing us in writing that you do not want to receive direct marketing.

Information storage & management

The privacy of you, the advisor and your client’s information is of utmost importance to LTA. LTA train our staff in how to keep information safe and secure. LTA’s computer system is a secure closed network that is managed by a third party IT provider.

LTA uses online cloud based software to store you and your client’s information. Two factor authentication has been set up where applicable. LTA maintains a separate file for each advisor and client.

Online cloud based accounting software is used through systems such as Xero, MYOB, Reckon and Software Assistant.

When information is no longer required, we destroy or de-identify that information.