The ATO public officer: what it is, who can hold it and how to appoint one

Every company that carries on business in Australia, or earns income from property here, must be represented for tax purposes by a public officer. The appointment has to be made in writing within 3 months of the company starting business, and the person must be an individual aged at least 18 who is ordinarily resident in Australia. It is a tax law role under section 252 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936, separate from the resident director and from the company secretary.

Three roles that get confused

Foreign-owned companies often assume their Australian-resident director covers every local requirement. It doesn't. Three different laws create three different roles.

• Resident director (Corporations Act s201A): a proprietary company needs at least one director who ordinarily resides in Australia. See resident director requirements.
• Company secretary (Corporations Act s204A): optional for a proprietary company, but if one is appointed, at least one must ordinarily reside in Australia. See company secretary rules.
• Public officer (ITAA 1936 s252): required for tax purposes, appointed and notified to the ATO, not ASIC.

One person can hold all three. But appointing someone as director does not make them the public officer, and lodging their details with ASIC does not tell the ATO anything about the role. The residency wording also differs between the two Acts, so don't assume a person who satisfies one test automatically satisfies the other without checking.

What the law actually says

Section 252(1) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 sets out the core rules:

• The company must appoint a public officer within 3 months after it starts to carry on business or derive income in Australia.
• It must keep the office "constantly filled".
• No appointment counts until written notice, giving the officer's name and an address for service, has reached the Commissioner.
• Serving a document on the public officer, or at that address, counts as serving the company.
• The public officer is answerable for everything the company must do under the Act and, on default, is liable to the same penalties.
• Anything the public officer does in that capacity is treated as done by the company.
• Not having a public officer doesn't excuse the company from any obligation or penalty.

Section 252(3) makes failing to appoint when an appointment becomes necessary an offence, punishable by a fine of up to 1 penalty unit for each day the failure continues.

Who can hold the office

Under s252(2), the person must:

1. be a natural person aged 18 or over
2. be ordinarily resident in Australia
3. be capable of understanding what being appointed public officer means.

A company cannot be the public officer, and nor can a person who lives overseas. That is the requirement foreign-owned groups most often miss: the group's head of tax in Singapore or London may manage every return, but they cannot be named.

The ATO's practice, in plain terms

The ATO's practice statement PS LA 2011/8 fills in how the ATO applies s252:

• Timing at registration. A company that registers for its ABN or TFN before it has been trading for 3 months doesn't need to name a public officer to finish the registration. It must still nominate one in writing before the 3 months run out. The ATO says it prefers companies to appoint at registration anyway.
• One at a time. The ATO won't accept more than one public officer at once, for example one per division. A company can appoint an alternate for a period, such as while the usual officer is on leave, and the alternate's appointment overrides for that time.
• Exemptions are rare. The Commissioner can exempt a company, but expects to do so only in limited cases, such as where another representative is effectively performing the role. The ATO says it is unlikely to grant an exemption just because the company can't find a suitable person or finds the role too costly to fill.
• Short-lived trading. A company that stops trading within 3 months of starting doesn't have to appoint one.
• GST-only registrants. An overseas company that only registers for indirect taxes, without carrying on business in Australia or earning income from property here, isn't required to appoint a public officer.
• The ABR record. The public officer is not appointed for ABN purposes, but their name is recorded on the Australian Business Register.

Does a foreign-owned Pty Ltd need one?

If the subsidiary trades, employs staff, holds Australian property or earns Australian income, yes. The ATO's practice statement says the requirement applies whether the company is resident or non-resident, so a foreign company with an Australian branch that trades here on an ongoing basis is in the same position. A newly incorporated shelf company that hasn't started business yet doesn't need one on day one, but the 3-month clock starts as soon as it does.

How to appoint and notify

There is no ASIC form for this. The steps are:

1. Choose the person and get their written agreement. Explain the penalty exposure in s252(1)(f) before they sign.
2. Record the appointment in a board resolution or written notice under the company's constitution or the replaceable rules.
3. Tell the ATO in writing with the person's name and a contact address. At incorporation, this usually goes into the ABN application; our ABN and TFN guide covers that step.
4. Keep it current. The ATO's update your details page says changes to registered details, including the public officer, must reach the Registrar of the Australian Business Register within 28 days. Changes can be lodged online through the ABR or Online services for business, on the Change of registration details form (NAT 2943), or through a registered tax or BAS agent. Public officer details can't be added or updated by phone.

The lapse nobody notices

The usual failure isn't the first appointment. It's the departure. The Australian finance manager who was named on the ABN application resigns, the role sits empty, and ATO correspondence keeps going to someone who left months ago. Because the office must be "constantly filled", the company is out of compliance from the day they go. Add a public officer check to every offboarding of an Australian-based officer. The ATO also recommends reviewing who holds access and roles for the business, including public officers, authorised contacts and Relationship Authorisation Manager users, and updating them when people change.

Choosing the right person

Good candidates are people already close to the tax function and based in Australia:

Whoever it is should see every lodgement before it goes in and receive ATO mail promptly. The role is about being answerable for the company's tax affairs, so a name with no information flow is a risk for that person and for the company. This links closely to the director penalty regime, which reaches directors personally for unpaid PAYG withholding, GST and super, and to the wider tax lodgement map for the company.

Where we fit

Our resident director meets s201A. The public officer is a separate appointment, and the company should agree who takes it with its accountant before the 3-month window closes. We don't give tax advice, and we don't assume the public officer role by default. Our Governance Partner package includes a company secretary, which is a Corporations Act role. Package details are on our pricing page.

This page is general information, current at 27 October 2026, and is not legal or tax advice. Confirm your company's position with a registered tax agent.

General information about Australian law and practice, not legal or tax advice for your circumstances. Check the official sources, or ask your adviser, before you act.