The Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) in Australia has issued guidance on expanded enforcement powers following the Royal Assent of the Treasury Laws Amendment (Strengthening Accountability for Tax Adviser Misconduct and Other Measures) Bill 2026.
The legislative amendments provide the TPB with broader powers to tackle serious misconduct and regulatory non-compliance among both registered tax advisers and unregistered operators.
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The measures are designed to ensure enforcement actions under the Tax Agent Services Act 2009 (TASA) correspond directly to the gravity of each breach, whilst continuing to support practitioners who adhere to ethical and professional standards.
Effective from 1 October 2026, the updated compliance and enforcement framework will introduce criminal penalties for unregistered bodies.
New civil penalties will also apply on registered practitioners that breach the Code of Professional Conduct and on unregistered entities that make misleading or false statements.
Under the amended legislation, maximum civil penalty thresholds will increase, and the TPB will be authorised to issue infringement notices for specific alleged or confirmed civil breaches and secure enforceable undertakings relating to TASA compliance.
Additionally, the regulator will gain the power to issue contingent suspensions for practitioners failing to meet registration obligations, and apply interim suspensions for urgent, high-risk misconduct cases.
The body can also double the maximum post-termination banning period from five years to ten years.
TPB chair Peter de Cure said: “The enhanced sanctions framework gives the TPB greater flexibility to take action that reflects the seriousness of the conduct and the level of risk it presents.
“The vast majority of registered tax practitioners fulfil their professional and ethical obligations and should not be concerned by these reforms.
“Our focus is on addressing serious misconduct and higher-risk behaviour, while continuing to support tax practitioners who maintain high professional and ethical standards.”
