Notice of Assessment (NOA)
A statement issued by the Australian Taxation Office confirming the income declared on a lodged tax return and the tax assessed.
In detail
The Notice of Assessment is the official ATO confirmation of a tax return. It shows taxable income, tax payable or refundable, and any outstanding ATO balances. Lenders use NOAs to verify the income figures declared on tax returns when assessing self employed borrowers and some PAYG clients with additional income.
With the move to myGov the NOA is often available as a PDF download from the ATO portal shortly after a tax return is lodged. Paper NOAs are still issued by mail in some circumstances. Lenders require the most recent two NOAs for most self employed assessments and may also check for outstanding ATO debts which can be a serviceability issue.
Why it matters for brokers
NOAs are the document that cross checks a borrower declared income against the ATO record. Any mismatch between the tax return and the NOA raises red flags, so brokers should verify both before submission.
Example in practice
A self employed borrower provides two tax returns showing taxable income of $140,000 and $155,000. The broker also collects the matching NOAs and confirms both figures align with the ATO records and that there are no outstanding tax debts which would need to be disclosed.
Related terms
Self Employed Income
Business income earned by borrowers operating under an ABN as sole traders, through a company, or via a trust structure.
ABN Income
Income earned by a sole trader, partnership, company, or trust operating under an Australian Business Number.
Responsible Lending
The legal framework under the National Consumer Credit Protection Act requiring lenders and brokers to assess whether a loan is not unsuitable for the borrower.
Year to Date (YTD) Income
The cumulative gross income an employee has earned since the start of the financial year, shown on each payslip.
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