Accounting marketing
Accountant
advertising rules.
Accountants advertise under consumer law plus the tax agent rules. Only registered agents can offer tax or BAS agent services for a fee, and advertising them while unregistered can attract civil penalties. Registered agents must tell current and prospective clients how to check the TPB register and how to complain, and a public website is one way to do it. Members of the professional bodies also follow APES 110, which bans marketing that brings the profession into disrepute.
Written by Dan Picken, a marketer who checks the sources. Last checked 2 November 2026.Registration
comes first.
The TPB's civil penalty rules cover charging a fee for tax or BAS agent services while unregistered, and advertising that you'll provide them. Representing that you're registered when you're not is also prohibited.
'Accountant' itself isn't legally protected in Australia, though a parliamentary committee recommended changing that in 2024. 'Registered tax agent' effectively is, which is why careful clients check the register.
Telling clients
how to check you.
The 2024 Code Determination added new obligations for registered agents, starting 1 January 2025 for larger practices, and 1 July 2025 for practitioners with 100 or fewer employees.
One requires agents to tell current and prospective clients, 'in a prominent, clear and unambiguous way', how to search the TPB register, how to complain, and other matters. The TPB lists publishing it on a publicly accessible website as one way to comply. For marketing, that's a trust signal you're already required to give, so put it where people can see it.
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A drafting aid, not legal advice. Check the TPB's guidance on keeping clients informed for the full list, including any prescribed events or registration conditions you must disclose.
The symbol
and 'Chartered'.
If you use the registered tax practitioner symbol, the TPB says it must be used with your registration number, and never in a misleading or deceptive way.
CA ANZ says only practices controlled by its members can use the Chartered Accountants description or logo, and its Australian members can't use 'Chartered' in a registered business name.
Professional body
rules.
Members of CA ANZ, CPA Australia and IPA follow APES 110, the profession's code of ethics, which says members must not bring the profession into disrepute when marketing, or make exaggerated claims. In that published case, a CPA Australia member was fined $30,000 and lost membership, for breaches including exaggerated claims.
If your firm gives SMSF advice, the accountants' exemption was repealed on 1 July 2016. Advising on setting up or winding up an SMSF now needs an AFS licence (a limited one is available) or authorisation from a licensee.
Refunds, 'free'
and fees.
Under the Australian Consumer Law, ads can't mislead, and fine print can't contradict the headline. 'Free first appointment' must be free. 'Maximum refund' is a promise about an outcome you don't control.
The ATO has warned taxpayers about promises of bigger refunds and shortcuts. A claim that sounds like those warnings is a poor look for a registered agent, even if it's technically defensible.
Fee advertising has rules too: prices must include compulsory charges and be shown clearly.
What I see most often
What I see
on accounting sites.
- 1
No registration details
A registered practice that never says so, and no link to the register.
- 2
'Maximum refund' banners
Tax-time promotions promising the biggest refund, which no one can promise.
- 3
'Free consultation' with conditions
A free first meeting that turns out to be a sales call, or only free if you sign up.
- 4
The symbol without the number
The registered practitioner logo on the site, with no registration number next to it.
The honest bit. This is a marketer's summary, not legal or professional advice. Your professional body and the TPB have the final word, and both publish guidance.
Questions
people ask.
Can I advertise as an accountant if I'm not registered?
'Accountant' isn't a protected title, but advertising tax or BAS agent services for a fee while unregistered can attract civil penalties.
What must a tax agent tell prospective clients?
Among other things, how to search the TPB register and how to complain. The TPB says a public website is one way to provide it.
Can I use the registered tax practitioner symbol?
Registered agents can, with their registration number, and not in a misleading way.
Can I put 'Chartered' in my business name?
CA ANZ says its Australian members can't use 'Chartered' in a registered business name.
Can I promise a maximum refund?
It's risky. Ads must not mislead under the Australian Consumer Law, and no one controls the size of a refund. Promise what you control, like a thorough review of deductions.
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