If you invoice an Australian business without quoting an Australian Business Number, the payer is generally required to withhold 47% of the payment, which the Australian Taxation Office describes as the top rate of tax. That single rule explains why the ABN vs business name question matters so much to anyone starting a side business. They are different registrations, run by different agencies, and neither one registers you for GST.
The confusion now touches a very large group. People born in India became the largest overseas-born group in Australia for the first time on record, numbering 971,020 at 30 June 2025, just ahead of the 970,950 born in England, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics release of 29 April 2026. India is also the largest source of international students: Home Affairs counted 88,306 Indian student visa holders in Australia at 31 December 2025, out of 477,890 in total.
Is a tax file number a business registration?
No. A tax file number (TFN) is your personal tax identifier, and it is not one of the registrations that set up a business. The Australian Business Register states that an ABN “is a public number which does not replace your tax file number.”
What changes is how the TFN is used. A sole trader keeps using their individual TFN for both personal and business tax, according to business.gov.au. Partnerships, companies and trusts need a separate TFN of their own.
The three registrations founders actually mix up are the ABN, the business name and GST. A fourth, the Australian Company Number, applies only to companies.
What does an ABN actually do?
An ABN is an 11-digit number that identifies your business to the government, other businesses and the public. Registering for one through the Australian Business Register is free; the register says it does not charge a fee for online or paper applications, although a tax agent you hire may charge for their time.
The catch is entitlement. Under ABR guidance on ABN entitlement, you must be carrying on, or starting, an enterprise in Australia. The register is blunt on one point: “You’re not entitled to an ABN for work that you carry out as an employee,” even where the arrangement is labelled contracting.
It also warns that applicants “may face prosecution or criminal charges” if they apply for an ABN when not entitled. If an application is refused, the register sends a letter within 14 days explaining why and setting out review rights. Once you hold an ABN, you have 28 days to update your details after becoming aware of a change.
EXPLAINER
What does “carrying on an enterprise” mean?
It is the test for ABN entitlement. The Australian Business Register describes a business as activity with “an intention to make a profit,” usually shown by planning, unlike a hobby. If you have not started trading, you can show commencement through steps such as advertising, setting up a social media account for the business or obtaining licences. Work done as an employee does not count.
Is my side activity a hobby or a business?
The ATO does not use a single threshold. Its guidance, last updated on 15 April 2026, asks five questions: whether you intend to be in business, whether you intend to and have a prospect of making a profit, whether the size or scale is enough to make a profit, whether the activities are repeated and continuous, and whether they are planned, organised and carried out in a businesslike manner.
“The more of the following questions you answer yes to, the more likely it is your activities are a business,” the ATO says. Indicators include keeping records, holding a separate business bank account, and advertising to the public rather than selling only to family and friends.
In a 4 March 2026 note on side hustles, the ATO said a business generally involves “ongoing and repeated activities with the intention of making a profit,” while one-off transactions may not qualify.
There is a practical bridge for genuine hobbyists who sell occasionally to businesses. The ATO’s statement by a supplier not quoting an ABN allows an individual to declare in writing that a supply was made as “a private recreational pursuit or hobby,” in which case the 47% withholding does not apply. The same form covers payments of $75 or less, excluding GST.
ABN vs business name: what is the difference?
A business name is simply the name you trade under, and it is registered with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), not the tax office. It gives you no tax identity at all.
You need an ABN before you can register a business name. ASIC says you do not need to register a business name if you trade as a sole trader under your own first name and surname, or as a partnership under all partners’ personal names. Trading under your full name needs no registration; trading under a brand name does.
The fees rose on 1 July 2026. Registration or renewal for one year went from $45 to $47, and three years from $104 to $108, according to business.gov.au’s summary of changes from 1 July 2026. ASIC sends a renewal notice, usually by email, at least 30 days before the registration falls due.
When do I have to register for GST?
You must register for GST once your GST turnover reaches $75,000 a year, and you have 21 days to do so after that point, according to the ATO’s GST registration page, last updated on 14 September 2026. Non-profit organisations have a $150,000 threshold.
The figure is not measured only on the past year. The ATO tests it two ways: current turnover, being the current month plus the previous 11 months, and projected turnover, being the current month plus the next 11. If either reaches the threshold, registration is required.
There is one significant exception to the threshold. Anyone providing taxi or ride-sourcing travel must register for GST regardless of turnover, so a part-time rideshare driver earning far below $75,000 is still caught.
Below the threshold, and outside those required categories, registration is optional. The ATO says that if you opt in, you generally have to stay registered for at least 12 months. You need an ABN before registering, and once registered you must lodge a business activity statement (BAS).
How do the registrations compare?
| Registration | Who issues it | Cost | When you need it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tax file number | ATO | Not a business registration | Everyone with tax obligations; sole traders use their individual TFN |
| ABN | Australian Business Register | Free | Carrying on or starting an enterprise; not for employee work |
| Business name | ASIC | $47 (1 year), $108 (3 years) | Trading under any name other than your own name |
| GST | ATO | No registration fee stated | GST turnover of $75,000 or more; any taxi or ride-sourcing work |
| ACN | ASIC | $636 company registration | Only if you set up a company |
Does a sole trader need an ACN?
No. An Australian Company Number is a nine-digit number that ASIC issues to every company when it is registered, and sole traders do not have one. ASIC notes that an ACN “is different to an Australian Business Number” and that most companies hold both.
Company registration rose from $611 to $636 on 1 July 2026, and the annual review fee for a proprietary company from $329 to $342. A company is a separate legal entity with higher set-up and running costs, and its directors can be held personally liable for breaching their obligations.
A sole trader, by contrast, carries unlimited liability. “All your personal assets are at risk if things go wrong,” business.gov.au warns. That choice has tax and liability consequences best taken to a registered tax agent.
Can visa holders run a side business?
An ABN does not change your visa conditions, and an ABN alone is not permission to work. That matters most for the two largest groups of Indian temporary residents.
Student visa holders can work up to 48 hours a fortnight while their course is in session, and unlimited hours during scheduled course breaks, according to the government’s Study Australia guidance. The Department of Home Affairs has not published specific guidance on whether running your own business, or ABN-based contract work, counts toward that limit, and none could be found on its websites.
What exists is the legal definition. The Migration Regulations 1994 define work as “an activity that, in Australia, normally attracts remuneration,” a definition the Federal Court applied in Tikoisuva v Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs in 2001. On that wording, the test turns on the nature of the activity, not on whether you are an employee, but how it applies to a particular venture is a question for the department or a registered migration agent.
For holders of the Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482), the restriction is tighter. Home Affairs tells employers that “the skilled worker can work only for you while you sponsor their visa.” Since 1 July 2024, conditions 8607 and 8107 allow a sponsored worker to stop working for their sponsor for up to 180 consecutive days, and no more than 365 days in total across the visa. The conditions themselves are set out in each holder’s visa grant and can be checked through VEVO.
What should a first-time founder check?
These steps follow the official guidance; they are not tax or migration advice for your circumstances.
- Test your activity against the ATO’s five business questions before applying for an ABN. If you are an employee in substance, the register says you are not entitled to one.
- Apply for an ABN only through the Australian Business Register or the government’s Business Registration Service. The application itself is free.
- Settle the ABN vs business name order: ABN first. If you will not trade under your own name, register a business name with ASIC after your ABN is issued, at $47 for one year or $108 for three.
- Track GST turnover monthly, both backwards and forwards over 12 months. Register within 21 days of reaching $75,000, or from the start if you drive rideshare or taxi.
- Quote your ABN on every invoice to a business, or the payer may withhold 47%.
- If you hold a temporary visa, check your conditions through the Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO) service before you start trading.
For advice on structure and tax, use a registered tax agent; for visa questions, a registered migration agent or the Department of Home Affairs.
More coverage of Indian-run businesses in Australia is in our business section, including our report on the Indian business network in Melbourne.
What should founders watch for next?
Fees move. The business name and company fees changed on 1 July 2026, so rely on the current ASIC and business.gov.au pages rather than older guides.
The bigger gap is on the visa side. Home Affairs has not set out in its public guidance how self-employment interacts with student work limits. Until it does, the regulation’s definition of work is the only published yardstick, and founders on temporary visas carry the risk of reading it too generously.
What Indian founders in Australia ask before their first invoice
Do I need a new tax file number to start a side business as a sole trader?
No. A sole trader uses their individual TFN for both personal and business tax, according to business.gov.au. Partnerships, companies and trusts need their own TFN. The Australian Business Register notes that an ABN is a public number that does not replace a tax file number, so holding both is normal.
Does registering a business name give me an ABN?
No. It works the other way round. ASIC requires you to hold an ABN, or an ABN application reference number, before you can register a business name. The business name costs $47 for one year or $108 for three since 1 July 2026, while the ABN itself is free from the Australian Business Register.
I earn less than $75,000. Can I ignore GST?
Usually you are not required to register, but the ATO measures turnover both over the past 12 months and the coming 12 months. Taxi and ride-sourcing drivers must register whatever they earn. Registration below the threshold is optional, and the ATO says those who opt in generally stay registered for at least 12 months.
What happens if a client pays me without my ABN?
If you do not quote an ABN and no exception applies, the payer must generally withhold tax at the top rate, which the ATO’s withholding form puts at 47%. Exceptions include payments of $75 or less excluding GST, and supplies an individual declares in writing were made as a private recreational pursuit or hobby.
Can I run a business on a student visa?
Student visa holders can work up to 48 hours a fortnight during term and unlimited hours in scheduled breaks. Home Affairs has not published specific guidance on self-employment. The Migration Regulations define work as an activity that normally attracts remuneration, so check your conditions through VEVO and speak to a registered migration agent before trading.
