SKILLS
The work your practice already does.
Done to your standard.
A skill is one piece of work Tax Terminal knows how to do — prepare a return, reconcile a ledger, chase a document that never arrived, review a group before it is signed. 125 of them are ready the day you sign in.
Every skill tells you what it is about to do, what it needs before it will run, and who in your practice is allowed to run it. Nothing that leaves your office happens without a person saying so.
Start with ours. Finish with yours.
Three kinds of skill, and you always know which one you are using
Every skill is declared as one of these before it is written, and the system holds it to that declaration. It is not a description of how a skill usually behaves — it is the limit of what it is able to do.
Tells you something and changes nothing. A trial balance, a variance, what a reviewer would question, the documents you are still waiting on. Run them as often as you like.
77 skills
Writes something inside your practice that you can change or throw away — a draft email, a working figure, a journal, a workpaper, a task for a colleague. The client sees none of it yet.
36 skills
Anything that leaves the practice or cannot be taken back — sending, lodging, approving, raising a fee, writing off a debt. It shows you exactly what it would do and waits.
12 skills
What holds, whatever a skill is asked to do
These are the parts a practice does not configure, because they are what makes the rest safe to configure. They apply to every skill on this page, every time it runs, whether a person typed it or asked for it in their own words.
A number in a return can be traced back to the document it came from, the calculation that produced it and the rule version in force when it was worked out. A figure with nothing behind it is reported as exactly that.
What a client sends you is kept exactly as it arrived. Everything the system produces is filed alongside it, never over it.
Preparing, reviewing, approving and lodging are separate permissions held by individuals. The AI works with exactly the authority of the person using it — never more, and it cannot grant itself any.
Every instruction is logged against the person who gave it, including the ones that were refused. “Nothing was done” is a claim somebody may need to check later.
A skill that needs a system you have not connected says so and stops. It does not produce a plausible figure and let you find out later that nothing was behind it.
Text inside a client's file is treated as information, never as a command. Nothing a client uploads can make the system act, change client or reach anything outside your practice.
A skill you use is not the skill you started with
Every practice gets the same tested starting point. What happens next is the part that belongs to you: each time a skill misses something your practice cares about, you tell it once, and it never misses it again — for every client, for every preparer, from then on.
Every skill here works immediately, with sensible starting values, on your own client files. Nothing has to be configured before the work can begin.
Set the variances worth reporting, the amounts too small to bother with, the documents you always require, who has to review what. Your wording, your names for things.
The question a client should have been asked, the check a partner always makes, the thing that went wrong in July — each one becomes a check the skill runs from then on, for everyone.
A review that reflects how your practice actually reviews. Junior work that comes back to the standard a partner would set, because the standard is written down and applied every time.
Two practices running the same skill are not doing the same work a year later. The difference is yours, and it stays yours.
Your version of a skill lives in your practice's own records. It is not pooled with other firms, not shared between practices, and not used to train anybody's model. If you leave, you can take it with you.
It is also not folklore. Every change is dated, attributed to the person who made it, and comparable against what was in force before — so a new staff member inherits the way your practice works instead of learning it by being corrected.
And when we improve a base skill, your changes are not overwritten. You are told an improvement is available, shown what is different, and decide when to take it.
Making a skill yours
A practice manager changes how the work is done. Nobody — at your practice or ours — changes the protections underneath it. That line is the reason your customisations can be trusted at all.
Set once, applied to every client and every person in the practice from then on.
- ThresholdsWhat counts as a variance worth raising, and what is too small to bother with — within limits that stop a check being switched off by being set out of reach.
- Your own checksAdd the checks your practice always makes, mark them required, and have them run every time — beside the ones the platform ships.
- Documents you always requireAdd what your practice insists on holding. It shows up in what is outstanding for every client it applies to.
- Practice instructionsA note in your own words attached to one skill — used when that work is being done, not bolted onto everything.
- Who must approveRequire a senior review, or a partner, where your practice wants one. You can always ask for more approval than the platform requires.
- Names and wordingCall a skill what your practice calls it. The work is unchanged; the language is yours.
- What you do not useSwitch off optional skills so they stay out of your team's way.
Not by a practice, not by an administrator, not by the AI, and not by anything written in a document a client sends you.
- Separation from other firms No other practice can see your work, and nothing you configure can change that.
- One client at a time Every client is re-checked as it is opened. A setting cannot widen what a person may see.
- Who is signed in Who is signed in, and whether their access still stands, is decided outside anything a practice edits.
- Who may do what A practice can require more authority for a piece of work. It cannot require less.
- The client being worked on The client, the year and the version being worked on are re-checked on every single instruction.
- The record of what happened Every attempt is recorded, including the ones that were refused. There is no setting that stops it.
- The client’s own files A document the client sent keeps exactly the file that arrived. Nothing writes over it.
- The confirmation step Anything that sends, lodges, approves or charges still waits for a person. A practice can add approvals, never remove them.
- Whether a figure is supported Whether a figure is supported comes from its documents and its review, not from a preference.
- Connected accounts and keys Connected accounts and keys are never readable through a setting.
- What the system can reach online Where the work can reach on the internet is set by the platform; a practice may extend it, never open it up.
- Running code Configuring a skill means values and checks. There is no place to paste code for the system to run.
How a change is made
Changes are drafted, compared against what is in force, published deliberately, and undone in one step if they were wrong. Nothing takes effect the moment it is typed.
You can also describe a change in plain English — “every company return over $500,000 needs a partner” — and be shown the exact rule it would create before anything is published.
What can be set today
The settings below are live now, with the range each one is allowed to move within. More skills open up for configuration as they are proven.
approve
Approve the return (registered agent)
| What you set | Starts at | Allowed range |
|---|---|---|
| A registered agent may approve over blocking issuesThe platform allows an override with a recorded reason. A practice may remove that discretion for itself — it cannot add discretion the platform does not give. | Yes | yes or no |
bas variance
Every quarter of the year side by side
| What you set | Starts at | Allowed range |
|---|---|---|
| Quarter-on-quarter movement worth reportingA quarter moving by at least this much against the one before it is called out. | 30% | 5% to 200% |
checklist
Generate or review the information checklist
You can also add your own checks to this skill.
collect
Draft a request to the client for what is still missing
| What you set | Starts at | Allowed range |
|---|---|---|
| How the practice writes to clientsChanges the greeting and the sign-off. It does not change what is being asked for. | professional | formal, professional, friendly, concise |
| Sign-off nameAppended under the closing. Left empty, the draft is signed by nobody and the preparer adds their own. | our wording | your own words |
| Document request wordingThe practice's own letter. Placeholders: {{client_name}}, {{year}}, {{missing_items}}, {{signature}}. Left empty, the platform wording is used. Whatever the wording, the list of documents comes from the checklist — a template cannot change what is outstanding. | our wording | your own words |
gaps
Outstanding matters, ranked by significance
| What you set | Starts at | Allowed range |
|---|---|---|
| Practice document requirements are blockingWhen yes, a document the practice requires and has not received is reported as blocking rather than as a follow-up. | No | yes or no |
You can also add documents you always require to this skill.
review anomalies
Figures that do not look like the others
| What you set | Starts at | Allowed range |
|---|---|---|
| Deductions as a share of income before flaggingFlag when total deductions reach this share of total income. A practice with mostly investors sets this higher than one with mostly wage earners. | 50% | 10% to 200% |
| Confidence below which a machine reading is flaggedAn extraction the classifier scored below this is reported for a person to check, even if somebody already accepted it. | 75% | 50% to 99% |
You can also add your own checks to this skill.
review bas
What is unsupported or out of line in a BAS quarter
| What you set | Starts at | Allowed range |
|---|---|---|
| Quarter-on-quarter movement worth reportingSales moving by at least this much against the previous quarter is reported for an explanation. | 30% | 5% to 200% |
| Smallest expense reported for a missing tax invoiceA GST credit rests on holding a tax invoice. $0 reports every expense without one; a practice may set a floor so the list stays readable. | $0.00 | $0.00 to $10,000.00 |
review prior-year
Compare this year with last year, item by item
| What you set | Starts at | Allowed range |
|---|---|---|
| Variance worth reportingA movement at or above this proportion is reported. Below 5% every rounding shows up; above 100% nothing ever would. | 20% | 5% to 100% |
| Smallest movement worth reportingA movement smaller than this is not reported however large the percentage. Stops a $40 bank fee that doubled from filling the page. | $500.00 | $0.00 to $50,000.00 |
review return
Run the review checks — the platform’s, and your practice’s
| What you set | Starts at | Allowed range |
|---|---|---|
| An unsupported deduction stops the returnThe platform always reports a deduction with no document. This decides whether it also stops the return reaching approval. | No | yes or no |
| Smallest unsupported deduction that stops the returnOnly applies when the setting above is yes. $0 means every one of them. | $0.00 | $0.00 to $100,000.00 |
| Capital gains above which a senior must reviewA reviewer without approval authority cannot clear a return with capital gains at or above this. $0 turns the escalation off. | $0.00 | $0.00 to $1,000,000.00 |
| A recorded client confirmation is requiredRequires at least one question asked and answered on the record before the return can reach approval. | No | yes or no |
You can also add your own checks to this skill.
Every skill in the practice
Typed as a command, or simply asked for in your own words. Either way the same skill runs, with the same checks — and anything that would send, lodge, approve or charge is offered for you to confirm rather than done for you.
Session7
Where you are, what you are allowed to do here, and answering anything waiting on you.
Abandon an action that was waiting for confirmation
Open to anyone signed in.
Carry out an action that asked for confirmation
Open to anyone signed in.
Show what this terminal is authorised for
Open to anyone signed in.
List available commands
Open to anyone signed in.
Show what you have run recently
Open to anyone signed in.
List actions waiting for your confirmation
Open to anyone signed in.
Show the active identity and context
Open to anyone signed in.
Client5
Opening a client for work, and recording who and what they are.
List, open or create a client
For anyone who may see clients.
List or add entities for the open client
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see clients.
Shares, funds and crypto holdings
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see clients.
Rental and investment properties
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see clients.
Set the active financial year
For anyone who may see clients.
Documents7
What you hold, what is missing, and what still has to be asked for.
Record a question for the client, or answer one
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see clients.
Generate or review the information checklist
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see clients.
Documents held for the open client
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see documents.
The same document held more than once
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see documents.
Everything known about one document
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see documents.
Documents held but not readable, or not confidently classified
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see documents.
Outstanding matters, ranked by significance
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see clients.
Accounting10
The ledger underneath the return.
Add an account to the chart
Needs a client open. For anyone who may post to the ledger.
Code uncategorised transactions
Needs a client open. For anyone who may post to the ledger.
The chart of accounts
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see the ledger.
The four quarters against the year, and what the difference is
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see the ledger.
Post a balanced journal entry
Needs a client open. For anyone who may post to the ledger.
Period-close checks for the open client
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see the ledger.
Match bank transactions against the ledger
Needs a client open. For anyone who may post to the ledger.
Trial balance for the open client
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see the ledger.
This year against last, by account
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see the ledger.
Year-end close checks for the open client
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see the ledger.
Tax20
The figures, the calculations and the position for the year.
Accept an extracted figure into the return
Needs a client open. For anyone who may prepare returns.
Compute tax, Medicare levy, offsets and the estimated position
Needs a client open. For anyone who may prepare returns.
Capital gain or loss, with the discount where it applies
For anyone who may prepare returns.
Compare this year with another, by category
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see clients.
Deductions recorded for the open client and year
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see clients.
Decline in value for an asset's first year
For anyone who may prepare returns.
Minimum yearly repayment on a Division 7A loan
For anyone who may prepare returns.
Show how the last calculation reached its figures
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see clients.
Franking credit and grossed-up amount on a dividend
For anyone who may prepare returns.
GST on sales and purchases for a BAS period
For anyone who may prepare returns.
Income recorded for the open client and year
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see clients.
Record lodgment through an authorised channel
Needs a client open. For anyone who may lodge.
Lodge an activity statement with the ATO
Needs a client open. For anyone who may lodge.
Lodgment obligations beyond the annual return
For anyone who may see clients.
Withholding and super on a salary, as an estimate
For anyone who may prepare returns.
Work a BAS quarter from the ledger
Needs a client open. For anyone who may prepare returns and see the ledger.
Open a return for preparation
Needs a client open. For anyone who may prepare returns.
Show the tax rules held, and whether they are verified
Open to anyone signed in.
Preparation status for the open client
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see clients.
Super guarantee on ordinary time earnings
For anyone who may prepare returns.
Review16
What a second pair of eyes would question before anything is signed.
Summarise what the client is being asked to approve
Needs a client open. For anyone who may review returns.
Approve the return (registered agent)
Needs a client open. For anyone who may approve returns.
Everything showing how this return was created
Needs a client open. For anyone who may review returns.
Every quarter of the year side by side
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see the ledger.
Show the documents supporting a figure
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see clients.
Figures that do not look like the others
Needs a client open. For anyone who may prepare returns.
What is unsupported or out of line in a BAS quarter
Needs a client open. For anyone who may review returns and see the ledger.
Only the things stopping this return
Needs a client open. For anyone who may prepare returns.
Figures against the client profile they should agree with
Needs a client open. For anyone who may prepare returns.
What every figure rests on, by status
Needs a client open. For anyone who may prepare returns.
Compare this year with last year, item by item
Needs a client open. For anyone who may prepare returns.
One page: evidence, documents and figures together
Needs a client open. For anyone who may prepare returns.
Run the review checks — the platform’s, and your practice’s
Needs a client open. For anyone who may review returns.
Figures with no document behind them, largest first
Needs a client open. For anyone who may prepare returns.
What a reviewer would question on this return
Needs a client open. For anyone who may review returns.
A workpaper showing every figure and where it came from
Needs a client open. For anyone who may prepare returns.
Billing9
Fees raised, money received, money still owing.
Debtors by age bucket
For anyone who may see fees.
Work done that has not been billed
For anyone who may see fees.
Draft an invoice to the client for the work done
Needs a client open. For anyone who may draft messages and bill.
Every invoice for the open client
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see fees.
Raise a draft invoice so it counts as owing
For anyone who may bill.
Record a payment received from the open client
Needs a client open. For anyone who may bill.
Fees billed and collected over a period
For anyone who may see fees.
A statement of account for the open client
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see fees.
Invoices with money still outstanding
For anyone who may see fees.
Collections3
Money that has not arrived yet.
Draft a reminder for a request the client has not answered
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see documents and draft messages.
Invoices past their due date
For anyone who may see fees.
Write off an unrecoverable debt
For anyone who may bill.
Communications2
What goes out to the client — drafted first, always.
Draft a request to the client for what is still missing
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see documents and draft messages.
Draft, list or send a message to the client
Needs a client open. For anyone who may draft messages.
Consolidation8
Groups: who owns whom, what is owed between them, and what cancels out.
Consolidated position across the group
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see the ledger.
Everything a reviewer needs to check the group figures
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see the ledger.
What consolidation would remove, and why
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see the ledger.
The group structure for the open client
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see clients.
Record ownership between two entities
Needs a client open. For anyone who may change client records.
What a reviewer would question across the whole group
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see the ledger.
Where every entity in the group stands
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see clients.
Intercompany positions and whether they agree
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see the ledger.
Reporting1
A whole client on one screen.
Everything about the open client on one screen
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see clients.
Practice16
The work across the practice rather than one client.
Assign a client to a colleague
For anyone who may manage the team.
What falls due across the practice
For anyone who may see clients.
Close a task
For anyone who may see clients.
Practice brief across every client you can see
For anyone who may see clients.
Your queue across the practice
For anyone who may see clients.
The next thing to do on the open client
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see clients.
Run a declared sequence of checks in one go
Open to anyone signed in.
Remove one of the practice's recipes
For anyone who may set practice standards.
Sequences this practice has defined for itself
Open to anyone signed in.
Define a sequence of checks this practice runs together
For anyone who may set practice standards.
Run one of the practice's own sequences
Open to anyone signed in.
What one recipe does, step by step
Open to anyone signed in.
Add or remove a step in one of the practice's recipes
For anyone who may set practice standards.
List, add or close tasks
For anyone who may see clients.
Practice members and their roles
For anyone who may see the team.
What you did today, and what is still waiting
Open to anyone signed in.
Research1
Answers taken from the client’s own documents, with the sources shown.
Search the client's documents for an answer, with sources
Needs a client open. For anyone who may see documents.
Admin1
How this practice sets its own standards.
The 19 skills a practice manager uses to shape everything on this page are described in Making a skill yours.
Which tax system this practice is set up for
Open to anyone signed in.
What we do not claim
A skill list is easy to write and hard to trust. These are the limits as they stand today — the same ones the terminal itself will tell you about while you work.
No lodgement channel is connected, so the skill that would lodge refuses and says so. It points you to the approval pack and the audit pack instead. We will not report a return as lodged on the strength of anything other than confirmation from the authorised channel.
Bank feeds, accounting systems and mail providers are built as connections, not pretended. Until one is connected the skills that depend on it refuse rather than returning figures nobody produced.
Tax rules are held for FY2025 to FY2026. None of them has yet been checked against the ATO’s published figures by a person, so every amount produced from them says so on screen, and nothing unverified may be lodged. A year we hold no rules for refuses rather than borrowing a neighbouring year’s, because extrapolating is inventing a tax rate.
Documents and records are stored in Cloudflare's Oceania region. The AI processing itself may run outside Australia, because Oceania-only placement is not available to us today. We say that plainly rather than describing the product as hosted in Australia.
Start with ours. Finish with yours.
Bring one client file. See what the baseline finds before you have configured anything at all.