Gazette notice: Commissioner of Taxation - Notice of a Commonwealth electoral roll data-matching program 8 July 2026.
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) will acquire Australian electoral roll data from the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) on an ongoing basis.
The data items include:
- name of the registered voter
- residential address of the registered voter
- sex of the registered voter
- date of birth of the registered voter
- occupation of the registered voter
The collected data may contain all, or a selection of these elements. We estimate that records relating to approximately 18 million individuals will be obtained each quarter.
Commonwealth electoral laws and associated regulations require or permit the AEC to make information available to nominated government agencies, political parties and members of parliament.
We are the matching agency and, in most cases, the sole user of the data obtained during this data-matching program. The electoral laws and regulations prohibit us from sharing this data.
For this data-matching program, we will match AEC data against ATO data holdings to identify non-compliance with registration, lodgment, reporting and payment obligations under tax and superannuation laws.
The data collected under this program will be used to:
- identify people that may be operating outside of the tax and superannuation systems
- locate taxpayers with outstanding tax and superannuation obligations
- assist with the administration of Australia's Foreign Investment Framework requirements in residential and agricultural land, where a person acquires Australian property and does not appear on the electoral roll.
A document describing this program is available at ato.gov.au/dmprotocols.
This program follows the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s Guidelines on data matching in Australian Government administration (2014) (the guidelines). The guidelines include standards for the use of data matching as an administrative tool in a way that:
- complies with the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) and the Privacy Act 1988 (Privacy Act)
- is consistent with good privacy practice.
A full copy of the ATO’s privacy policy can be accessed at ato.gov.au/privacy
Overview
The Commonwealth Electoral Roll Data-Matching Program Notice of 2026 was issued by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) to address gaps in compliance with tax and superannuation obligations and to enhance the administration of Australia's Foreign Investment Framework in relation to property acquisition. This initiative was enacted to facilitate the acquisition of Australian electoral roll data from the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) to identify individuals potentially operating outside the tax and superannuation systems and to locate taxpayers with outstanding obligations. The ATO, as the matching agency, will match the electoral data against its own records to ensure compliance and will adhere to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s Guidelines on data matching. The primary policy objective is to ensure that data matching complies with the Australian Privacy Principles and the Privacy Act 1988, thereby maintaining good privacy practices.
Scope and Application
The Commissioner of Taxation’s electoral roll data-matching program, which the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) will implement by acquiring data from the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC), applies to all individuals registered on the Australian electoral roll. This encompasses approximately 18 million individuals per quarter, whose data will include personal details such as name, residential address, sex, date of birth, and occupation. The data-matching program is intended to identify non-compliance with tax and superannuation obligations by cross-referencing electoral roll data with ATO records. The ATO, as the matching agency, will primarily use this data to locate individuals potentially operating outside the tax and superannuation systems, assist in identifying taxpayers with outstanding obligations, and support the administration of Australia’s Foreign Investment Framework in relation to property acquisitions. The program adheres to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s Guidelines on data matching, ensuring compliance with the Australian Privacy Principles and the Privacy Act 1988. Further details of the program are available on the ATO’s website, including their privacy policy.
Key Provisions
The primary sections of this legislation (C2026G00425) pertain to the acquisition, use, and handling of Australian electoral roll data by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). Specifically, section (1) identifies the data items the ATO will acquire from the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC), including the name, residential address, sex, date of birth, and occupation of registered voters. Section (2) clarifies that the ATO will obtain approximately 18 million records each quarter. Section (3) explains that the ATO is the matching agency and the sole user of the data, which will be used to identify non-compliance with registration, lodgment, reporting, and payment obligations under tax and superannuation laws. Section (4) emphasises that the data will also be used to locate taxpayers with outstanding obligations, assist with the administration of Australia's Foreign Investment Framework requirements, and identify people operating outside the tax and superannuation systems.
The obligations imposed by this Act require the AEC to provide the specified data to the ATO for the purpose of matching against ATO data holdings. Section (5) mandates that the ATO will adhere to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s Guidelines on data matching, ensuring compliance with the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) and the Privacy Act 1988. Additionally, section (6) stipulates that the ATO is prohibited from sharing the collected data with any other entities. The ATO must follow the guidelines to ensure that the data matching process complies with good privacy practice and adheres to privacy laws.
Breaching the conditions set out in this Act can result in both civil and criminal consequences. Section (7) outlines that any misuse or unauthorised sharing of the electoral data collected under this program can lead to significant penalties. While the specific penalties are not detailed in the text, breaches of privacy laws under the Privacy Act 1988 can result in substantial fines for individuals and corporations. Section (8) also implies that non-compliance with tax and superannuation obligations identified through this data-matching program can result in further penalties, including fines and legal action against the non-compliant individuals or entities. The maximum penalties for privacy breaches and tax-related offences can vary, but they are designed to be sufficient to deter non-compliance.