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PSI self-assessment

Review your income pattern and the personal services business tests in ITAA 1997. The answers suggest points to discuss with a registered tax agent; they do not establish your tax position.

Guidance, not advice. This tool walks the PSI and PSB tests from ITAA 1997 ss84-5 and 87-15 to 87-30. It does not calculate attributed income, and it is not a substitute for a registered tax agent. Use the output as a starting point for a conversation, not as a tax position. For the full walkthrough see the PSI diagnostic help article.

Interactive worksheet | PSI tests

Your three biggest payers this year

Enter annual PSI amounts in AUD, such as 90,000, $90k or 1.2m. Decimals are accepted; negative amounts are not. Use the same payer label to group an entity and its associates. The tool groups exact matching names; unnamed rows stay separate. Only three rows are available, so omitted income can distort concentration. Submitted values appear in the page URL.

Is the income being assessed mainly a reward for your personal efforts or skills?

ITAA 1997 s84-5 asks about the character of the income. Consider each arrangement; having other income does not by itself establish whether this income is PSI.

Results test: are you paid for a specific result, with your own tools, bearing rectification risk?

Under s87-18, all three conditions must apply to at least 75% of PSI in the income year: income for a result, required supply of needed tools or equipment, and liability for rectifying defects.

Unrelated clients test: do you have two or more unrelated clients acquired through public offers?

Under s87-20, services must result directly from public offers to at least two entities that are not associates of each other or of you. Being available through an agency is not itself a public offer.

Employment test: do you meet the principal-work or apprentice condition?

Under s87-25, engaged entities, excluding associates that are not individuals, must perform at least 20% by market value of principal work; alternatively, there must be at least one apprentice for at least half the income year.

Business premises test: do you maintain separate business premises used exclusively for your business?

Under s87-30, throughout the year premises must mainly support PSI activities, be exclusively available to you, and be physically separate from private premises and the premises of clients and their associates.

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Reference notes | PSI questions

Common questions

What is personal services income?

ITAA 1997 s84-5 describes PSI as income mainly rewarding an individual for personal efforts or skills. The section applies whether the income is for doing work or producing a result, and a contract does not stop income being PSI. Section 84-10 says applying these provisions does not imply that the individual is an employee.

How does the 80% rule interact with the results test?

Under ITAA 1997 s87-15(3), if 80% or more of PSI in the income year comes from one entity and its associates, and the results test is not met, the other tests cannot establish PSB status unless a PSB determination is in force. A results-test pass is not overridden by that concentration. This tool flags concentration for review when the results answer is no or unsure.

What are the four PSB tests?

ITAA 1997 s87-15 lists the results, unrelated clients, employment and business premises tests. The results test in s87-18 requires all three conditions for at least 75% of PSI: income for producing a result, required supply of needed tools or equipment, and liability for rectifying defects. The questions above outline the other tests in ss87-20, 87-25 and 87-30. Review their full requirements with a registered tax agent.

Does the tool check a PSB determination?

No. Under s87-15 a PSB determination in force is another basis for personal services business status. This worksheet does not ask whether you hold one, check its terms or apply for one. Take any determination and the contracts it concerns to a registered tax agent when reviewing the result.

What does the result establish?

It summarises the answers and income entered. It cannot establish PSI attribution, available deductions or the treatment of a company or trust. It does not calculate attributed income. The outcome depends on the full facts and review by a registered tax agent, including facts that the form does not collect.

How should I prepare the payer amounts?

Use PSI for the income year being assessed, and group each entity with its associates using the same payer label. The tool groups exact matching names and treats unnamed rows separately. With only three rows, an incomplete income picture can overstate or understate concentration. Do not rely on the percentage if it omits relevant income.

Does other income mean PSI cannot apply?

Section 84-5 asks whether the income is mainly a reward for personal efforts or skills. A comparison of all personal income with investment income does not establish that character. Review the income from each arrangement with a registered tax agent before answering the applicability question.

Review PSI questions alongside your shift income

PSI diagnostic: With Plus or Pro, start the questionnaire with income streams drawn from your recorded shifts. Review the output with your tax agent; questionnaire answers stay in your browser.

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