Business IT

Deadline for tax agents as ATO gets ready to switch off AUSkey

By Justin Hendry on Jan 24, 2020 9:44AM
Deadline for tax agents as ATO gets ready to switch off AUSkey

Editor's Picks

Building a modern workplace for a remote workforce

Right to repair: Large scale IT buyers can influence product design... and they should

Five minimum features needed in your choice of a business laptop

Venom BlackBook Zero 15 Phantom

Australia's tax agents have until late March to set up their myGovID, to avoid losing access to the ATO's online services for agents.

The Australia Taxation Office is preparing to call time on its AUSkey authentication credential, with myGovID set to become the default login option for the country’s army of tax agents.

In an update to tax professionals on Tuesday, the agency said myGovID would replace AUSkey as the stock-standard way to access its new online tax agent portal later this week.

“From 25 January, myGovID will become the default login option on the online services for agents login page, although you will still be able to login with an AUSkey until late March,” it said.

It is the latest step towards the junking of the much-maligned PKI-based authentication solution, which has been used by businesses to deal with the government online for the last decade.

Newsletter Signup

Get the latest business tech news, reviews and guides delivered to your inbox.

I have read and accept the privacy policy and terms and conditions and by submitting my email address I agree to receive the Business IT newsletter and receive special offers on behalf of Business IT, nextmedia and its valued partners. We will not share your details with third parties.

AUSkey was first introduced in 2010 as part of the ATO’s standard business reporting (SBR) program.

The ATO revealed its intention to replace AUSkey with myGovID in July 2018 to “overcome the mobility and access limitations of AUSkey”, and gave itself more 18 months for the migration.

It followed years of complaints from tax practitioners about limitations with the public key infrastructure (PKI) and its failure to keep pace with changes in technology.

myGovID, which is part of the federal government’s new Govpass digital identity ecosystem, is the government’s new digital identity credential available on both iOS and Android devices.

The credential is a digital equivalent of the 100 point ID check that allows users to log into online government services using a device’s biometric vertifers such as Face ID on an iPhone.

Since reaching public beta last June, the ATO and the Digital Transformation Agency have progressively increased the number of services its can be used to access.

In addition to ATO services like its tax agent portal, it can also be used to access the unique student identifier organisation portal and Defence’s employer support payment scheme.

More services are expected to become accessible via myGovID over the coming months, including the government’s online services portal myGov.

In preparation for the planned decommissioning of AUSkey in nine weeks time, the ATO has spent the last four months migrating tax agents to myGovID.

This has required a cleanup of existing AUSkey data by tax agents, as the two authentication credentials share few similarities.

“We know that AUSkeys are shared, there’s a naming convention issue, we know that there are some problems, we know that people potentially can share or reuse an AUSkey,” the ATO’s digital communication and identity services business lead Claire Miller said in September.

The ATO also used the latest update to tax practitioners to warn that they would not be able to log in to online services for agents if they did not set up a myGovID before AUSkey’s close.

“Following the closure of AUSkey in late March, if you have not set up your myGovID, you won’t be able to access online services for agents,” the ATO said.

The ATO recently switched off its old tax and BAS agent portals for online services for agents after a seven-month public beta. 

Copyright © iTnews.com.au . All rights reserved.
Tags:
ato auskey id mygovid security services tax
By Justin Hendry
Jan 24 2020
9:44AM
0 Comments

Related Articles

  • ATO asks tax practitioners to review details before it retires AUSkey
  • 5 essential digital transformation ideas
  • Edging towards smart city dreams with edge computing
  • Ransomware: what SMBs needs to know
Share on Twitter Share on Facebook Share on LinkedIn Share on Whatsapp Email A Friend

Most Read Articles

Right to repair: Large scale IT buyers can influence product design... and they should

Right to repair: Large scale IT buyers can influence product design... and they should

Five minimum features needed in your choice of a business laptop

Five minimum features needed in your choice of a business laptop

Building a modern workplace for a remote workforce

Building a modern workplace for a remote workforce

IoT Explained: What is the Internet of Things in Australia (June 2022)

IoT Explained: What is the Internet of Things in Australia (June 2022)

Poll

What would you like to see more of on BiT?
News
Reviews
Features
How To's
Lollies
Photo Galleries
Videos
Opinion
View poll archive
All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in any form without prior authorisation.
Your use of this website constitutes acceptance of nextmedia's Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions.