Accountants for Doctors in Melbourne
A good accountant who understands medicine makes a genuine difference to a doctor’s financial position. The tax rules that apply to medical income — PSI, BAS for mixed-supply practices, AHPRA registrations as deductions, practice structuring — are specific enough that a generalist accountant will almost certainly miss opportunities or, worse, get you offside with the ATO.
We’ve worked with GPs, surgeons, locum doctors, specialists, and clinic owners across Melbourne for many years. Our office is at Level 3, 343 Little Collins Street in the CBD, which puts us a short trip from the Parkville Medical Precinct — Royal Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne Health, Royal Women’s Hospital, and the concentration of private specialists in that corridor. We see a lot of medical professionals from that precinct, and we understand the particular issues that come up for doctors working across public hospitals and private consulting rooms simultaneously.
What we actually do for Melbourne doctors
The short version: we handle your tax compliance so it’s done correctly, and we look for ways to reduce what you pay over time through structuring and planning that’s specific to your circumstances.
In practice, that means things like:
Understanding whether PSI rules apply to your income. This is probably the single most misunderstood issue for contracted and locum doctors. If most of your income comes from personal effort — your skills, your expertise — rather than from a genuine business operation with staff and infrastructure, the ATO may classify it as Personal Services Income. That changes what deductions you can claim, whether you can income-split with a spouse, and how profits can be retained in a company or trust. We assess this specifically for your income structure, not generically.
Getting the practice entity right from the start. A sole trader arrangement is simpler in the short term but costs you significantly more tax at higher income levels, and leaves your personal assets exposed. A company or trust structure can reduce your tax rate, allow legal income splitting, and protect what you’ve built. The right choice depends on whether PSI applies, your income level, your long-term goals, and how your practice is set up. We’ve helped many Melbourne doctors restructure from sole trader to company or trust — and we’ve also advised doctors who were told they needed a complex structure when a simpler arrangement would serve them better.
Maximising legitimate deductions. Every year, Melbourne doctors leave money on the table because they don’t claim everything they’re entitled to — or because they claim incorrectly and trigger a review. AHPRA registration, indemnity insurance, CME and conference costs, travel between practice locations, medical equipment, professional subscriptions — all legitimate when documented correctly. For doctors working across multiple sites (which is common among the medical professionals we see from the Parkville corridor), travel deductions between workplaces are often significant and often underclaimed.
BAS and GST for practices with mixed billing. Medicare-rebatable medical services are GST-free, but that doesn’t mean your BAS is simple. Cosmetic or elective procedures, room rentals to other practitioners, administrative fees — these may attract GST. Getting the split right matters both for cash flow and for avoiding ATO queries.
Wealth and retirement planning. Doctors earn well but often start earning later than other high-income professionals, after years of medical school and residency. Making up for that gap requires a structured approach — additional concessional super contributions, investment structures that compound efficiently, and debt management that works for your income pattern. We integrate this into annual tax planning rather than treating it as a separate financial planning exercise.
Our specific services for medical professionals
Our medical accounting services cover the full range of issues a doctor or practice faces:
- Accounting and tax for GPs — Medicare billing, CME deductions, practice agreements
- Accounting and tax for surgeons and specialists — private hospital billing, procedural income, practice goodwill
- Accounting for locum doctors — PSI test, ABN income, PAYG instalment management
- Multi-doctor practice accounting — revenue allocation, service entity models, partner arrangements
- Tax deductions for doctors — what you can and can’t claim, and how to document it
- PSI rules explained — how they apply to different doctor arrangements
- Practice entity structuring — sole trader, trust, company — choosing correctly
- Retirement and wealth planning for physicians — superannuation, investment structures, wealth accumulation
- CGT on the sale of a medical practice — structuring for a favourable tax outcome on exit
- BAS for medical practitioners — GST-free vs taxable services, PAYG reconciliation
- Payroll services for medical practices — STP compliance, contractor vs employee issues
- Medical clinic operations accounting — financial reporting, budgeting, profitability
- Commercial property for a medical centre — SMSF, trust, and co-ownership structures
- Finance for medical professionals — home loans, practice finance, commercial property lending
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a specialist accountant, or can any accountant handle a doctor’s tax?
Technically any registered tax agent can lodge your return. But the specific rules around PSI, GST-free medical services, doctor-specific deductions, and practice structuring are areas where a non-specialist is likely to miss things — either underclaiming (which costs you money) or overclaiming (which costs you more in a review). We see doctors come to us after years with a general accountant and almost always find meaningful opportunities they’d missed.
How much can I save through better tax structuring?
It depends heavily on your income level and current structure. For a doctor earning $300,000 or more as a sole trader, moving to an appropriate company or trust structure — where PSI rules allow it — can reduce annual tax by $30,000 to $60,000 or more. At lower income levels the savings are smaller, but the asset protection benefits of a separate entity still matter.
What’s the Parkville Medical Precinct connection you mention?
We’re based in Melbourne’s CBD and work with a significant number of medical professionals who work in or around the Parkville Medical Precinct — Royal Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne Health, the Royal Women’s Hospital, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, and the private consulting rooms nearby. Doctors who split their time between public hospital employment and private practice face specific structuring questions we deal with regularly.
Can you help with multiple years of overdue tax returns?
Yes — we can lodge up to 25 years of backdated returns for individuals, companies, trusts, and other entities. We’ve done this for many medical professionals who fell behind during demanding periods of their careers. The ATO is generally more cooperative when you come forward proactively with a registered agent.
What does a consultation involve?
No charge and no obligation. We’d like to understand your current setup, what you’re earning and through which entities, and what your goals are. From there we can give you a realistic picture of where the opportunities are and what a proper review would involve.
Book a consultation at our Melbourne CBD office or by phone on 1300 212 663.