Privacy Policy

About this policy

The Total: Accounting, Tax, Finance (ABN 95 640 968 663, TPB Registration No. 26163801) (“we”, “us”, “our”) is committed to protecting your privacy. This policy explains what personal information we collect, how we use it, who we share it with, and your rights under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs).

By engaging us or using this website, you agree to the collection and use of personal information in accordance with this policy.

What personal information we collect

The personal information we may collect depends on the service you engage us for:

• Identity & contact: full name, email address, phone number, postal/residential address, date of birth.
• Government identifiers: Tax File Number (TFN), Australian Business Number (ABN), Director Identification Number (DIN), where required to provide tax, accounting or compliance services. We only collect TFNs where authorised under tax law.
• Financial information: income, deductions, bank account details, superannuation, investment holdings, business records, payroll data, where you provide this so we can act for you.
• Sensitive information: only collected with your express consent and only where reasonably necessary (e.g. health information relevant to a disability support payment claim).
• Communications: emails, call records, file notes of meetings, messages submitted through the contact form on this website.
• Website technical data: IP address, browser type, pages visited, referrer URL. Collected automatically through standard server logs. We do not currently use third-party analytics or tracking cookies on this site.

How we collect it

We collect personal information directly from you in most cases, for example, when you:

• fill in the contact form on this website;
• book a consultation by phone, email or our online booking system;
• provide documents during engagement (returns, statements, payroll files);
• attend a meeting (in person, by phone or via video call).

We may also collect information about you from third parties where you have authorised us to do so, including the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), your employer, superannuation funds, banks, software providers (Xero, MYOB, QuickBooks) and other advisors.

Why we collect it (purposes)

We collect, hold, use and disclose personal information to:

• provide the accounting, taxation, advisory, bookkeeping, SMSF, audit and related professional services you engage us for;
• comply with our legal obligations as a registered tax agent under the Tax Agent Services Act 2009 (Cth) and the Tax Practitioners Board Code of Professional Conduct;
• comply with anti-money-laundering, counter-terrorism financing, and other regulatory obligations;
• respond to your enquiries and provide quotes;
• send you information about your engagement and (where you have opted in) about our services, updates or events;
• improve our website, services and client communications.

Who we share it with

We do not sell personal information. We may disclose personal information to the following categories of recipients, only as reasonably necessary to deliver the service:

• the Australian Taxation Office, ASIC, the Tax Practitioners Board and other regulators where required by law or with your authority;
• professional advisors we work alongside on your engagement (legal, financial planning, migration, audit);
• cloud accounting and document storage providers (e.g. Xero, MYOB, QuickBooks, Microsoft 365), see "Storage" below;
• our professional indemnity insurer and professional bodies (IPA) where required for regulatory compliance;
• law enforcement or courts where compelled by a valid legal process.

Overseas disclosure

Some of our cloud-based providers store data on servers outside Australia (typically in the United States or European Union). Where this occurs, we take reasonable steps to ensure the provider has equivalent privacy protections in place. Specific overseas recipients are listed on request.

Storage & security

We hold personal information in a combination of secure cloud systems and physical files where required by law. We use access controls, encryption in transit (TLS), access logging, and password / multi-factor authentication on staff accounts. Hard-copy records are stored in locked premises. We retain personal information only for as long as required by law (typically 5-7 years for tax records under section 262A of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936) or as needed for the purposes we collected it.

Cookies & analytics

This website uses Google Tag Manager to load measurement tools and (where verified by search engines) site-ownership tags. Through Google Tag Manager we may load Google Analytics or similar tools that collect anonymised usage data (pages visited, device type, referrer, approximate location) to help us understand site performance and improve content. We do not use these tools to identify individuals.

Google Tag Manager and any analytics services it loads set first-party cookies and may transfer data to servers outside Australia (typically the United States). You can block analytics cookies at any time via your browser settings or by installing the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on at tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout .

We also include verification meta tags issued by Google Search Console and Microsoft Bing Webmaster Tools. These are static identifiers that prove site ownership; they do not collect personal information.

Your rights

Under the Australian Privacy Principles you have the right to:

• request access to the personal information we hold about you;
• request correction of inaccurate, incomplete or out-of-date information;
• withdraw consent for direct marketing at any time;
• request the deletion of personal information, subject to our legal record-keeping obligations.

To exercise these rights, email tax@thetotal.au with the subject line "Privacy request". We will respond within a reasonable time, typically within 30 days.

Complaints

If you believe we have breached the Privacy Act or the APPs, please contact us in the first instance at tax@thetotal.au. We will acknowledge your complaint within 5 business days and aim to resolve it within 30 days.

If you are not satisfied with our response, you can lodge a complaint with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) at oaic.gov.au/privacy/privacy-complaints .

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The version published on this page is the current version. Material changes will be communicated to active clients by email.

Contact us about privacy

Email: tax@thetotal.au
Phone: 08 7100 9636
Post: Suite 13, 168 Melbourne Street, North Adelaide SA 5006

Last updated: 29 May 2026