Australian Not-for-Profit Chart of Accounts for QuickBooks (GST + Grants)

A charity on QuickBooks Online needs an income side that matches how money actually arrives: gifts, grants, and membership fees, each with a different GST consequence. This is an Australian not-for-profit chart of accounts built for QuickBooks Online, mapped to the right GST codes, with the concession context kept where it belongs. It comes as a readable reference (CSV) and a QuickBooks import CSV.

Structure first, codes second

QuickBooks Online imports the account structure with no tax column, so you import first and bulk-assign GST codes second from the mapping. For a not-for-profit the codes that matter are on the income side, because donations, grants, and fees each behave differently, and the readable CSV sets out each one.

Three income accounts, three treatments

• Donations and gifts received map to Out of Scope, because a genuine gift is not consideration for a supply. Deductible gift recipient status, which decides the donor’s deduction, is separate and does not change the GST on the gift.
• Grant income maps to the sales code GST, with Out of Scope as the alternative, because GST applies only where the grant buys a supply back to the funder. A pure funding grant is outside scope.
• Membership and program fees map to GST, with GST free and Input tax listed, since what the member receives determines the treatment.

Endorsement and the registration threshold

The chart records detail rather than assuming concessions, because the concessions are not automatic. GST concessions need ACNC registration and ATO endorsement, so endorsement status is the first thing to confirm. Registration itself comes later for a charity: the threshold is A$150,000 of GST turnover, against A$75,000 for a business. An organisation that stays unregistered below the threshold cannot claim GST credits, which is why the purchase-side codes only do anything once you are registered and endorsed.

Program costs and the FBT concessions

Fundraising and program costs map to GST on non-capital. Program and volunteer costs carry a note that purely non-commercial activity (supplying goods or services well below cost) may not carry a claimable credit. The FBT exemption for public benevolent institutions and health promotion charities, and the rebate for other endorsed charities, sit outside the chart, since they depend on the ACNC registration subtype.

A note on the line between the donor side and the charity’s own books. Deductible gift recipient status decides whether a donor can claim a deduction for giving to you, and it is wholly separate from the charity’s own GST credits, so it never changes how a gift received is coded. A genuine gift is not a taxable supply and brings no GST to account for. Keep those donor-facing questions out of the expense ledger, and the only judgement left at return time is the concessional one, which is why the chart deliberately records plain transaction detail and leaves the concessions to be applied on top.

How to use it

1. Open the CSV: each account is mapped to its QuickBooks GST code, with alternatives and a note.
2. In QuickBooks Online, go to Settings, then Import data, then Chart of Accounts, and upload the CSV for the structure.
3. After import, use Batch actions, then Set default GST code, to apply the mapping.
4. Confirm endorsement and registration status before relying on purchase-side credits, and brief whoever codes income on the gift, grant, and fee distinction.

Capture sits underneath the concessional judgement, handling the supplier and reimbursement volume:

• Dext extracts supplier invoices from email and photos.
• ExpenseFlow reads each invoice and receipt, applies the everyday GST treatment, attaches the source, and posts it into QuickBooks Online, while flagging a cost coded to a grant-funded or non-commercial activity as possibly not fully claimable.
• Hubdoc pulls recurring supplier invoices in.

Determining endorsement and applying the GST and FBT concessions stay with your treasurer or charity accountant. For the full picture, see the Australian not-for-profit expenses guide. On Xero instead? See the Australian not-for-profit chart of accounts for Xero.