How much does it cost to set up a company in Australia in 2026?

ASIC charges $636 to register a company from 1 July 2026, and $342 a year after that for a proprietary company's annual review. What else you pay for, what an accountant adds, and what our $1,500 set-up includes.

Registering a company with ASIC costs $636 from 1 July 2026, and a proprietary company then pays an annual review fee of $342 each year. Those are the government fees for 2026–27. What it costs you overall depends on whether you do the registration yourself or have an accountant set the company up with its tax registrations, and on the ongoing costs a company brings that a sole trader never has.

ASIC registration

$636 to register a company, from 1 July 2026 (it was $611).

ASIC annual review

$342 a year for a proprietary company, from 1 July 2026 (it was $329).

Our set-up fee

$1,500 including GST, with the government charges included.

ASIC fees are indexed to inflation each 1 July, so check the year when you read any figure, including these.

The government fees

Registration. The ASIC fee is paid once, when the company is registered and receives its ACN. From 1 July 2026 it is $636.

The annual review. Every year on the anniversary of registration, ASIC sends the company an annual statement and an invoice. For a proprietary (Pty Ltd) company the fee is $342 from 1 July 2026, usually due two months after the review date. Pay it late and ASIC adds a late fee.

A business name, if you want one. A company trading under its own registered name needs no business name. If it trades under a different name, registering that name costs $47 for one year or $108 for three years from 1 July 2026.

The free parts. The company's ABN and TFN cost nothing. Neither does GST or PAYG withholding registration. Each director must apply for their own director ID before being appointed – that is free too, and nobody can apply on a director's behalf.

What an accountant adds

Anyone can register a company directly with ASIC. Most people who use an accountant are not paying for the form; they are paying for the decisions around it:

Whether a company is right at all. A company protects you from most business debts, but it costs more to run and has rules a sole trader does not – see the company structure for the trade-offs.
Who owns the shares. Shares held by you, by your spouse, or by a family trust have very different tax results later. It is cheap to get right on day one and expensive to change.
The rules and the registers. A constitution, or the replaceable rules in the Corporations Act, governs the company, and it needs a share register, a record of its officeholders, and minutes of the decisions that need them.
The tax registrations in the right order. The company must exist before it can apply for its ABN, and GST and PAYG withholding follow from the ABN.

What our $1,500 company set-up includes

Our company set-up fee is $1,500 including GST, and it covers the government charges, including ASIC's registration fee. It also includes:

GST registration, and Workers Compensation NSW registration where it applies
A consultation on using the company properly – keeping its money separate, record keeping, and how you take money out of it

It does not include bookkeeping or the annual review fee in later years. Need a trust as well? A trust with a company trustee is $2,920. All our fixed fees are on our price list.

What a company costs to run each year

Budget for more than the ASIC fee. A company lodges its own tax return, separate from yours, and if it is registered for GST it lodges a BAS each quarter. Money you take out has to be paid as wages, dividends or a properly documented loan – not simply withdrawn. Those ongoing costs are the main reason many people start as a sole trader and move to a company once the business has proven itself.

Common questions

How much does ASIC charge to register a company in 2026?

$636, from 1 July 2026. The fee rises with inflation each 1 July.

Is there a yearly fee for a company?

Yes. A proprietary company pays ASIC an annual review fee – $342 from 1 July 2026 – each year on the anniversary of its registration.

Does an ABN cost anything for a company?

No. The ABN, the company's TFN and GST registration are all free from the government. You pay for help applying for them, not for the numbers themselves.

Can I set up a company if I live outside Sydney?

Yes. We set up companies online for clients anywhere in Australia, and in person at our office in Bondi Junction.

How we can help

We set up companies together with the ABN, GST and PAYG registrations, so the company is ready to trade from its first invoice. Not sure a company is the right choice? Start with business structuring. New clients: get in touch or call (02) 9386 0500.