Privacy Policy

BJC Accountants Pty Ltd (ABN 59 610 841 275) | Last updated: 15 October 2026

1. About this policy

BJC Accountants Pty Ltd (“BJC”, “we”, “us”) is an accounting and tax practice in Norwood, South Australia. We are a registered tax agent (TPB registration 25430663) and a reporting entity under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006. This policy explains how we collect, use, store and disclose personal information, and how you can access or correct it or make a complaint. We handle personal information in line with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) and the Privacy (Tax File Number) Rule 2015.

2. What personal information we collect

The information we collect depends on the work we do for you. It may include:

  • name, date of birth, address, phone number and email address;

  • tax file number (TFN) and other government identifiers needed for your tax affairs;

  • income, expenses, assets, liabilities, bank and investment details, superannuation and employment information;

  • details of your family members, business associates, beneficiaries, directors, trustees and others connected with your affairs, where relevant to our work;

  • identity verification details – for example the type, number and expiry date of an identity document we sighted, and who checked it and when;

  • information about who owns or controls companies, trusts and other entities we act for; and

  • records of our dealings with you, including emails and file notes.

We generally do not collect sensitive information (such as health information). If we need it for your tax affairs – for example to claim a medical-related deduction or for a deceased estate – we collect it only with your consent or where the law allows.

3. How we collect it

We collect most personal information directly from you – in meetings, by phone and email, and in the documents you give us. We may also collect it from third parties with your authority or where the law allows, such as the ATO, ASIC, your bank, employer, financial adviser, solicitor, superannuation fund or other advisers, and from public sources such as ASIC and ABN searches. If you give us information about another person (for example a family member or employee), please make sure they know you have done so and how to find this policy.

Our website. If you contact us through our website, the details you enter are sent to us and stored by our website provider, Squarespace (see section 6). Our website uses cookies and similar technology so that it works properly and so we can see statistics about how it is used. You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings, although some parts of the site may not work as well.

4. Why we collect and use it

  • to provide our tax, accounting, bookkeeping, SMSF administration, company secretarial and advisory services;

  • to meet our legal obligations – including under tax laws, the Tax Agent Services Act 2009 and the TPB Code of Professional Conduct, the Corporations Act 2001 and the AML/CTF Act (identifying and verifying clients, understanding who owns or controls entities, monitoring our relationship with you, keeping records and reporting to AUSTRAC);

  • to communicate with you, manage our relationship with you and bill for our services;

  • for quality review by our professional body; and

  • for any other purpose you consent to.

If you do not give us the information we ask for, we may be unable to act for you, or to continue acting for you.

5. Tax file numbers

We collect, use and disclose TFNs only for purposes authorised by tax, superannuation or personal assistance laws – such as preparing and lodging your returns – and in line with the Privacy (Tax File Number) Rule 2015. We do not use TFNs to identify you for any other purpose and we protect them with the same safeguards we use for all client information. We never enter TFNs into AI tools.

6. Who we disclose it to

We disclose personal information only for the purposes in section 4, or as the law requires or allows. Recipients may include:

  • government bodies – including the ATO, ASIC, the Tax Practitioners Board and AUSTRAC;

  • other people you have authorised us to deal with, such as your financial adviser, lawyer, bank, SMSF auditor or family members;

  • Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CA ANZ), for quality review, on a confidential basis;

  • our insurers and professional advisers; and

  • technology providers that store or process information for us, such as cloud software, email and document storage, and AI tools.

AUSTRAC reporting. The law may require us to report certain matters to AUSTRAC. The law can also prevent us from telling you that we have made a report.

Where your information is stored. Most of your information is stored in Australia. We use Microsoft 365 (email and document storage), DocuSign (electronic signing), BGL (SMSF administration and company secretarial records) and MYOB (for clients not yet moved to Xero), which store information in Australia. Some of our providers store or process information outside Australia. At the date of this policy:

  • Xero Limited (Xero) – accounting and ledger data. Stored in the United States.

  • Anthropic PBC (Claude) – AI-assisted analysis, drafting and review, with your consent. Stored in the United States. May be processed in the United States, Europe, Asia and Australia, and in other countries where Anthropic operates.

  • Squarespace (our website) – website hosting and website contact form. Stored in the United States.

We choose providers with strong security and privacy terms. We tell clients about our use of AI tools and ask for consent before we use them on their work.

7. Automated decisions

We do not make decisions about you using computer programs alone. Our staff review all work, including any work prepared with the help of software or AI tools.

8. How we store and protect it

We store information electronically in secure cloud systems with access controls and multi-factor authentication, and keep paper records secure. Only staff who need information for their work can access it. If a data breach is likely to result in serious harm, we will notify affected people and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) as the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme requires.

We keep client files for at least 7 years after our engagement ends, or longer where the law requires. When we no longer need information, we destroy or de-identify it securely.

9. Accessing and correcting your information

You can ask to see the personal information we hold about you, or ask us to correct it, by contacting us (section 11). We will respond within a reasonable time, usually 30 days. In limited cases the law allows or requires us to refuse access – for example, we cannot tell you about AUSTRAC reports. If we refuse, we will tell you why in writing where we can.

10. Complaints

If you have a concern about how we have handled your personal information, please contact our Privacy Officer (section 11). We will acknowledge your complaint promptly and aim to resolve it within 30 days. If you are not satisfied with our response, you can complain to the OAIC at www.oaic.gov.au or on 1300 363 992.

11. Contact us

Privacy contact: Privacy Officer, BJC Accountants Pty Ltd
Address: 207 The Parade, Norwood SA 5067 (PO Box 3007, Norwood SA 5067)
Phone: (08) 8273 0000
Email: mail@bjcsa.com.au
Website: www.bjcaccountants.com.au

12. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The current version will always be on our website, and we will give a copy free of charge on request.