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Privacy Policy

1. About this Document

This Privacy Policy has been adopted by HL Financial Pty Ltd (ACN 696 640 052) “HL Financial”, “we”, “us” and “our”, a public accounting practice based in Hobart, Tasmania.

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Our employees, contractors, consultants, partners and any other third party entities that at our direction have access to your personal information are bound by and must adhere to this Privacy Policy.

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By providing personal information to us you consent to our collection, use and disclosure of your personal information in accordance with this Privacy Policy. 

We reserve the right to make amendments to this Privacy Policy at any time and will make available to you details of the changes we make. If you have objections to our Privacy Policy, you should notify us immediately and not submit personal information to us. 

 

2. Commitment

As responsible data custodians we are committed to protecting the privacy of personal information we hold. This Privacy Policy outlines how we collect, use, store and disclose your personal information, in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) established under the Privacy Act 1988 (Privacy Act).

You can obtain further information regarding the APPs and your privacy rights at the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) at www.oaic.gov.au.

 

3. Personal or sensitive information we collect

The type of personal information we collect depends on the services we provide to you. It may include:

  • Name, date of birth, residential and postal address, email address, and telephone number

  • Tax file number (TFN), Australian Business Number (ABN), and business registration details

  • Financial information, including income, expenses, assets, liabilities, bank account and superannuation details

  • Employment and business details relevant to tax, accounting or advisory work

  • Identification information used to verify your identity e.g. driver licence or passport details, consistent with our obligations under the Tax Agent Services Act 2009 and anti-money laundering requirements where applicable

  • Information about your dealings with the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and other government agencies

  • Correspondence and records arising from our engagement with you, including engagement letters, working papers and file notes

  • Information provided to us via client surveys.

 

4. Collection & Use 

We usually collect personal information directly from you, for example:

 

  • When you engage us to provide accounting, tax, or advisory services

  • By having face-to-face meetings and telephone discussions with you;

  • Asking you to complete client questionnaires;

  • You using our website and interacting with our social media sites;

  • You communicating with us through correspondence;

 

We may also collect personal information from third parties, such as the ATO, ASIC, your bank or financial institution, your employer or superannuation fund, other professional advisers (with your authority), or publicly available registers, where necessary to provide our services.

 

5. Disclosure

We may disclose your personal information for the following purposes:

  • Preparing and lodging tax returns, activity statements, and other documents with the ATO and other regulators

  • Providing accounting, bookkeeping, taxation, superannuation and business advisory services

  • Verifying your identity, in line with our professional and legal obligations

  • Communicating with you about your account, engagement or our services

  • Managing our business, including billing, record-keeping and internal administration

  • Complying with our legal and professional obligations, including those under taxation law, the Tax Agent Services Act 2009, and the Code of Professional Conduct of our professional association

  • Improving our services, and, where you have consented, providing you with information about services we think may be of interest to you

  • Any circumstance otherwise authorised by the APPs and/or the Privacy Act.

 

We will only use sensitive information for the primary purpose it was obtained for or for a secondary purpose that is directly related to the primary purpose (or where otherwise required by law).

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We may disclose your personal and sensitive information to trusted third parties, including the following entities:

  • Our representatives, advisers, employees, dealers, agents and related bodies corporate;

  • third party suppliers and service providers such as the providers for the operation of our website or business services; 

  • The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) to meet ongoing compliance;

  • The Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) on request to meet ongoing compliance, mandatory professional standards and other legal obligations;

  • Specific third parties authorised by you to receive information held by us; and

  • As required by law or directed by legal decision/process;

  • Any industry body, tribunal, court or otherwise connected with any complaint regarding our services.

 

6. Tax File Numbers

We collect and hold TFN information solely for the lawful purposes for which it is provided (principally, the preparation and lodgement of tax-related documents on your behalf). We handle TFN information in accordance with the Privacy (Tax File Number) Rule 2015, and we do not use or disclose TFN information except as permitted under that Rule or as otherwise authorised or required by law. TFN information is stored securely and is destroyed or de‑identified once it is no longer required, subject to our record‑keeping obligations.

 

7. Overseas Disclosure

Some of the cloud-based software and storage providers we use to deliver our services may store or process data on servers located outside Australia (for example, in the course of providing cloud accounting, email or document storage services). Where this occurs, we take reasonable steps to ensure our service providers handle personal information in a manner consistent with the Australian Privacy Principles, including through the provider's own privacy and security terms. Where practicable, we will identify the relevant countries in our engagement documentation or on request.

 

8. Data Quality and Security

We take reasonable steps to ensure the personal information we collect, use and disclose is accurate, complete and up to date. We encourage you to let us know if any of your details change.

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Your personal information is regarded as confidential and may be held in both hard copy and/or electronic versions. We will take all reasonable steps to safeguard your information so that it is not misused, lost, modified, accessed by unauthorised persons or disclosed without authorisation. These steps include:

  • Secure, access‑controlled cloud accounting and document management systems

  • Password protection, encryption and, where appropriate, multi‑factor authentication

  • Restricting access to personal information to personnel who need it to perform their role

  • Secure destruction or de‑identification of personal information that is no longer required, subject to statutory record‑keeping requirements (generally a minimum of five years for tax and financial records)

 

Our website may contain links to external websites operated by third parties. The privacy polices of these other websites may not accord with this Privacy Policy and we cannot be held responsible and do not have control of the use of your personal information by these third parties.

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9. Accessing, Updating and Correcting Your Personal and Sensitive Information

You have a right to access your personal information, subject to exceptions allowed by law. If you would like to do so, please provide us with a request in writing to the contact details listed below.  Depending upon the complexity of the request, we will endeavour to respond to you within 30 days of receiving your request. We reserve the right to charge a fee for searching for, and providing access to, your information on a per request basis. Where we cannot provide you with access to all of your personal information, we will provide you with reasons why. We may also require your identity to be verified when you send in your request and prior to sending any substantive response. 

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10. Complaints and Inquiries

If you believe we have breached the Australian Privacy Principles or have a complaint regarding the way we have handled your information, please contact us using the details below. Please provide as much detail as possible so we can investigate your complaint.  

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Please make sure to include your name and return contact details with any inquiry.

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We will acknowledge your compliant promptly and aim to resolve it within a reasonable time, generally within 30 days. If you are not satisfied with our response to your complaint or inquiry you can contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) atwww.oaic.gov.au.

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  • Website: www.oaic.gov.au

  • Phone: 1300 363 992

  • Post: GPO Box 5218, Sydney NSW 2001

 

11. Changes to this Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or legal obligations. The current version will always be available on our website at hlfinancial.com.au or on request.

 

12. Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, or wish to access or correct your personal information or make a complaint, please contact us:

 

 

Policy Effective: 1 July 2026

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