Privacy Statement
Last revised: 3rd April 2024
IQ Accountants, IQ Bookkeeping and it’s related entities are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your information we collect in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (Privacy Act.)
As responsible data custodians we are committed to protecting your personal information. This Privacy Statement outlines how we collect, use, store and disclose your personal information in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles 2014 (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.
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 Statement.
Our privacy statement will be reviewed regularly to take account of changes in legislation, technology and our operation and practices. As a result, from time to time we may change this privacy statement. To let you know when this happens, we will amend the revision date at the top of the page. The new version of the privacy statement will apply from that revision date. With this in mind, we encourage you to review this statement to be informed about how we are protecting your information.
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.
1. Purposes for which IQ Accountants collects, holds, uses and discloses personal information:
We only collect, hold, use and disclose personal information which is reasonable necessary to ensure that we are able to provide you with the products and services that are appropriate to your needs. We only use your personal information lawfully and fairly and not in an unreasonably intrusive manner. We will outline to you when you engage our services the purposes for which we will collect, hold, use and disclose your personal information.
2. The kinds of personal information we collect and hold:
The personal information we may collect and hold includes:
- Name, date of birth and address including email
- Tax File Number
- Phone Number and mobile phone number
- Occupations, memberships, qualifications and other accreditations
- Financial records
- Insurance particulars and insurance related health information
- Superannuation policy information and
- Additional information from you regarding family relationships and other business-related connections.
While IQ Accountants may request details regarding certain identification numbers utilized by the government and other third parties, we only do so where it is necessary and lawful and we do not set out to use these identifiers as our own.
3. How we collect and hold your personal information
We will usually collect your personal information directly from you however if that is not possible, we may collect your personal information from your personal representative or associate with your expressed consent. We may collect information that is available in the public domain where this information will assist us with the provision of services to our clients. Information may have been provided verbally or in writing (including via email or web forms.) In some instances, you may provide us with information relating to an associate of yours. Please ensure that you are authorized by the associate to provide the information to IQ Accountants.
We may collect personal information from you or from third parties 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;
- Conferring with third parties such as financiers or the Australian Taxation Office on your behalf;
- Using “cookies” or other similar tracking technologies on our website that track website usage, preferences and personal account information; and
- Requesting information from a publicly available source.
IQ Accountants may from time to time collect personal information from alternative sources. Some examples of these alternative collection events are:
- when we collect personal information about your from third parties
- concerning an associate of a client (eg spouse or child) where it is considered impracticable or unreasonable to seek this same information directly from the associate
- when we collect personal information about you from publicly available sources including but not limited to social media platforms, court judgments, share registry, Australia post and White Pages directory.
We take reasonable steps to protect your personal information from misuse and loss, unauthorized access, modification and disclosure. All staff are subject to confidentiality clauses and we implement stringent procedures to protect passwords and your personal information.
4. How we use your personal information and disclosure
IQ Accountants collects and holds your personal information in order to complete the services that we are engaged to do or refer you to other service providers. These services are outlined in the engagement letter.
We may disclose your personal information for the following purposes:
- To enable you to access and use our services and in turn provide our services to you;
- To provide you with direct marketing materials that may be of interest to you such as articles or product brochures or correspondence from our business partners;
- For purposes that you consent to such disclosure or for a related purpose where you would reasonably expect such disclosure; and
- 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).
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) or Financial Planning Association (FPA) 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.
IQ Accountants utilize third party providers (such as IT providers and software developers) for its business and to deliver services to you. It may be necessary for us to disclose non-sensitive personal information to these providers from time to time. Some of these providers may process data overseas. IQ Accountants ensure that all third parties have a privacy statement which complies with Australian Privacy Law. Please also note that there are occasions where we are able to facilitate offerings from third parties in order to provide a greater service to our clients without disclosing any of your personal information. We will always seek your permission prior to sharing information unless we are lawfully required to do so.
If you subscribe to information on our website or are a client or contact of IQ Accountants then your email address and other personal information that you provide will be recorded. Your email address may occasionally be used to provide you with information about office news and other services that we offer. If you at any time do not wish to receive any information about these services, please feel free to contact us by email at admin@iqaccountants.com.au or phone 07 5576 0011. You may also opt out upon receipt of such material.
5. How we store your personal information
IQ Accountants stores your personal information on infrastructure owned or controlled by us with a third party service provider who have taken reasonable steps to ensure they comply with the Privacy Act. We utilize a number of different types of accounting software and online tools in the performance of our services. These applications may require the storage of personal data at non-Australian locations. These software providers are contracted with IQ Accountants and your personal information remains under the effective control of IQ Accountants.
Under the Australian Privacy Principles, your have the right to request access to personal information that we may hold about you. Please direct all such requests in writing to info@iqaccountants.com.au. Information will be provided subject to our right to refuse access. Our policy is to provide a written acknowledgment of receipt for request within 5 working days and then a written response within 30 days of our receipt of the request.
We take our security obligations seriously and 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.
As responsible data custodians we are familiar with the requirements of the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme and are committed to responding to data breaches in accordance with our obligations under the Privacy Act. We will notify the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner and you if there is unauthorised access to, unauthorised disclosure of, or loss of, personal information held by us and the access, disclosure or loss is likely to result in serious harm to any of the individuals to whom the information relates in accordance with the Privacy Act.
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.
As responsible data custodians, any breach of this Privacy Policy by our employees, contractors, consultants, partners and any other entity that at our direction have access to your personal information will invoke disciplinary and possible legal action against the offending party.
6. Accuracy of your personal information
We will take all reasonable steps to ensure that any personal information collected, used and/or disclosed is accurate, complete and up to date. As the accuracy of the information largely depends on the information that you provide to us – if you believe that the information we hold about you is incorrect or out of date, please contact us and we will review and update it as required.
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 four weeks 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.
If at any time you believe that information we hold about you is incomplete, inaccurate, irrelevant, misleading or not up-to-date, please contact us and we will take reasonable steps to correct the information in accordance with the Privacy Act.
Email: admin@iqaccountants.com.au
7. Complaints
If you have any concerns regarding the way IQ Accountants have dealt with your personal information and wish to complain, you can direct your complains to our nominated privacy officer at info@iqaccountants.com.au. We will ensure that all complaints and enquiries are dealt with within 5 business days and attempt to resolve all matters promptly. If you are still unsatisfied, you may wish to contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.