Most directors treat everything ASIC sends as broadly the same thing to deal with later. This is how late fees happen. The two documents ASIC sends at your annual review date serve different purposes and require different actions on different timelines.
The annual statement
ASIC sends an annual statement to your registered office address on your company's review date, which is usually the anniversary of registration [ASIC, asic.gov.au]. This document lists the details ASIC currently holds about your company: your registered office, principal place of business, directors, secretaries, and shareholders. Your obligation when you receive it is to review these details and, if anything is wrong or has changed, update ASIC using Form 484. Changes must be lodged within 28 days of the review date [ASIC, asic.gov.au].
The annual review fee invoice
Arriving alongside, or shortly after, the annual statement is the invoice for your annual review fee. For proprietary companies, this is $342 from 1 July 2026 [AusBusinessRegister, ausbusinessregister.com.au]. You have two months from your review date to pay it. After that, an automatic late fee of $102 applies if payment is made within one month of the deadline, rising to $428 if payment is more than one month late [ASIC, asic.gov.au]. ASIC does not need to send a reminder. The deadline is fixed and the late fee applies without any additional notice.
Why people confuse them
They arrive at the same time and both carry your company's details. Some directors glance at the statement, assume they only need to do something if details are wrong, and set aside the fee invoice for later. Others pay the fee immediately but skip the review of the statement, meaning errors or outdated addresses go uncorrected. Both documents need attention.
What this has to do with your registered office
Both documents are mailed to your registered office. If that address is unreliable or poorly monitored, you may receive one document without the other, or neither. ASIC does not resend documents because they were not collected. The review date, the correction deadline, and the fee deadline all run from a fixed point in time regardless of whether you received the paperwork.
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