Privacy Policy

CapitalQ Business Advisers & Chartered Accountants (“we”, “us”, “our”) are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal information in a transparent and secure manner.

We comply with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), including the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs), which govern how personal information is collected, used, disclosed, stored and managed. [oaic.gov.au]

This Privacy Policy explains how we manage your personal information.

What is Personal Information?

Personal information is information or an opinion about an identified individual, or an individual who is reasonably identifiable.

Who We Collect Personal Information About

We may collect personal information about:

current, former and prospective clients
directors, shareholders, officeholders and employees of our clients
trustees, beneficiaries and members of superannuation funds
contractors, service providers and suppliers
professional advisers and representatives acting on behalf of clients
other individuals with whom we interact in the course of providing our services

What Personal Information We Collect

We may collect personal information including:

name, address, email and phone number
date of birth
tax file numbers, director identification numbers (Director IDs) and financial information
bank account details and payment information
employment and income details
business and company information
superannuation and SMSF information

Where necessary, we may also collect sensitive information (for example, health or insurance-related information), but only:

with your consent, or
where required or authorised by law

How We Collect Personal Information

We collect personal information in various ways, including:

directly from you (forms, emails, meetings, phone calls)
via our website (contact forms, subscriptions)
from third parties (e.g. ATO, banks, financial institutions, advisers), where authorised

If we receive unsolicited personal information, we will determine whether we could have collected it lawfully and will destroy or de-identify it if not.

Accuracy of Personal Information

We take reasonable steps to ensure that the personal information we collect, use and disclose is accurate, complete, up to date and relevant for the purposes for which it is used.

We encourage you to contact us if your personal information changes or if you believe any information we hold about you is inaccurate, incomplete or out of date.

Why We Collect Personal Information

We collect personal information to:

provide accounting, taxation, advisory and SMSF services
assess eligibility for services
manage our client relationships
communicate with you
provide occasional marketing or service updates where permitted)
comply with legal, regulatory and professional obligations, including identity verification and anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing obligations, where applicable.

Disclosure of Personal Information

We may disclose personal information to:

related entities
employees, contractors and professional service providers engaged in delivering our services
accountants, bookkeepers, lawyers, consultants and other professional advisers;
technology providers, software vendors, cloud hosting providers and other service providers that support our business operations (e.g. Xero, BGL, SuiteFiles, CCH iFirm, Microsoft)
IT and system providers
banks, lenders and financial institutions
insurers, brokers and advisers
government and regulatory bodies (e.g. ATO, ASIC)
your authorised representatives
other third parties where required, authorised or permitted by law

We take reasonable steps to ensure these parties handle your information in accordance with privacy laws.

Overseas Disclosure & Outsourced Services

We may engage outsourced service providers and contractors, both within Australia and overseas, to assist in delivering our services and operating our business.

Overseas recipients are likely to be located in countries in which our service providers, contractors and technology partners operate, including India.

We take reasonable steps to ensure overseas recipients handle personal information in a manner consistent with the Australian Privacy Principles through contractual obligations, access controls, confidentiality requirements and other appropriate safeguards.

Access controls include:

IP address and location restrictions
multi-Factor authentication where applicable
restricted system permissions
monitored and logged access

What this means:

Your personal information may be accessed from India
Data is generally stored in Australia where practicable, however access may occur offshore

Safeguards we apply:

contractual confidentiality and privacy obligations

strict access control frameworks
staff training and confidentiality requirements
system-level restrictions and monitoring
limiting access to what is reasonably necessary

We take reasonable steps to ensure overseas providers comply with the Australian Privacy Principles.

We remain accountable for how your personal information is handled, including by overseas providers.

Direct Marketing

We may use your personal information to provide you with information about our services.

You may opt out of receiving marketing communications at any time by:

contacting us, or
using unsubscribe options in communications

Security of Personal Information

We take reasonable steps to protect personal information from misuse, interference, loss, and unauthorised access, modification or disclosure.

These measures include:

secure cloud-based systems and software platforms
access controls and user authentication
IP restrictions and network security controls
encryption where applicable
regular backups and data recovery procedures
audit logging and monitoring of system access
staff confidentiality agreements and training
use of reputable, security-focused software providers
periodic review of systems and processes

Data Retention

We retain personal information:

for as long as necessary to provide services
to comply with legal and regulatory obligations (e.g. tax record retention laws)

At present, many records are retained for extended or indefinite periods, but we continually review retention practices.

Where personal information is no longer required, we take reasonable steps to:

destroy the information, or
permanently de-identify it

Backup systems may retain data for separate retention periods.

Access to and Correction of Personal Information

You may request access to or correction of your personal information at any time.

We will:

provide access unless an exception applies
correct inaccurate or outdated information

We generally provide clients with copies of relevant documents and records during the course of providing our services.

Following the cessation of our services, we may still provide access to your information upon request.

Where requests require significant time or resources (for example, re‑provisioning historical records), a reasonable administrative fee may apply. You will be advised of any applicable costs in advance.

Notifiable Data Breaches

If a data breach occurs that is likely to result in serious harm, we will:

notify affected individuals, and
notify the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC)

in accordance with the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme.

Artificial Intelligence and Automation

We may use automation tools, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning technologies and other emerging technologies to assist in the delivery of our services and the operation of our business.

These technologies may be used for a range of purposes, including:

analysing, organising and processing information;
preparing drafts, summaries, reports and other work products;
research and information retrieval;
workflow automation and administrative tasks;
identifying anomalies, trends or risks; and
improving the efficiency, quality and consistency of our services.

Where appropriate, the information processed through these technologies may include personal information and information relating to our clients’ affairs.

When using AI and similar technologies, we take reasonable steps to protect confidential and personal information and to ensure that any use of such technologies is consistent with our obligations under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), the Australian Privacy Principles, the Tax Agent Services Act 2009 (Cth), and our professional and ethical obligations.

We do not rely solely on AI-generated outputs when providing professional services. AI-generated content, recommendations and analyses are reviewed, verified and supplemented by appropriately qualified personnel who exercise professional judgement before information is relied upon or provided to clients.

Where AI or technology providers process information on our behalf, they may be considered service providers for the purposes of this Privacy Policy, and information may be disclosed to them in accordance with this Policy and any applicable client authority, consent or legal obligation.

As technology continues to evolve, we may expand, modify or replace the tools we use. We will continue to take reasonable steps to ensure personal information is handled appropriately and in accordance with applicable privacy and professional standards.

Complaints

If you have a complaint about how we handle your personal information, please contact us using the details below.

We will:

investigate your complaint
respond within a reasonable timeframe

If you are not satisfied, you may contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC).

Contact Details

Privacy Officer

Email: privacy@capitalq.com.au

Phone: 08 9228 7100

Address: 123A Royal Street, East Perth WA 6004

Updates to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The latest version will always be available on our website.

This website uses Google invisible reCAPTCHA technology on all forms. For further information about what this means for your privacy, please refer to the reCAPTCHA Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions