Record New Businesses in June — What It Means for Novated Leasing
385,716 new businesses registered in 2025–26 per ASIC data. Here's what Australia's business boom means if you're weighing up a novated lease.
Australia just broke a record that has nothing to do with sport. According to a Treasury Ministers release published 16 July 2026, ASIC data shows 43,393 new companies were registered in June 2026 alone — the highest single month since records began in 1999. For the full 2025–26 financial year, 385,716 new businesses were created, also a record.
That's a lot of new employer entities. And employer entities are exactly the other party you need to make a novated lease work.
What this means for novated lease customers
A novated lease is a three-way arrangement between you, your employer, and a finance provider. The critical ingredient on that list is your employer. More businesses in Australia means more employers who can offer novated leasing as a benefit — including smaller businesses that are often told (wrongly) that novated leasing is only for large corporates.
If you've recently moved to a new employer, started contracting through your own company, or your employer has never offered this before, now is a reasonable time to ask the question. The structural settings that make novated leasing attractive — particularly the FBT exemption on eligible electric vehicles introduced under the Treasury Laws Amendment (Electric Car Discount) Act — haven't changed. What's changed is that the pool of employers who could set this up for you is, by the numbers, at a record high.
One honest caveat: a business being registered doesn't mean it's immediately payroll-ready or that an employer will say yes. But the trend is directionally useful if you're evaluating whether Australia's employment market is moving toward or away from the kind of stable PAYG arrangements that support a novated lease.
Common questions
Can a small or newly registered business offer novated leasing?
Yes. There's no minimum employee headcount or minimum operating history required by the ATO for an employer to enter a novated lease arrangement. The employer just needs to be registered for PAYG withholding and willing to facilitate the salary deductions.
I'm thinking of starting my own company — can I novated lease through it?
This is a grey area. The ATO's position is that the arrangement must be at arm's length and genuinely employer-employee in nature. If you're a sole director and sole employee of your own company, the ATO scrutinises these closely. Get independent tax advice before proceeding — this is not a setup millarX recommends without professional sign-off.
Does this record business data change anything about FBT or the EV exemption?
No. The ASIC registration figures are an economic data point, not a legislative change. The FBT exemption for eligible EVs and the broader novated lease tax treatment remain as legislated. Always check the ATO website for current rules.
What's the EV connection here?
More employer entities means a larger addressable group of employees who could access the FBT exemption on eligible battery electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles via novated leasing. The exemption is the single biggest structural advantage in the current novated lease market for EVs.
Is novated leasing worth it even at a small employer?
The tax mechanics work the same regardless of employer size — the potential pre-tax savings on a novated lease don't shrink because your employer is small. The main variable is whether your employer's payroll system can handle the deductions, which millarX can help assess.