What are the consequences of not providing a TFN to your bank?

Providing a Tax File Number (TFN) to your bank is essential because it directly affects how your interest earnings are taxed. If a TFN is not provided, the bank is legally obligated to withhold tax from the interest earned on your account at the highest marginal tax rate, which is typically much higher than the rate that would apply if a TFN were provided. This means that not supplying a TFN leads to a higher amount of interest tax being withheld, making option B the correct answer.

When an individual does not provide a TFN, the implications extend beyond tax withholding. While it is true that higher fees could be associated with accounts lacking TFNs, such fees are not guaranteed and would depend on the bank’s specific policies. Account freezing and loan denial might occur in certain situations, but these outcomes are less directly related to the failure to provide a TFN compared to the tax withholding consequences. Thus, the requirement to provide a TFN and its tax implications are significant and lead to the conclusion that the most immediate consequence of not providing it is the withholding of a higher amount of interest tax.