Business valuation cost: fixed fee $1,495 + GST small, $2,495 + GST medium, every fee published.
What a business valuation costs at Oliver Group is set by one thing, annual turnover, and fixed in writing before any work begins. Small business (under $2 million) $1,495 + GST with a draft in 2 business days; medium ($2 million to $10 million) $2,495 + GST in 3 business days; large (over $10 million) $3,495 + GST with the date agreed before commencement. Delivery time starts once payment and all required information have been received.
In short
A signed business valuation report from Oliver Group is $1,495 + GST for a business with annual turnover under $2 million, with a draft in 2 business days; $2,495 + GST for turnover between $2 million and $10 million, with a draft in 3 business days; and $3,495 + GST for turnover over $10 million or a start-up, with the delivery date agreed before commencement. Delivery time starts once payment and all required information have been received.
Get a fixed fee
Small Business Valuation
$1,495 + GST
For a business with annual turnover under $2 million. Signed and delivered in 2 business days. Delivery time starts once payment and all required information have been received. The fee is fixed in writing before we start and never tied to the outcome.
Larger business? Tell us in the form and we recommend the right package. All fees
The whole price list.
One question decides your fee: what does the business turn over in a year? Find your row, read the price. Nothing else changes it.
Turnover under $2m
Small Business Valuation
Fixed in writing before we start
- Delivery
- 2 business days
Turnover $2m to $10m
Medium Business Valuation
Fixed in writing before we start
- Delivery
- 3 business days
Turnover over $10m
Large Business Valuation
Fixed in writing before we start
- Delivery
- Agreed before we begin
Delivery time starts once payment and all required information have been received. We tell you exactly what that information is before you engage.
The only things that change the price
- +$495Retrospective valuation date per historical dateA value as at a past date is a separate piece of work: it is built on the evidence that existed at that date.
- +$795Each additional entity per entityA second entity is a second set of financials to work through and a second conclusion to support.
- −$300Business and property together off the business valuation feeWhen one or more properties are valued to the same date by a registered property valuer, arranged through us. Applies once per engagement.
- −10%Accountant or lawyer referral off the published feeA standing arrangement for clients introduced by their accountant or lawyer. Not a cost difference.
There are no disbursements, no printing or sundries charges, and no billing for emails or phone calls. Any add-on is agreed at engagement, never added afterwards.
When a matter needs more than this
The fees above buy a signed report built on the single approach the facts best support. Some matters need more than that: a conclusion cross-checked against a second and third methodology, with a deeper evidence file behind it. That is the report to commission when the number carries real ATO review or dispute risk, when a position sits close to a threshold such as the $6m maximum net asset value test, or when you expect the value to be examined rather than simply filed.
A more comprehensive engagement is scoped and quoted separately, above the published fees. The fee is still fixed in writing before any work begins, the same as every engagement on this page. Tell us the purpose at enquiry and we will tell you which one you need before you pay for either.
Talk through a complex matterBusiness valuation fees range from $1,495 + GST to $3,495 + GST.
Three things set the price. That is the whole list.
It is priced on size, not on hours
The fee is set by annual turnover, because the size of the business is the best plain-English guide to the work involved: how many records there are to go through, how long a financial history there is to test, and how much evidence has to be assembled behind the conclusion. Nothing is billed by the hour, so nothing is discovered on the invoice.
The scope is fixed before the price is
A fixed fee is only honest if the scope is fixed first. These packages exist because most tax-purpose valuations are structurally similar: one entity, one date, one purpose, a known set of documents. That is what makes it possible to publish the price before we have met you. Where a matter genuinely does not fit that shape, we say so at enquiry and scope it separately.
It is never tied to the answer
The fee is agreed at engagement and is not contingent on the value we conclude. That matters for your budget, and it matters more for the independence of the report: the number in it is driven by the evidence, not by the billing model. If the matter turns out to be more complex than quoted, the work pauses and you see a revised fixed fee in writing before anything further is done.
What every fee includes
- A signed valuation report with a concluded value and a supportable range
- The methodology applied, with the evidence behind it documented
- Assumptions and limitations stated in full
- An independence statement, and the signature of the valuer responsible
- The working file retained for ten years
What it does not include
- A cross-check of the conclusion against a second or third methodology
- Expert witness work, court timetables or cross-examination
- Tax advice: we prepare valuations only and are not a registered tax agent
Every package on this page carries the same inclusions and the same limits. The packages differ by the size of the business, not by the depth of the report: a $1,495 valuation and a $3,495 valuation are both signed, both documented, and both built the same way.
In short
A fixed fee business valuation from Oliver Group is priced on the annual turnover of the business: $1,495 + GST for a Small Business Valuation (turnover under $2 million, delivered in 2 business days), $2,495 + GST for a Medium Business Valuation (turnover $2 million to $10 million, delivered in 3 business days), and $3,495 + GST for a Large Business Valuation (turnover over $10 million, with the delivery date agreed before commencement). Delivery time starts once payment and all required information have been received. The fee is fixed in writing at engagement, before any work begins, and any change to it requires your agreement. The only add-ons are published too: retrospective dates +$495, additional entities +$795.
The price we quote is the price you pay: fixed in writing before any work begins.
The three prices above are the only prices. They are what we quote by email, what goes in the engagement letter, and what appears on the invoice. The fee is set by the annual turnover of the business, so you can work out which one is yours before you call us, and it is fixed in writing at engagement, before any work begins. It is not an estimate, it is not a starting point, and it is not contingent on the value we conclude: that last point matters for the independence of the report as much as it matters for your budget.
Which package is yours, and when to step up
Read it off your last full year of turnover. Under $2 million is a Small Business Valuation at $1,495 + GST. Between $2 million and $10 million is a Medium Business Valuation at $2,495 + GST. Over $10 million is a Large Business Valuation at $3,495 + GST, and we agree the delivery date with you before we begin. If you are near the edge of a band, or the last year was not representative, tell us and we will tell you which package applies before you pay rather than after. A retrospective date or a second entity does not move you up a package: those are published add-ons, +$495 and +$795. What does change the answer is the purpose. If the number is likely to be contested, a fixed-fee report is the wrong tool and we will say so at enquiry. That is another structural difference from time billing, where a bigger scope is always a bigger invoice. This is general information, not tax advice: whether a particular restructure or transaction falls within these provisions is a question for your tax adviser; we prepare valuations only and are not a registered tax agent.
What makes a fixed fee genuinely fixed
A fixed fee is only honest if the scope is fixed first. Because the scope is defined up front, the price can be too: and because the fee is settled at engagement and is not contingent on the concluded value, the number in the report is driven by the evidence rather than by the billing model. That is the structural difference between a fixed fee and an hourly estimate: one is a price for a defined piece of work, the other is a forecast of effort that nobody is bound by.
The eligibility test: run before you pay, not after
You fit if four things are true: one operating entity; accountant-prepared financials for the last three or more years; a straightforward purpose: an indicative value for planning, a buy-sell agreement update, a related-party transaction with low review risk, or a Division 7A matter where the value is not marginal; and no live dispute over the number. No Oliver Group engagement starts at $1,495 and quietly grows.
What happens if your matter is more complex than quoted
Some matters genuinely turn out to be more complex than they first appear: an undisclosed second entity, a class structure the shareholder register did not reveal, a retrospective date that emerges once the CGT event is properly identified. When that happens on an Oliver Group engagement, the work pauses and the re-scope conversation happens with you, before any further work is done. You see the revised fixed fee in writing, and you decide: proceed at the revised fee, narrow the scope to fit the original quote, or stop altogether. That is the structural feature of a fixed-fee engagement: under time billing, added complexity is typically priced as it is discovered, so it is common for a client to learn about it via the invoice rather than beforehand. On an Oliver Group engagement, the re-scope conversation happens before the work, not after it.
The honest trade-off: what the fixed fee does not cover
A fixed price is only useful if you know what it buys, so here is the limit stated plainly. It tests the approach the facts best support, documents the evidence and reasoning, and carries the lead valuer's signature: but it does not cross-check the conclusion against a second or third methodology. That makes it well suited to straightforward, compliance-driven matters, and poorly suited to anything likely to be contested: family law property settlements, shareholder disputes, matters with realistic ATO-dispute risk, or positions that sit close to a threshold such as the $6m maximum net asset value test. Fixed fee should mean a scope you chose deliberately: not a scope you discovered too late was too thin.
Who fixed-fee suits: and the rare matters that need bespoke scoping
Fixed-fee pricing works because most tax-purpose valuations are structurally similar: a defined entity, a defined date, a defined purpose, a known document set. Compliance-driven CGT events, restructures and rollovers, related-party transfers, Division 7A matters and retrospective engagements all fit this shape, which is why we can publish the price before we have met you. A small number of matters genuinely cannot be scoped from a menu: expert witness work running to a court timetable, multi-jurisdiction groups, or disputes where the document set itself is contested. For those we prepare a bespoke scope, and we say so at enquiry, with the same discipline: a written fixed fee for each defined stage, agreed before that stage begins. If you are comparing providers, the fee-structure questions that reveal how an engagement will really be billed are at 12 Questions to Ask About Valuation Fees Before You Engage Anyone.
How hourly-billed valuation engagements blow out
The hourly model does not blow out because anyone is dishonest. It blows out because the price is discovered rather than agreed. The engagement starts with an estimate, often a wide range, and the structure of time billing means the final invoice tends to land at the top of that range or beyond it. First, scope discovery: if the valuer finds a second share class, a related-party loan book or an entity nobody mentioned, that additional work is typically billed as it arises, on top of the original estimate. Second, partner review: most engagement structures require a partner's signature before a report can go out, and that review time is generally billed at partner rates. Third, the 'further information required' loop: under time billing, each additional round of follow-up questions can generate further billable time at the valuer's end and, if your accountant is fielding the requests, potentially at yours too. On an hourly engagement, the number on the final invoice is often the first time the client sees the total price. We compare the two engagement models line by line at Fixed Fee vs Hourly Valuation Engagements.
What 'cheap' actually buys at each price point
'Cheap business valuation' describes four very different products at four very different prices, and the gap between them is a signature, not just a number. The failure mode of the two free/low-cost options is the same: when the ATO reviews the value, there is no methodology, evidence or reasoning to point to, only a number. For a fuller walk-through of every option, see The cheapest way to value a business in Australia.
| Price point | What you get | Signed by a valuer? |
|---|---|---|
| $0: online calculator | An industry multiple applied to your revenue or earnings. No methodology disclosure, no evidence file, and typically no indication of who or what stands behind the number. | No |
| A few hundred dollars: automated report | The same calculator output re-formatted as a PDF. No one examines your financials, tests add-backs, or selects a methodology. | No |
| $1,495 to $3,495 + GST: Oliver Group, set by turnover | A qualified valuer, one defined methodology, documented evidence and a signed report. | Yes |
| Generally $2,000–$30,000+: traditional firm full-scope engagement | Fee scales with the hours involved: scope, complexity and the depth of documentation required. Litigation or expert-witness engagements sit at the top of this range and often above it, reflecting the extra work of a report built to withstand cross-examination. | Yes |
Broker 'free appraisals', decoded
A broker's free appraisal is a marketing document produced to win your sale listing. That is not a criticism of brokers: it is a description of the incentive. The number is shaped by what wins the mandate, not by what the evidence supports, and it typically carries no documented methodology, no evidence file, no independence statement and no signature from anyone accountable for the conclusion. An informal appraisal like this is not built to establish a defensible position for tax purposes: it is scoped for a listing decision, not a market-value opinion. Used to gauge whether a sale is worth exploring, it has some value. Used as the market value for a CGT event or a related-party transfer, it is a liability.
Free online calculators: what they see and what they miss
Free calculators multiply your reported revenue or profit by a generic industry multiple and return a wide range in about two minutes. What they cannot see is what actually moves value: owner-salary add-backs and normalisation adjustments, owner dependency, customer concentration, lease terms and security of tenure, and the difference between a going concern and a walk-in-walk-out sale. Loss-making and asset-heavy businesses often return zero or nonsense. The output is an on-screen range with no stated assumptions, no author and no document: nothing an accountant, a lender or the ATO can even respond to, and several calculators carry their own disclaimers recommending a qualified valuer for anything beyond a rough guide. As a rough-orientation tool for early curiosity, they are genuinely useful. That is the entirety of their legitimate use.
When cheap is a false economy
The ATO's market valuation guidance is concerned with process: the methodology applied, the evidence relied on, and the reasoning connecting them. When a value is reviewed, the question is rarely whether the number looks plausible; it is whether the number is supported. A free calculator result or an unsigned automated report cannot answer that question. If a position built on one of these is challenged, the exposure is not just the original fee saved: it can include an amended assessment, penalties and interest, plus the cost of commissioning a proper valuation afterwards, this time under time pressure. We have set out this reasoning in more detail at Are cheap business valuations worth it.
Common questions.
How much does a fixed fee business valuation cost in Australia?+
The fee is set by the annual turnover of the business: $1,495 + GST under $2 million, $2,495 + GST from $2 million to $10 million, and $3,495 + GST over $10 million.
Why do accounting and advisory firms charge hourly for valuations?+
Because valuation usually sits inside a general practice built on time billing, scope is discovered as the work proceeds and priced as it is discovered, including partner review at partner rates. That is structural, not dishonest. A specialist preparing structurally similar tax-purpose valuations can define the scope before quoting, which is what makes a genuine fixed fee possible.
What happens if the valuation turns out to be more complex than the quote?+
The work pauses and the re-scope conversation happens before anything further is done. You receive a revised fixed fee in writing and choose whether to proceed at the revised fee, narrow the scope, or stop. On an Oliver Group engagement, additional complexity is priced and agreed with you before that work is carried out, not billed first and explained afterwards.
Are there any extra costs on top of the fixed fee?+
Only the two published add-ons: a retrospective valuation date at +$495 per historical date, and each additional entity at +$795. Each is agreed at engagement, never added afterwards. There are no disbursements, no printing or 'sundries' charges, and no billing for emails or phone calls.
How much does a cheap business valuation cost in Australia?+
Free online calculators cost nothing but carry no professional standing. Automated PDF reports typically cost a few hundred dollars and are unsigned. Every fee is published and is agreed in writing before work starts.
Are cheap online business valuations accurate?+
Accuracy is the wrong test, supportability is. A calculator can land near a sensible number and still be worthless for tax purposes, because there is no methodology, evidence or signature behind it. The ATO's market valuation guidance assesses the process that produced the value. An estimate with no process cannot be defended, however close it happens to be.
Can you get a business valuation for free in Australia?+
You can get a free number, a broker appraisal, an online calculator estimate or an accountant's informal figure, but that is generally not a valuation. A valuation is a documented, evidence-led opinion of market value prepared by someone independent and accountable for the conclusion. Free options are not built to that standard, which is why they typically come with wording to the effect that the figure should not be relied upon.
Will the ATO accept a free business valuation?+
The ATO's market valuation guidance expects a documented methodology, the evidence relied upon, and a valuer with appropriate qualifications and independence. Broker appraisals and calculator outputs typically have none of these, so they carry little weight at review. Note that no valuation is 'ATO-approved': the ATO does not pre-approve valuations. What a proper report provides is a documented, supportable position that can be defended if reviewed.
Talk to a valuer
Tell us what you need valued.
A fifteen-minute call confirms the package, the fixed fee and the delivery date, before you commit to anything.
0433 475 518Mon to Fri, 9am to 5:30pm AEST
Send the form and we reply within one business day. No documents needed to start.
Small Business Valuation
$1,495 + GST
For a business with annual turnover under $2 million. Signed and delivered in 2 business days. Delivery time starts once payment and all required information have been received. The fee is fixed in writing before we start and never tied to the outcome.
Larger business? Tell us in the form and we recommend the right package. All fees