Australian government's revenue in the year ending June 2013 will be A$12 billion less than previously expected, reports said citing a text of speech to be delivered by Prime Minister Julia Gillard on Monday.
"This unusually low revenue, which wasn't forecast even a few months ago, creates a significant fiscal gap over the budget period," Gillard said.
"The amount of tax revenue the government has collected so far this financial year is already A$7.5 billion less than was forecast last October," she was quoted as saying.
The government is due to present its annual budget on May 14.
Treasurer and Deputy Prime Minister Wayne Swan has already made it clear that the government may not reach its goal of returning to a budget surplus this fiscal year due to lower-than-expected revenue.
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