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Summary of Feature Request

Please introduce a dedicated Trading Name field within XPM and make this field searchable, reportable, exportable, and available as a selectable column in client list views. The legal/client name should remain distinct and continue to be used for tax and BAS lodgement workflows. Since XPM and Xero are increasingly using a unified client record, accurate client master data is more important than ever.

Business Problem

Australian accounting and bookkeeping practices frequently work with clients whose trading names differ from their legal entity names.

Examples include:

Sole Traders
Legal Name: John Michael Smith
Trading Name: Smith Plumbing

Companies
Legal Name: Smith Holdings Pty Ltd
Trading Name: Smith Plumbing

Trusts
Legal Name: The Trustee for the Smith Family Trust
Trading Name: Smith Plumbing

For tax, BAS and ATO-related processes, the legal taxpayer name must be retained as the primary client name to ensure accurate matching of ATO obligations, reports, and lodgement. ATO client data and related reporting are based on legal taxpayer identifiers rather than trading names.

However, practice staff often know and refer to clients by their trading name rather than their legal name. Additionally, when clients phone the practice, they say something akin to "Hi, I'm John from Smith Plumbing" but since trading names are not currently searchable staff who do not know the legal name will not be able to assist the client without inconveniencing the client by asking several follow up questions just to find their records.

This creates a conflict between our practice's compliance requirements (legal entity name) and operational usability (trading name).

Current Limitation

Currently, firms must choose between:

Option 1: Client Name = Legal Name

Pros
Supports tax and BAS workflows
Aligns with ATO records
Reduces compliance risk

Cons
Difficult for staff to locate clients
Trading name is not visible in client list views
Trading name is not searchable as a custom field or as an additional contact

Option 2: Client Name = Trading Name

Pros
Easy to find for staff and clients

Cons
Creates inconsistency with legal entity records
Potential confusion between tax and BAS workflows
Reduced confidence when matching client records to ATO data resulting in significant operational inefficiencies

Requested Enhancements

Dedicated Trading Name Field: Add a separate field for trading name that is independent from Client/Legal Name

Global Search Support: Allow searches using wither legal name, trading name, TFN, or ABN/ACN. Searching wither John Smith or Smith {Plumbing should return the same client record.

Client List Columns: Allow firms to display both legal name AND trading name without opening the client record.

Reporting and Exporting: Make trading name available in client exports, report builder, client reports, API endpoints, and practice reporting tools.

Integrations and Unified Client Record Support: Ensure the Trading Name Field is supported throughout XPM, Xero HQ, and Xero Tax as these products increasingly rely on a shared client record. This means that the Trading/Legal Name field in Xero should be separated into Legal Name and Trading Name as these are not interchangeable in a significant number of cases.

Expected Benefits

Improved client search and identification
Better data quality
Reduced staff and client frustration
Greater consistency across tax and bookkeeping work
Preservation of ATO-aligned legal names
Reduced risk of rejected tax returns of BAS lodgments due to incorrect client names

This feature request allows firms to maintain legally accurate records while still operating using the business name that staff and clients commonly recognise. We are not asking Xero to change tax workflows. Rather, we are asking Xero to support the very common Australian practice-management requirement of keeping legal entity names for compliance purposes while displaying trading names for day-to-day usability.

We would appreciate being updated as you consider our request and on the outcome.