See exactly what you keep after ATO income tax, Medicare levy, HECS-HELP repayments, and super salary sacrifice.
Australia uses a progressive income tax system — different portions of your income are taxed at different rates. Everyone who is a resident can earn up to $18,200 tax-free (the tax-free threshold). Above that, rates increase from 19% through to 45% for very high earners.
| Taxable Income | Tax Rate | Tax on this Band |
|---|---|---|
| $0 – $18,200 | 0% | Nil |
| $18,201 – $45,000 | 19% | 19c for each $1 over $18,200 |
| $45,001 – $120,000 | 32.5% | $5,092 + 32.5c for each $1 over $45,000 |
| $120,001 – $180,000 | 37% | $29,467 + 37c for each $1 over $120,000 |
| $180,001+ | 45% | $51,667 + 45c for each $1 over $180,000 |
The Medicare levy is an additional 2% of your taxable income, funding Australia's universal healthcare (Medicare). If you earn below $26,000, you may be exempt. Earners between $26,000 and $32,500 pay a reduced levy. Most working Australians pay the full 2%.
The LITO reduces your tax by up to $700 if you earn $37,500 or less. The offset then phases out: at $45,000 it reduces to $325, and completely phases out at $66,667. The ATO applies this automatically — no action needed.
If you have a student debt from university or TAFE, you start repaying it through your tax when your repayment income exceeds $54,435. Repayment rates range from 1% to 10% depending on your income — the ATO collects this alongside your income tax.
Your employer must pay 12% of your ordinary time earnings into your super fund (2025–26 rate), on top of your salary. This is not deducted from your take-home pay — it is an additional cost paid by your employer. You can also make voluntary salary sacrifice contributions to reduce your taxable income.
This calculator's rates assume you're an Australian tax resident who has claimed the tax-free threshold. If you're on a working holiday visa (subclass 417 or 462) or classified as a foreign resident for tax purposes, your actual take-home pay will be noticeably lower — the ATO applies a completely different rate schedule to these groups.
Working holiday makers are taxed at 15% on every dollar earned up to $45,000, regardless of the standard $18,200 tax-free threshold — that threshold simply doesn't apply to this visa category. Above $45,000, ordinary resident marginal rates resume. This means a working holiday maker earning $40,000 for a season of farm or hospitality work pays roughly $6,000 in tax, whereas an Australian resident earning the same amount would pay under $4,300 after the tax-free threshold and LITO. Employers must register with the ATO as a working holiday maker employer to apply this rate correctly — if they withhold at ordinary resident rates instead, the worker will owe the difference at tax time.
If you're working in Australia but classified as a non-resident for tax purposes (a separate test from your visa status, based on the ATO's residency rules around domicile and physical presence), you are taxed from the first dollar at 30% up to $135,000, with higher marginal rates above that — again, no tax-free threshold and no Medicare levy, since non-residents generally aren't eligible for Medicare. Non-residents also cannot access the Low Income Tax Offset. Misclassifying your residency status is one of the most common and costly mistakes for people moving to or from Australia mid-financial-year, since it can swing your effective tax rate by 15 percentage points or more.
Employer super contributions (12%) still apply to working holiday makers and most temporary visa holders performing genuine work in Australia. When you permanently leave Australia, you can claim this back through the Departing Australia Superannuation Payment (DASP) scheme — though DASP payments to working holiday makers are taxed at a flat 65%, a rate specifically legislated to be much higher than ordinary super withdrawal tax, so it's worth factoring into any decision about how much extra to salary sacrifice while on a temporary visa.