Payroll Tax Calculator

Select the State and Reporting Period

This payroll tax calculator estimates the 2025-26 annual liability for an employer in any Australian state or territory. Select the jurisdiction where the wages are taxable. Enter the annual totals, even when employment covers only part of the year.

The same wages produce different liabilities because each jurisdiction sets its own threshold and rate. Western Australia reduces its deduction as Australian wages increase. Victoria phases out its deduction and adds surcharges for larger payrolls. Tasmania taxes wages through two marginal bands.

The ACT uses separate half-year calculations where annual Australian group wages exceed $150 million. Enter the second-half figures when those fields appear. This estimate does not calculate monthly instalments, a final return after a group change or another financial year.

Select Victoria or Queensland from the state menu and use the 2025-26 annual wage totals. This estimate uses the figures you enter and does not read an employer’s revenue-office account.

Queensland’s full-year deduction starts at $1,300,000 and reduces by $1 for each $7 of Australian wages above that threshold. Queensland Revenue Office (QRO) publishes separate payroll tax calculators for periodic and annual returns. The estimate here is annual and excludes payments already made.

Wages and Group Deductions

Enter this employer’s taxable state wages separately from interstate wages. Start with the payroll-tax wage reconciliation, including taxable employer superannuation and fringe benefits where applicable. Exclude exempt payments before entering the totals.

If the employer belongs to a payroll-tax group, add the other members’ wages in the group settings. The designated group employer claims the deduction once. An ordinary member receives no deduction here. The group must exceed its applicable wage threshold before payroll tax is payable. This estimate assumes the group stays unchanged and excludes transfers of an unused deduction between members.

Count days employed anywhere in Australia for the employer or group. A part-year employer receives a smaller deduction. For example, the NSW threshold falls from $1,200,000 to $604,932 for 184 of 365 days, before any interstate allocation.

For NT groups, the calculator estimates annual tax for all group members together. A Queensland designated employer’s result includes that employer’s payroll tax and the whole group’s annual mental health levy. An ordinary Queensland member’s estimate excludes the levy reconciled by the designated employer.

A Worked Employer Example

A fictional employer pays $1,500,000 in taxable NSW wages for the full 2025-26 year. It has no interstate wages and belongs to no payroll-tax group. The calculator applies a $1,200,000 deduction, leaving $300,000 subject to payroll tax.

At 5.45%, the employer’s estimated annual payroll tax is $16,350. Payments already made reduce the amount still owing separately. PAYG withholding belongs to employees’ income tax and does not reduce the employer’s payroll-tax wage total or this liability.

Check Before Lodging

Reconcile the annual wage totals and payments already made before working out the final balance. Monthly deductions and estimates can differ from the deduction established in the annual reconciliation. This calculator estimates the liability before those payments.

Use the applicable revenue office’s rules for wage classification, interstate nexus, contractor exemptions and group changes. The estimate excludes rebates, waivers and special industry concessions. Victoria’s regional rate requires confirmed eligibility. The Queensland regional discount is excluded. Queensland estimates use whole-dollar wage and deduction formula amounts.

Use Revenue NSW’s threshold rules, WA’s calculation guide or your jurisdiction’s guidance when reconciling an assessment. For registration and preparing the return, follow the payroll tax preparation guide.

Victorian Payroll Tax

For Victorian payroll tax, select Victoria and the supported 2025-26 annual period. Enter the employer’s taxable Victorian wages separately from interstate wages. Use the group settings for the designated employer or another member, with other members’ wages entered separately.

A full-year employer paying wages only in Victoria has a maximum $1,000,000 deduction. The deduction phases out as annual Australian wages rise from $3,000,000 to $5,000,000. Interstate wages and part-year employment reduce the available deduction. The State Revenue Office’s threshold rules explain the allocation.

The standard rate is 4.85%. Select the regional setting only when the employer qualifies. Larger payrolls can also attract surcharges, which the calculator shows separately. Keep the same employer and group settings throughout the annual estimate.