From overseas
Your first year
Tax residency, the threshold and your first return.
Your first year here is taxed on the part of it you were resident.
| Question | What the ATO says |
|---|---|
| Are you a resident for tax? | Not the same test as your visa. If you live here you are a resident. If not, you still are if you are here more than half the income year, unless your usual home is overseas and you do not intend to live here. Coming to stay and selling your home overseas usually means you are a resident. |
| The tax-free threshold in your first year | Less than the full $18,200. You get $13,464, plus the rest of the $4,736 pro-rated by the months you were resident, counting the month you arrived. myTax works it out. |
| Not a resident at all | No tax-free threshold: tax on every dollar you earn here. |
| Two jobs | Claim the tax-free threshold from one employer only. |
| Your first return | The income year runs 1 July to 30 June. Lodge by 31 October, best from late July once your income statement is marked tax ready. Link myGov to the ATO first. Tax Help is free on around $70,000 or less. |
Source: ATO, Your tax residency, the 183-day test, the tax-free threshold and myTax 2026.
From overseas
On a temporary visa, the Medicare levy.
If you are not eligible for Medicare for all or part of a year, you can claim an exemption from the 2% Medicare levy for that time.
Medicare levy exemption
Temporary visa holders not eligible for Medicare
Not eligible for Medicare for all or part of a year? A Medicare Entitlement Statement exempts you from the 2% Medicare levy: about $1,500 to $1,800 a year on a nurse’s salary, more for a doctor. You can claim two years back by amending your returns.
Fill in your details above to see your result.
We prepare the application to Services Australia and put the exempt days in your 1 July pack. You send it. A partner who is also not eligible needs their own statement. Source: Services Australia and ATO.