Tax as a Working Holiday Maker (WHM)

You are a working holiday maker if you have a visa subclass of either:

• 417 (Working Holiday)

• 462 (Work and Holiday).

If you plan to work in Australia you need a tax file number (TFN). Your TFN is your personal reference number in Australian tax system. You can apply for a TFN online once you have your work visa. You don't have to have a TFN, but without one you pay more tax.

If you work in Australia, tax will be withheld from your pay and you may need to lodge a tax return each year. The requirement to lodge a tax return will depend on how much income you have earned during the year. The Australian income year starts on 1 July and ends on 30 June the following year. If you leave Australia permanently before 30 June, you can lodge your return early.

As a WHM, your tax scale for tax 2019/2020 is as follows:

Taxable Income	Tax Payable
0 to $37,000	15%
$37,001 to $90,000	$5,550 plus 32.5% of income over $37,000
$90,001 to $180,000	$22,775 plus 37% of income over $90,000
$180,000 and over	$56,075 plus 45% of income over $180,000

Your employer also has to pay superannuation for you if you are an eligible employee. When you leave Australia you can apply to have your super paid to you as a departing Australia superannuation payment (DASP). The tax on any DASP made to WHMs on or after 1 July 2017 is 65%.

It does not matter when you held a WHM visa. If you have ever held a 417 or 462 and associated bridging visas and the DASP includes amounts attributable to super contributions made while you held the relevant visa, the DASP WHM tax rate will apply. The DASP WHM tax rate applies to the entire payment, including any super you may have earned while working under a different visa.

You can authorise your tax agent or someone else to apply for your DASP. The person you authorise will be able to act on your behalf and update your information, so consider carefully who you allow to represent you.

Before submitting your DASP application, check with your employer that they have paid all the super they are required to.

If it has been six months or more since you left Australia, your visa has ceased to be in effect and you have not claimed DASP, your super fund will transfer your super money to the ATO as unclaimed super money.

DASP does not form part of your assessable income for Australian tax purposes.

Please don’t hesitate to contact us on info@suezaccounting.com.au if you would like to know more …