Now that the revised stage 3 tax cuts have passed all stages of Parliament and received Royal Assent, the new rates are law and will apply from 1 July 2024. While the revised rates won’t apply for the current financial year, it is prudent to understand the changes to be able to plan for the future more effectively. Depending on an individual’s annual income, the changes will affect them differently. This article will look at how these revised rates will affect individuals earning $67,600 (median income extrapolated from the latest ABS data), $98,176 (average income extrapolated from the latest AWOTE data), and $180,000 (what the media have dubbed as “rich”).

For the 2023-24 income year (ie current year), individuals earning $67,600 will be expected to pay around $12,437 in tax. With the new tax rates coming in for the 2024-25 income year, assuming the individual is earning the same amount, they will be paying $11,068 in tax, a tax saving of around $1,369 per year or around $26 per week.

Individuals earning $98,176 annually will have a tax bill of around $22,374 for the 2023-24 income year. However, this will drop to $20,240 when the new rates come into force for the 2024-25 year, leading to a tax saving of around $2,133 or $41 per week. Similarly, those earning $180,000 will expect to see a tax saving of $3,729 or $71 per week (tax of $51,667 for 2023-24 vs $47,938 in 2024-25).

These revised tax cut changes will also flow through to the tax rates for foreign residents and working holiday makers. For foreign residents the changes are as follows:
2023-24 2024-25 $0-120,000 – 32.5% $0-$135,000 – 30% $120,001-$180,000 – $39,000 + 37% of excess over $120,000 $135,000-$190,000 – $40,500 + 37% of excess over $135,000 $180,001+ – $61,200 + 45% of excess over $180,000 $190,001+ – $60,850 + 45% of excess over $190,000
For working holiday makers, the changes are as follows:
2023-24 2024-25 $0-$45,000 – 15% $0-$45,000 – 15% $45,001-$120,000 – $6,750 + 32.5% of excess over $45,000 $45,001-$135,000 – $6,750 + 30% of excess over $45,000 $120,001-$180,000 – $31,125 + 37% of excess over $120,000 $135,001-$190,000 – $33,750 + 37% of excess over $135,000 $180,001+ – $53,325 + 45% of excess of $180,000 $190,001+ – $54,100 + 45% of excess of $190,000
It should be remembered these revised tax cuts were introduced as a cost-of-living relief measure by the government to put more money back in the pockets of Australian workers so they can deal with recent skyrocketing inflation. However, by giving a proportional tax cut to working holiday makers and foreign residents the government is banking on more spending from that segment which will boost the economy overall.

To provide further help to lower income earners, and in association with the revised tax cuts, the government has also lifted low-income Medicare levy thresholds for eligible singles, families, seniors and pensioners to apply for the 2023-24 income year (ie current income year) meaning more low-income earners can avoid paying the Medicare levy of 2% on top of their tax or pay a reduced amount of levy.