Tax Refund Calculator Australia
Compare the tax withheld from your pay with your assessed tax for 2026-27 and estimate whether a refund or a bill is coming.
Tax Refund Calculator 2026-27
How Is a Tax Refund Calculated?
Four steps, and the withholding credit is the one people forget.
Your refund is the difference between two totals: what was withheld from your pay across the year under PAYG withholding, and what the ATO assesses you actually owe on your income tax. The assessment runs in a fixed order.
First, assessable income minus allowable deductions gives taxable income. Second, tax is calculated on that taxable income using the 2026-27 marginal rates, and the 2% Medicare levy is added. Third, tax offsets such as the low income tax offset come off. Fourth, your total PAYG withholding is applied as a credit against the result.
Credit larger than assessed tax means a refund. Credit smaller means a bill, which the ATO also calls a tax debt. The outcome arrives on your Notice of Assessment. Source: ATO, Your notice of assessment; ATO, Claiming deductions.
Run your own numbers above or see how the withholding side works.
$90,000 Income, $21,000 Withheld
What Is the Break-Even Withholding at Common Incomes?
Assessed 2026-27 tax for a resident with no HECS-HELP debt. Withholding above the total means a refund; below it means a bill.
| Taxable income | Income tax (after LITO) | Medicare levy | Assessed total | Refund if withheld was |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $5,270 | $1,000 | $6,270 | Above $6,270 |
| $60,000 | $8,420 | $1,200 | $9,620 | Above $9,620 |
| $70,000 | $11,520 | $1,400 | $12,920 | Above $12,920 |
| $80,000 | $14,520 | $1,600 | $16,120 | Above $16,120 |
| $90,000 | $17,520 | $1,800 | $19,320 | Above $19,320 |
| $100,000 | $20,520 | $2,000 | $22,520 | Above $22,520 |
| $120,000 | $26,520 | $2,400 | $28,920 | Above $28,920 |
| $150,000 | $36,570 | $3,000 | $39,570 | Above $39,570 |
Computed from the 2026-27 resident rates, the 2% Medicare levy and the low income tax offset (max $700, FY2026-27). Deductions would lower the assessed total and raise a refund. Source: Australian Taxation Office.
Why Was Too Much Tax Withheld?
Over-withholding is built into how the payday system works.
Withholding runs on gross pay, one payer at a time, with no sight of your deductions or offsets. Each of these situations pushes the withholding credit above your final tax, and the difference comes back as a refund.
- Deductions are claimed at return time. Work expenses, and from 2026-27 the $1,000 standard deduction, reduce taxable income at assessment but never reduced your payday withholding.
- Offsets apply at assessment. The low income tax offset (up to $700, FY2026-27) is not built into withholding, so lower earners routinely overpay during the year.
- A second job withheld at the no-threshold rate. Correct practice, but it often overshoots the tax actually owed on that income.
- Part-year work. The schedules annualise each pay. If you worked only part of the year, they assumed a full-year income you never earned.
- A bonus or backpay withheld under ATO Schedule 5. Lump sums can be withheld at up to 47%, above the rate you finally owe. See the bonus tax calculator.
The ATO worked example: Sue holds two jobs in 2025-26 paying $16,000 (threshold claimed, nothing withheld) and $10,000 (no threshold, $1,716 withheld). Her assessed tax on $26,000 is $548 after the low income tax offset, so $1,168 of her withholding comes back. Source: ATO, Multiple jobs or change of job.
Why Was Too Little Tax Withheld?
A bill means the payday estimates undershot your real tax. The ATO lists the usual reasons.
| Cause | What happened |
|---|---|
| Tax-free threshold claimed twice | Two payers each treated your first $18,200 (FY2026-27) as tax-free, so combined withholding ran short all year |
| Untaxed income on the side | Investment income, dividends, rent, capital gains, sole trader or sharing-economy income arrives with no tax withheld |
| Study loan not flagged | No HECS-HELP component was withheld, so the whole compulsory repayment lands at assessment |
| Income rose during the year | A pay rise or extra hours moved you up the scale faster than each single payer could see |
| Medicare levy surcharge applies | Income for MLS purposes passed $105,000 single (FY2026-27) without private hospital cover |
| An offset ended | A tax offset you received last year is no longer available or you no longer qualify |
Condensed from ATO, Why you may receive a tax bill, and the 2026-27 MLS thresholds. To prevent a repeat, the ATO suggests a PAYG withholding variation, voluntary PAYG instalments, or tax prepayments.
The ATO worked example on the bill side: Pierre receives a $30,000 pension and a $30,000 part-time wage in 2025-26, with $8,320 withheld in total. His assessed tax and Medicare levy on $60,000 come to $9,888, so a $1,568 bill follows. Source: ATO, Multiple jobs or change of job.
How Does the $1,000 Standard Deduction Change Refunds?
It is now law, and it works through your return, not your payslip.
From the 2026-27 income year, Australian tax residents who earn income from work can claim a standard deduction of up to $1,000 for work-related expenses without keeping receipts for them. It was enacted through the Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Reform No. 1) Act 2026, and the ATO confirms the measure is now law. You choose it or your actual substantiated expenses, whichever gives the better result.
Two timing points matter for refunds. It is claimed at return time, first on the 2026-27 return lodged from July 2027, and it does not apply to the 2025-26 return being lodged now. And because payday withholding during 2026-27 is not reduced to reflect it, for most eligible workers it shows up as a larger refund rather than larger pays.
A deduction reduces taxable income, so its value depends on your marginal rate. H&R Block (a tax agent, not the ATO) illustrates roughly $150 back at a 15% marginal rate, about $300 at 30%, and up to about $470 at 47% including the Medicare levy. Union and professional fees, income protection premiums, donations and investment expenses remain claimable on top. Source: ATO, Standard deduction for work-related expenses.
Which Year Are You Checking, and When Is It Due?
Two different years are live right now. Keep them apart.
This calculator estimates the 2026-27 year, which started 1 July 2026 and is lodged from July 2027. The return due now is for 2025-26, a year that used a 16% first bracket rate, a $67,000 HELP repayment threshold and no standard deduction. The same income and withholding produce a different result for each year, so do not check a 2025-26 refund against 2026-27 maths.
| Milestone | Date | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Income statements finalised | By 14 July | Employers mark STP data as Tax ready. Wait for this before lodging |
| Pre-fill complete | Late July | The ATO loads data from employers, banks and health funds. Its advice: the best time to lodge is from late July |
| Self-lodge deadline, 2025-26 return | 31 Oct 2026 | The myTax due date if you lodge your own return |
| Tax agent program dates | Up to 15 May 2027 | Concessional dates for agent clients. You must be on the agent’s books before 31 October |
| Refund processing, myTax | About 2 weeks | Paper returns take up to 50 business days; manual reviews up to 30 calendar days |
| 2026-27 return opens | July 2027 | The year this calculator estimates, due 31 October 2027 self-lodged |
Sources: ATO, Access your income statement; ATO media release, Don’t lodge yet; ATO, Lodge your tax return online with myTax; ATO registered agent lodgment program.
Who Uses This Calculator?
Anyone whose payslip totals and final tax might not line up.
Second-job workers
One payer on the threshold, one on the no-threshold rate. This page shows the year-end net effect, and the second job calculator splits it by payer.
Bonus and backpay earners
Schedule 5 withholding on a lump sum often overshoots. Comparing the withheld total with your assessed tax shows how much is coming back.
Part-year workers
Started mid-year, took unpaid leave, or left a job. Annualised withholding assumed income you never earned, and this estimate shows the correction.
Budget planners
A refund is not a windfall, it is timing. Knowing the likely number in advance beats guessing in October.
Common Tax Refund Mistakes
The ways a refund estimate goes wrong.
Mixing up the years
The return due 31 October 2026 is for 2025-26, at 16% in the first bracket. This page runs 2026-27 rates. The same withholding gives different answers for each year.
Counting the $1,000 deduction now
It applies from 2026-27 and is first claimable from July 2027. It cannot boost the refund on the 2025-26 return being lodged now.
Lodging in the first week of July
Before income statements are Tax ready and pre-fill lands in late July, early lodgers are the ones who amend later. The deadline is months away.
Forgetting untaxed income
Interest, dividends, capital gains and side income carry no withholding. They raise assessed tax and shrink the refund this page estimates from wages alone.
If your year includes multiple income sources with foreign residency, a trust, or a redundancy interacting with an ETP cap, that is beyond a calculator. A registered tax agent is worth the money on those returns.
Tax Refund FAQ
Common questions about refunds and tax bills.
Sources for This Page
- ATO, Multiple jobs or change of job: tax-free threshold rules and the Sue and Pierre worked examples (2025-26 figures).
- ATO, Why you may receive a tax bill; ATO, Your notice of assessment (processing timeframes).
- ATO, Lodge your tax return online with myTax: 31 October due date, most refunds within 2 weeks.
- ATO, Access your income statement (employers finalise STP by 14 July); ATO media release, Don’t lodge yet (pre-fill complete late July).
- ATO, Registered agent lodgment program, individuals and trusts: concessional dates to 15 May 2027.
- ATO, Standard deduction for work-related expenses (page last updated 26 June 2026); Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Reform No. 1) Act 2026.
- H&R Block, $1,000 standard deduction explained (non-ATO, marginal-rate value illustration only).
- ATO, Medicare levy surcharge income thresholds and rates (2026-27 tiers).
Last verified 23 July 2026.