Taxable wages for payroll tax
Find out what wages and other payments you need to include when you calculate your payroll tax.
When you register for payroll tax and lodge returns, you will need to know what wages are taxable.
‘Taxable wages’ are wages paid by an employer for an employee that are taxable in Queensland and not exempt from payroll tax.
Gross salary and wages include annual leave, sick leave and long service leave. This is the total before any deductions (e.g. PAYG, child support) have been applied.
The table below has information on the items you may need to include when calculating your taxable wages.
If identified as taxable, include these payments when calculating your taxable wages.
When you lodge your:
- periodic return, include items that are taxable as part of your Queensland taxable wages
- annual return
- include items that are taxable in the corresponding fields as part of your Queensland taxable wages
- enter non-taxable and exempt items in the relevant fields as part of your Queensland non-taxable wages.
| Item | Taxable, not taxable or exempt |
|---|---|
| Accident pay | Taxable if you pay:
|
| Accommodation allowance | Taxable for the part of the allowance over the exempt rate if used for overnight accommodation |
| Adoption leave | Exempt (up to 14 weeks) |
| Allowances | Taxable under certain conditions |
| Annual leave | Taxable |
| Annual leave paid on termination | Taxable |
| Apprentice wages | Exempt under certain conditions |
| Bonuses | Taxable |
| Car parking fringe benefits | Not taxable |
| Charitable institutions | Exempt if:
|
| Clothing allowance | Taxable |
| Commissions | Taxable |
| Community Development Employment Project employees (administered under the Community Development Program) | Exempt if wages are paid to an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person employed under this program |
| Consular staff | Exempt |
| Contractor payments | Taxable under certain conditions |
| Defence force payments | Exempt |
| Directors fees | Taxable |
| Dividends (company share) | Not taxable |
| Domestic and family violence (DFV) leave | Taxable |
| Employment agency personnel | Taxable under certain conditions
Where taxable, employment agent pays payroll tax |
| Entertainment allowance | Taxable |
| First aid allowance | Taxable |
| Fringe benefits | Taxable, unless it is a:
|
| Genuine redundancy payments | Not taxable if exempt from income tax |
| Gifts | Taxable unless not related to employment services |
| GST | Not taxable |
| Holiday pay | Taxable |
| JobKeeper |
|
| Jury service | Taxable |
| Leave loading | Taxable |
| Living away from home allowance | Taxable in accordance with the Fringe Benefits Tax Assessment Act 1986 (Cwlth) |
| Local authorities or councils | Exempt unless the wages are being paid in connection with the following activities:
Wages for other activities will be subject to a payroll tax equivalent |
| Long service leave | Taxable |
| Make-up pay | Taxable |
| Meal allowance | Taxable |
| Military leave | Exempt |
| Motor vehicle allowance | Taxable over the exempt component when you calculate the number of kilometres an employee travels for business purposes in their own car |
| Non-cash benefits | Taxable if they form or are defined as wages |
| Options | Taxable |
| Overtime | Taxable |
| Overtime meal allowance | Taxable |
| Paid parental leave scheme (funded by Australian Government) | Not taxable |
| Parental leave | Exempt (up to 14 weeks) |
| Partnership drawings in respect of partnership profits | Not taxable. See Public Ruling PTA016. |
| Pay in lieu of notice | Taxable if the employee must include it for income tax purposes |
| Public hospitals | Exempt where the employee performs duties that are usually performed in connection with a public hospital |
| Queensland Government departments (per s.8 of the Financial Accountability Act 2009) | Exempt unless paid by a commercialised business unit included in the list of significant business activities under section 39(4) of the Queensland Competition Authority Act 1997 |
| Queensland hospital and health services (per s.17 of the Hospital and Health Boards Act 2011) | Exempt for hospital and health services established under the Hospital and Health Boards Act |
| Redundancy contributions to Qleave or an approved fund | Not taxable, as long as the payment does not constitute a fringe benefit
Approved redundancy funds include:
|
| Redundancy payments | Taxable under certain conditions |
| Reimbursements | Not taxable unless a fringe benefit
An expense payment fringe benefit may arise where an employer:
These expenses may be business or private expenses, or both |
| Relocation allowance | Taxable |
| Salary sacrifice arrangement | Taxable
If in exchange for fringe benefits, the fringe benefits’ grossed-up value is taxable. Otherwise, the entire sacrificed amount is taxable |
| Shares | Taxable |
| Sick leave | Taxable |
| Subcontractors | Taxable under certain conditions |
| Superannuation contributions and superannuation guarantee charge | Taxable for an employee or non-employee director |
| Telephone allowance | Taxable |
| Termination payments | Taxable
Exempt
|
| Tool allowance | Taxable |
| Trainee wages | Exempt under certain conditions |
| Uniform allowance | Taxable |
| Union representatives or board members | Taxable if:
|
| Volunteer worker leave | Exempt for:
|
| Workers’ compensation payments | Not taxable for:
|
| Workforce retention bonus (residential care and home care) | Taxable |
Last updated: 8 August 2024