Payroll changes from 1 January 2025

Employers with 2024-25 taxable Australian wages of $2.5 million or less are eligible for the waiver.

For grouped employers, if your group’s 2024-25 taxable Australian wages are $2.5 million or less, the group will be eligible for the waiver. Only the Designated Group Employer (DGE) will be able to claim the waiver in the Group Annual Return.

All other employers must continue to pay payroll tax as per normal.

Prior to 1 January 2025, you should estimate the 2024-25 taxable Australian wages of your business (that is, the taxable Australian wages you are likely to pay between 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025).

If you lodge monthly returns

If your wages, or where grouped your group’s total wages, for this period are likely to equal $2.5 million or less you will need to be switched from being a monthly lodger to an annual lodger from 1 January 2025.

To do this you must let the Territory Revenue Office (TRO) know by sending an email to ntrevenue@nt.gov.au declaring that you believe your, or your group’s, 2024-25 taxable Australian wages will be $2.5 million or less. In some cases you may be asked to provide additional supporting evidence.

If deemed eligible, a revenue officer will be in contact to confirm that you will be placed on an annual lodgement frequency from 1 January 2025 after your December 2024 return has been lodged and paid.

You will still need to lodge your 2024-25 annual return.

If the annual return confirms that your taxable Australian wages were $2.5 million or less:

• TRO will formally waive your payroll tax liability for wages paid or payable for the period 1 January 2025 to 30 June 2025
• when you lodge your annual return (or if you are the DGE, the group annual return) in INTRA, you will be asked to separately declare for the period 1 January 2025 to 30 June 2025:
  • your taxable Australian wages and
  • NT taxable wages
• TRO will use these to calculate your waiver and apply it to your return. You will then be contacted by TRO with details of your tax position.

If the taxable Australian wages in the annual return or group annual return are above $2.5 million:

• you will not receive a waiver for wages paid or payable for the period 1 January 2025 to 30 June 2025, and payroll tax for the full year will need to be paid.

Please note that any payroll tax liability incurred between 1 January 2025 and 30 June 2025 will continue to exist until formally waived by TRO. We cannot waive your liability until we have received your annual return and have all required information.

If you already only lodge annual returns

Please lodge your annual return as normal. Your waiver will be determined as set out above.

No. Group members are only eligible for the waiver if the group’s taxable Australian wages together are $2.5 million or below.

For grouped employers, the waiver will be calculated and applied to the group annual return lodged by the DGE at the end of the financial year.

The DGE of your group should email TRO at ntrevenue@nt.gov.au declaring that they believe the group’s 2024-25 taxable Australian wages will be $2.5 million or below. In some cases they may be asked to provide additional supporting evidence.

If deemed eligible, a revenue officer will be in contact with each group member to confirm that they will be placed on an annual lodgement frequency from 1 January 2025 after all members have lodged and paid their December 2024 return.

The waiver will be calculated and applied to the group annual return lodged by the DGE at the end of the financial year.

Yes. Any amount you pay towards a payroll tax liability incurred between 1 January 2025 and 30 June 2025 will be refunded once confirmed by TRO as part of the annual return process. Annual returns are to be lodged and paid by 21 July 2025.

Your estimate must be based on reasonable evidence. If your actual 2024-25 wages exceed $2.5 million, but you can provide TRO with reasonable evidence to support your estimate, you will still need to pay the unpaid tax but you will not have to pay any penalty tax or interest.

For example, if you based your estimate on past wages data, but received an unexpected contract during the waiver period that pushed your taxable Australian wages over $2.5 million, this will be accepted as reasonable.

No. Taxpayers with taxable Australian wages above $2.5 million per annum must continue to pay payroll tax as normal in accordance with the legislation in force prior to 1 July 2025.

After 1 July 2025, employers with wages between $2.5 million and $7.5 million will benefit from an increased annual deduction.

No. Apprentice and trainee wages are not exempt until 1 July 2025 and are taxable wages until this date. If you are eligible for the waiver, these wages will be included in the waiver calculation.

No. You are required to remain registered and lodge and pay all required returns for the 2024-25 year.

Once you have lodged your Annual Return and believe that you will pay taxable Australian wages of $2.5 million or less in 2025-26, you can apply to cancel your registration then.

The $2.5 million threshold only applies from 2025-26 onwards.

Yes. For 2024-25 you are required to register for and pay payroll tax in the NT if you employ in the Territory and your taxable Australian wages are greater than $1.5 million.

If you have taxable Australian wages of $2.5 million or less in 2024-25 you may receive a waiver for the period 1 January 2025 to 30 June 2025, but you still need to register.