On this page (8 sections)
The short answer
Australian government teachers get an annual increment: a move up one step on the classroom scale each year of satisfactory service, until they reach the top. Average increments range from about $4,100 a year in Victoria (under the VGSA 2026 rates from 1 October 2026) to about $6,800 in NSW. Increments are separate from agreement pay rises, so in a good year you get both.
- NSW: a step per 203 days of full-time service; Proficient needed for Step 3.
- ACT: everyone moves on 27 January.
- WA: on your own anniversary date.
- Victoria: one subdivision per 1 May to 30 April cycle, after a performance assessment.
Increments vs pay rises
Increment (step progression)
- You move from one step to the next on the same scale
- Happens once a year until you reach the top
- Depends on service and a satisfactory review
- Worth about $1,800 to $10,000 depending on the step
Pay rise (agreement increase)
- Every step on the scale goes up by a percentage
- Set by an enterprise agreement or award
- Everyone gets it, including teachers at the top
- Recent rises: 3% (NSW Oct 2026), 4.3% (NT Jan 2026)
For example, a NSW teacher whose move from Step 4 to Step 5 fell in late 2026 got both: the 3% rise from 9 October 2026 and an increment worth $7,551. That's why early-career teachers' pay grows much faster than the headline rise. Rises in every state are tracked in the teacher pay rise tracker.
Work out your take-home pay
⚙Your details
Salary
Show results
Take-home pay fortnightly
$2,794
Gross pay
$3,572
Income tax
$707
After the low income tax offset
Medicare levy
$71
Employer super
$429
12.0% paid on top
Where each dollar goes
- Take-home$72,640 (78%)
- Income tax$18,385 (20%)
- Medicare levy$1,858 (2%)
- HECS-HELP$0 (0%)
- Salary sacrifice & packaging$0 (0%)
What your payslip should show
PAYG withheld each fortnight should be about $780 (ATO Scale 2, tax-free threshold claimed). Small differences come from rounding and 27-pay years. Your marginal rate is 32% including Medicare, so each extra $1,000 of salary adds about $680 to take-home.
Estimates for an Australian resident for 2026–27 who claims the tax-free threshold, with no other income, no dependants and private hospital cover not required. Medicare levy uses the 2025–26 low-income thresholds (2026–27 not yet published). Pay data: Crown Employees (Teachers in Schools and Related Employees) Salaries and Conditions Award 2024, verified 16 October 2026.
Increment rules by state
Free calculator
Pay step timeline calculator
See the date of your next increment and what you'll earn on each step until the top of your state's scale.
Find my next incrementWhat each increment is worth
The table below is built from each state's current official scale, starting from the usual graduate step. Each number is the dollar increase from the previous step.
Our arithmetic from the official scales in each state's agreement. QLD uses award rates (arbitration pending). VIC uses the VGSA 2026 rates, approved by the Fair Work Commission on 16 Oct 2026 and back-paid. Under the old VGSA 2022 rates (1 Jul 2025) they were $2,087 · $3,014 · $3,124 · $3,242 · $3,359 · $3,484 · $3,613 · $3,746 · $3,884 · $8,921, average $3,847.
NSW, Victoria and Queensland in detail
NSW has the fewest steps and the steepest climb: Step 1 $92,882 to Step 7 $133,422 in six steps from 9 October 2026, then HA/Lead at $141,997. The Proficient gate between Steps 2 and 3 is strict, because pay depends on keeping your accreditation. See NSW teacher pay.
Victoria has 11 subdivisions and the smallest early increments. Starting salary is 1-1 plus one subdivision for each year of approved experience, including relief teaching in Victorian schools since 2005. Under VGSA 2026, from May 2027 teachers at 2-6 or 3-2 get a 1% top-of-range allowance for 12 months. See Victorian teacher pay.
Queensland runs Band 2 Steps 1 to 4 and Band 3 Steps 1 to 4, then opt-in Senior Teacher ($124,601) after a year at Band 3 Step 4 and Experienced Senior Teacher after two more years. Band 1 is for Permission to Teach holders and interns. See Queensland teacher pay.
WA, SA, Tasmania, the ACT and the NT in detail
WA pays increments on your own anniversary date from 2.1 to 2.9 (eight years), then Senior Teacher 1 by application after 12 months at 2.9. Relief teachers move up a step every 200 days worked. SA moves you annually to Step 8, then Step 9 needs a Professional Development Plan after 207 duty days at Step 8; there's no quota and relief teachers are eligible.
Tasmania has a single 13-level Band 1; most graduates start at Level 5, isolated-school graduates at Level 8. In the 3-year trained and transition streams, Levels 9 and 10 each take two years. The ACT moves every classroom teacher on 27 January, so a graduate who starts mid-year still moves the following January if eligible under the guidelines. The NT counts broken service and 180 days of relief teaching as a year, and has a fast track to CT4.
ACT: first increment for a mid-year starter (fictional)
- Start date
- Term 3, July 2026, on TL1 ($91,396)
- Common increment date
- 27 January 2027
- Move to
- TL2 ($100,006), if eligible under the guidelines
- Increase
- +$8,610 a year
Fictional example. Whether part-year service qualifies for the January increment depends on the Teacher Performance and Development Guidelines; check with the Education Directorate. Rates from 4 Dec 2025; the ACT agreement expired 31 March 2026 and a new deal is being bargained.
Beyond the top step
HALT is the main way to keep climbing without leaving the classroom. Check whether you can apply with the HALT eligibility checker and see what good evidence looks like in HALT evidence examples.
Check your increment was paid
If your increment looks late
- Check your payslip for the step code (Step 4, 2-3, CT5, TL3)
- Work out your eligibility date: anniversary (WA), 27 January (ACT), cycle end (VIC), 203 days of service (NSW)
- Confirm your review or performance plan was signed off
- NSW: check NESA shows your Proficient accreditation if you're at Step 2
- SA Step 9 and WA Senior Teacher: confirm your application was lodged
- Ask your payroll or HR team, then your union, if it's still missing, and ask for it to be back-paid to the due date
Free calculator
Teacher back pay calculator
Work out what you're owed if an increment or pay rise was applied late.
Calculate back payFrequently asked questions
What is a teacher pay increment?
How much is a teacher increment worth?
When do teachers get their increment?
Are teacher increments automatic?
Do relief teachers get increments?
Can an increment be withheld?
Is my increment back-paid if it's late?
Sources we checked · last verified 2026-10-28
- 1.NSW Teachers Salaries and Conditions Award 2024
- 2.Victorian Government Schools Agreement 2022
- 3.Victorian Government Schools Agreement 2026
- 4.QLD DoE salary schedule
- 5.WA Teachers and Administrators General Agreement 2023
- 6.SA School and Preschool Education Staff Enterprise Agreement 2024
- 7.Tasmanian Teachers Agreement 2025
- 8.ACT Teaching Staff Enterprise Agreement 2023-2026
- 9.NT Public Sector Educators' 2024-2027 Enterprise Agreement
About this page
Written and fact-checked by the TeacherPay AU Editorial Team against the enterprise agreements, awards and official pages listed in the sources. It is general information, not personal financial, tax or legal advice. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we'll fix it, usually within a day. See our editorial policy and how we calculate.
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