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NT · Assistant Principal

Assistant principal salary in the NT

NT Assistant Principals are paid in the Senior Teacher stream, $145,286 to $196,907 in 2026. How the level is set, teaching load and take-home pay.

✓ Fact-checked against official sources Updated 16 October 2026 3 min read

From

$145,286

Up to

$196,907

Take-home / fortnight

$4,137

Effective

January 2026

On this page (6 sections)
  1. Assistant Principal pay in NT
  2. What an NT Assistant Principal earns
  3. The role and the workload
  4. Assistant Principal or principal?
  5. Applying
  6. FAQs

The short answer

Assistant Principals in NT government schools are paid in the Senior Teacher stream, which runs from $145,286 (ST1) to $196,907 (ST8) from January 2026. The level for each Assistant Principal job is set by job evaluation, so it depends on the school and the role. APs teach up to half a classroom load.

The agreement doesn't publish a separate Assistant Principal salary. Instead, AP positions are classified at a Senior Teacher level. We haven't been able to confirm which ST levels APs typically sit at, so check the classification on the job ad.

Assistant Principal pay in Northern Territory

Annual salaryTake-home / yearTake-home / fortnight
Senior Teacher stream; ST level set by job evaluation; teaching load up to 0.5 of a CT load (cl. 95.11)$145,286 – $196,907$107,554$4,137

Assistant Principals are paid in the Senior Teacher stream ($145,286-$196,907 in 2026). The exact ST level for each AP job is set by job evaluation and is not published per school. Effective 1 January 2026.

What an NT Assistant Principal earns

Take-home across the Senior Teacher range, 2026–27
If the role isSalary (Jan 2026)Take-home a year
ST1$145,286$107,554
ST3$160,531$116,854
ST8$196,907$138,491

After income tax (after LITO) and Medicare, no HECS-HELP. Salaries rise 4.3% from the first full pay period on or after 1 January 2027.

The role and the workload

  • Teaching load: up to 0.5 of a classroom teacher's load (cl. 95.11), compared with 0.75 for other Senior Teachers.
  • Hours: ordinary hours are 36h45m a week, the same as teachers, but leadership work often runs longer.
  • Remote schools: in remote localities the Remote Incentive Allowance, housing and FOIL airfares apply on top.
  • Leave: six weeks' recreation leave plus the 17.5% leave loading, paid each 1 January.

Assistant Principal or principal?

Principal salaries overlap the Senior Teacher range. A small-school principal at PLO1.1 earns $147,068, close to ST1, while large-school principals at PLO7 earn up to $214,369. In a remote community, a small-school principal role can be a quicker step into leadership than an AP role in Darwin. See NT principal pay.

Applying

AP roles are merit-selected. Your application should show leadership of whole-school priorities, staff and data. Use the selection criteria coach, and read how to become a principal if that's your next step.

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Compare take-home at your current step with an AP role at any ST level.

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Frequently asked questions

How much does an assistant principal earn in the NT?
NT Assistant Principals are paid in the Senior Teacher range, $145,286 to $196,907 from January 2026. The exact level depends on the job's classification.
How much do NT Assistant Principals teach?
Up to half (0.5) of a classroom teacher's load, under cl. 95.11 of the agreement.
Is there a deputy principal role in NT schools?
The NT agreement's leadership structure uses Senior Teacher and Principal classifications. Assistant Principals generally fill the deputy role, at an ST level set by job evaluation.
Do NT Assistant Principals get the pay rise in 2027?
Yes. All Senior Teacher salaries rise 4.3% from the first full pay period on or after 1 January 2027.
Where do I find the salary for a specific AP job?
Check the classification (ST1 to ST8) on the job advertisement and match it to the Senior Teacher scale.

Sources we checked · last verified 16 October 2026

  1. 1.NT Public Sector Educators' 2024-2027 EA incl. [2024] FWCA 3775 (FWC AE526566)
  2. 2.Teach in the Territory: Pay and benefits
  3. 3.Teach in the Territory: Employee benefits
  4. 4.OCPE Bulletin 13: NTPS Educators' 2024-2027 EA approved
  5. 5.AEU NT: 2024-27 log of claims outcome report
  6. 6.TRB NT: Fees

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.