On this page (4 sections)
The short answer
Lead Teacher pays $141,365 a year in South Australia government schools from 8 May 2026. After 2026–27 income tax and Medicare that's about $4,031 a fortnight ($105,163 a year), plus $16,964 employer super.
- Gross pay: about $5,419 a fortnight (annual ÷ 26.089).
- With a HELP debt: about $3,609 a fortnight take-home.
- This is the top of the scale we track for SA.
- Agreement: South Australian School and Preschool Education Staff Enterprise Agreement 2024.
Annual salary
$141,365
from 8 May 2026
Take-home a fortnight
$4,031
2026–27 tax, no HELP
Employer super
$16,964
12% a year
Your pay on Lead Teacher: change FTE, HELP or step
⚙Your details
Salary
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Take-home pay fortnightly
$4,045
Gross pay
$5,437
Income tax
$1,284
After the low income tax offset
Medicare levy
$109
Employer super
$652
12.0% paid on top
Where each dollar goes
- Take-home$105,163 (74%)
- Income tax$33,375 (24%)
- Medicare levy$2,827 (2%)
- HECS-HELP$0 (0%)
- Salary sacrifice & packaging$0 (0%)
What your payslip should show
PAYG withheld each fortnight should be about $1,394 (ATO Scale 2, tax-free threshold claimed). Small differences come from rounding and 27-pay years. Your marginal rate is 39% including Medicare, so each extra $1,000 of salary adds about $610 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: South Australian School and Preschool Education Staff Enterprise Agreement 2024, verified 16 October 2026.
Lead Teacher pay after tax
Resident, tax-free threshold claimed, full-time. Marginal rate 39% including Medicare. Your payslip's tax withheld may differ slightly from the year-end figure.
Pro-rata salary, 2026–27 tax, no HELP debt.
Lead Teacher pay over time
Bargaining status: EA 2024 nominally expires about March 2027; final 3% paid May 2026; AEU EA27 campaign under way, no offer yet
How to reach Lead Teacher
Lead Teacher is reached by application or accreditation, not automatic progression. Requires national HALT certification Teachers move up Steps 1 to 8 by annual increment. Step 9 is not automatic: under EA 2024 Schedule 3 Attachment 1 a teacher on Step 8 can apply from one month before completing 207 duty days at Step 8 by submitting a Professional Development Plan, and moves to Step 9 when the plan is accepted or on completing the 207 days. There is no quota and relief teachers (TRTs) are eligible. Above Step 9, Highly Accomplished Teacher and Lead Teacher require national certification (cl. 6.8); AST2 is a legacy rate now used as the Key Teacher Fallback salary. Unregistered staff teaching on Special Authority are paid $74,083. Placement of graduates by qualification sits in the Teachers Award and was not verified; DfE presents Step 1 as the registered-teacher entry rate.
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Should you be on a higher step?
If you have overseas, Catholic, independent, casual or industry experience, check whether it should put you above Lead Teacher, and get a letter to HR drafted.
Check my pay stepFrequently asked questions
How much does a Lead Teacher teacher earn in SA?
What is Lead Teacher after tax?
When does Lead Teacher get a pay rise?
How much super does a Lead Teacher teacher get?
Am I on the right step?
Sources we checked · last verified 2026-10-16
Download the SA teacher pay scale 2026 (PDF)
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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.