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Employee wages and payroll tax in Victoria 

Services provided wholly in Victoria

When an employee provides services wholly in Victoria in a calendar month, payroll tax is paid in Victoria on the wages of that employee. 

Services provided in more than one jurisdiction

A four-tiered test (the nexus provisions), which must be applied in sequence, is used to determine a payroll tax liability when the employee provides services:

  • in more than 1 Australian jurisdiction in a calendar month, or
  • in 1 or more Australian jurisdictions and partly overseas in a calendar month.

This test uses the location of the employee’s principal place of residence (PPR) as a starting point and can take into account other factors related to the employer’s business:

  1. Payroll tax is payable in the jurisdiction where the employee is based. This is where their PPR is located for the relevant month. 
  2. If an employee is not based in any Australian jurisdiction during the relevant month, payroll tax is payable in the jurisdiction where the employer is based. This is where they have their Australian Business Number (ABN) address. If the employer does not have a registered ABN address, or has 2 or more ABN addresses in different jurisdictions, payroll tax is payable in the Australian jurisdiction where the employer has their principal place of business. 
  3. If neither the employee nor the employer are based in Australia, payroll tax is payable in the Australian jurisdiction where the wages are paid or payable in that calendar month. If wages are paid or payable in multiple Australian jurisdictions, payroll tax is paid in the jurisdiction where the largest proportion of wages is paid. If wages are paid by the employer into the employee's bank account, the wages are deemed to be paid in the jurisdiction in which the employee holds their bank account. 
  4. If neither the employee nor the employer are based in Australia, and wages are not paid in Australia, a payroll tax liability arises in Victoria if the services are mainly performed in Victoria in that calendar month (that is, the actual time worked in Victoria during that month is greater than 50%). 

If, after applying the nexus provisions, you are still unsure about whether you should be paying payroll tax in Victoria, contact us on 13 21 61.

Last modified: 8 December 2023
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