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NSW Health does not have one savings-sharing rule for every employee. Eligible staff covered by the HSU change receive 100% of the tax savings from 1 July 2024. The Ministry's FAQ excludes joint HSU/ASMOF classifications. Check your award and ask payroll for the actual benefit, total salary deduction, reportable amount and fees before comparing the offer.
Start with your award, not a colleague's percentage
NSW Health announced the move to 100% of tax savings for eligible HSU-covered staff in October 2024, effective from 1 July 2024. The Ministry's November 2024 FAQ explains the eligible change from a 70% employee share and excludes joint HSU/ASMOF classifications. This does not establish the same entitlement for nurses, doctors or every health employee.
Your award and payroll quote should identify the employee share, any employer share and administration costs. If the payslip still shows an employer share, ask payroll whether your classification qualifies for the change. Do not infer eligibility from your hospital, job title or a provider's general example.
Two different meanings of 100%
Clause 51 of the Public Health System Nurses' and Midwives' (State) Award 2025, dated 15 May 2026, refers to the NSW Health salary packaging policy. Its wording allowing salary sacrifice up to 100% of salary is a limit on the total arrangement. It does not say nurses receive 100% of the tax saving.
The same clause allows the packaged benefits, employer share and combined administration costs to be deducted before tax. That is why the bill amount alone may not match the deduction shown in the offer. Compare every quote component, and ask which deductions are before tax and which are after tax.
| What the percentage describes | What to check |
|---|---|
| Employee share of tax savings | Your award and eligibility for the HSU change |
| Maximum salary available to sacrifice | The arrangement limit in the relevant award |
| Employer share and administration costs | The amounts and tax treatment in your quote |
The hospital cap is not $17,000 of bills
The hospital exemption uses a $17,000 grossed-up threshold. It is not a universal $17,000 cash allowance. The current policy gives an example of about $9,009 in actual benefits using the lower gross-up rate. Benefit type and GST treatment can change the conversion.
Keep three numbers separate: the bills paid for you, the total salary taken out of payroll and the reportable benefits amount on the income statement. Your provider must establish the eligible benefit and available cap. A calculator cannot confirm eligibility by applying one headline number.
Why a $9,000 benefit can have a larger payroll deduction
This comparison uses two fictional quotes for the same $90,000 salary and $9,000 of bills. Quote A takes $9,000 from salary before tax. Quote B takes $10,500, including a chosen extra $1,500 of pre-tax charges. Both use the same $16,981.20 reportable benefit, HELP and no hospital cover. There is no extra post-tax fee in either row.
These are illustrations of quote structure, not NSW Health provider prices or a calculation of any particular employer-sharing percentage. They show why the larger total deduction must be used when estimating the cash left in payroll.
Quote B leaves $795.00 less annual value than Quote A after recalculating tax and HELP. The difference is smaller than the extra $1,500 deduction because that deduction also changes the tax and repayment calculation. Simply subtracting a fee from a headline tax saving would miss that change.
| Annual amount | Quote A | Quote B |
|---|---|---|
| Total pre-tax salary deduction | $9,000.00 | $10,500.00 |
| Taxable income | $80,000.00 | $78,500.00 |
| HELP repayment | $4,117.98 | $3,892.98 |
| Payroll cash after annual tax and HELP | $60,762.02 | $59,967.02 |
| Payroll cash plus bills paid | $69,762.02 | $68,967.02 |
| Improvement against no packaging | $1,682.82 | $887.82 |
Both examples use a full-year single resident, an eligible $1,000 standard work deduction, salary excluding employer super and ordinary Medicare. Baseline annual cash without packaging is $68,079.20. There are no other income items or charges. These are annual liability examples, not a payslip forecast.
Check the two calendars and any change of job
The FBT year runs from 1 April to 31 March. Your income-tax year runs from 1 July to 30 June. Ask which FBT year a new deduction uses, what you have already packaged in that year and what must be disclosed if you change assignments or employers.
Ask how unused deductions, reimbursement timing and fees are handled if you leave or reduce hours. Then check the reportable amount expected on the income statement and whether more HELP withholding is needed. A repayment-income estimate belongs beside the quote, not as an afterthought at tax time.
The active NSW Health policy remains PD2018_044, published in December 2018 and marked for review. Its old worked tax figures should not be treated as a current take-home forecast. We use current 2026-27 rules for the separate illustrations above.
Common questions
Do NSW Health nurses receive all the tax savings?
Do not assume that from the HSU announcement. Check the current award, your classification and the payroll quote. The nurses' award reference to sacrificing up to 100% of salary is not the same as a 100% employee share of savings.
Can casual NSW Health staff salary package?
The policy has employment and agency eligibility conditions. Casual access can depend on the agency's discretion and working pattern. Ask payroll to confirm eligibility before relying on a benefit amount.
Can I use the not-for-profit calculator for my NSW Health quote?
Only when the quote matches its assumptions. That tool pays the entered benefit in full and treats its fee as post-tax. A NSW quote with employer sharing or extra pre-tax costs needs those components modelled separately.
Sources you can check
Sources checked for this page on 3 October 2026. Statistics keep their own measurement dates.
- NSW Health: salary packaging policy PD2018_044, active document, sections 1 to 3
- NSW Health announcement: eligible HSU salary packaging change, 30 October 2024
- NSW Ministry of Health: HSU 100% savings FAQ, updated November 2024
- Public Health System Nurses' and Midwives' Award 2025: clause 51, dated 15 May 2026
- Fringe Benefits Tax Assessment Act: current 1 July 2026 compilation, sections 5B and 57A
- ASIC Moneysmart: Australian resident income tax rates, including 2026-27
- 2026 tax reform Act: standard work deduction, Schedule 4
- 2026-27 HELP repayment indexation: official Gazette notice
- PrivateHealth.gov.au: Medicare levy surcharge income and hospital cover