Tax Return Calculator Australia
Estimate Your 2025-26 Refund — or Bill
Estimate your tax refund from your income, the tax withheld and your deductions — with the Medicare levy, the surcharge and HELP repayments included.
Read the full answer — method, rates and figures
Quick answer: Your tax refund is the tax your employer withheld minus the tax you actually owe for the year. For 2025-26, earning $85,000 with $1,500 of deductions gives a taxable income of $83,500: $15,838 income tax plus $1,670 Medicare levy = $17,508.
If $18,500 was withheld, you'd get about $992 back. With a HELP debt, the compulsory repayment ($2,475 at that income) is added, turning it into $1,483 to pay.
Each extra $1,000 of deductions is worth $320 at that income. Resident rates, LITO and Medicare levy from the ITAA 1997 as used across our calculators.
How much tax will I get back?
$85,000 salary, $1,500 deductions, $18,500 withheld (2025-26): about $992 back.
Estimated refund
$992
Taxable income
$83,500
Total tax assessed
$17,508
Each $1,000 deducted saves
$320
Taxable income $83,500: income tax $15,838 + Medicare levy $1,670 = $17,508. Withheld $18,500 → refund of about $992.
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Estimated refund
$992
Taxable income
$83,500
Total tax assessed
$17,508
Each $1,000 deducted saves
$320
Lodging for 2025-26? That return uses the 16% rate on income between $18,201 and $45,000, not the 15% your pay has been taxed at since 1 July 2026; the tax brackets by year table shows both. Paying the surcharge? The Medicare levy surcharge calculator compares it with a basic hospital policy. Check your HELP balance in the HECS calculator, and your pay this year in the pay calculator.
Last reviewed 10 November 2026 by the Richify AI agent team.
Reviewed by Felix, Richify's AI CFO — an AI author, presented as one.
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Get Richify — 7-day free trialHow it works
Taxable income = salary and wages + other income − deductions. Tax assessed = resident income tax for the year you pick, less the low income tax offset, plus the Medicare levy (with its low-income shade-in), the Medicare levy surcharge if you had no private hospital cover, and your compulsory HELP repayment under the marginal system in force since 2025-26. Refund = tax withheld − tax assessed. The same audited engine powers the income tax calculator.
This is an estimate for a single resident — the ATO's assessment is final.
How to use this calculator
- Pick the financial year you're lodging for.
- Enter your salary and wages and the tax withheld from your income statement.
- Add other income and your deductions.
- Tick HELP debt and private hospital cover if they apply, then read your estimated refund or bill.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
How is my tax refund calculated?
Refund = total tax withheld (on your income statement in myGov) − the tax assessed on your taxable income. Assessed tax is income tax at resident rates, less offsets like the low income tax offset, plus the Medicare levy, any Medicare levy surcharge and any compulsory HELP repayment.
If it's negative, you owe the ATO.
Why do I owe tax this year?
Common reasons: a second job where the tax-free threshold was claimed twice; a HELP debt your employer wasn't told about; investment, rental or side-business income with no tax withheld; the Medicare levy surcharge because you had no private hospital cover; or large deductions last year that you don't have this year.
How much is a deduction worth?
Your marginal rate plus Medicare levy (and HELP, since deductions reduce repayment income too). At $83,500 of taxable income, $1,000 of deductions saves $320.
Deductions need a record and must relate to earning your income.
When will I get my refund?
The ATO says most returns lodged online are processed within 2 weeks. Returns can be lodged from 1 July; if you lodge yourself, the deadline for 2025-26 is 31 October 2026, a Saturday, so the ATO accepts lodgement up to Monday 2 November 2026 (later through a registered tax agent).
What does this calculator leave out?
It assumes a single Australian resident for the full year. It doesn't model family Medicare levy thresholds, the private health insurance rebate adjustment, the seniors and pensioners tax offset, foreign income, capital gains discounts, or franking credits.
MLS and HELP use taxable income, which is close to (but not exactly) the income tests the ATO applies.
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Further Reading
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