The Editor’s Desk

Welcome to the 2023-2024 Financial Year and lots of changes...

Effective from 1st July 2023:

Age Pension Age. If you were born on or after 1 January 1957, you must now be 67 years to be eligible for Age Pension.

Parental Leave Dad and Partner Pay are combining into one payment and increasing from 90 days (18 weeks) to 100 days (20 weeks) with a combined family income limit $350,000.

National Minimum Wage Increase to $882.80 per week or $23.23 per hour. This increase aims to ensure fair remuneration for employees across various industries and to support economic growth.

Award Minimum Wages In addition to the National Minimum Wage, award minimum wages have also been raised by 5.75% as part of the Annual Wage Review and aims to maintain equitable pay rates for employees covered by specific industry awards.

Superannuation (Super) Guarantee Rate from 10.5% to 11%. This means that employers are required to contribute a minimum of 11% of their employees' ordinary time earnings to their superannuation fund, helping individuals secure their financial future.

The Special Category Visa (SCV) all SCV holders will be permanent residents (for citizenship purposes only) so it will not affect eligibility for citizenship. If a New Zealand citizen enters Australia holding a permanent visa with a valid travel facility, they do not need an SCV upon entry into Australia. Any child born in Australia on or after 1 July 2022 to an SCV holder may automatically acquire Australian citizenship at birth.

Student Visa Holders work restrictions have been reinstated for student visa holders, limiting their work hours to 48 hours per fortnight. This adjustment aims to strike a balance, enabling students to prioritise their studies while also providing them with valuable work opportunities to contribute to Australia’s workforce requirements.

Rental Relief Queensland legislation limits rent increase frequency to once every 12 months. Disaster Ready Fund (DRF) $1 billion over the next 5 years to improve Australia’s recovery and response capacity.

The Queensland Government 2023 Budget changes are summarised on page 28. I hope our readers are positively effected by these changes.

Steven Paull

JP (Qual) President