calx.io/Redundancy Payout Calculator
Estimate a genuine redundancy payout: NES redundancy weeks, the tax-free amount, ETP tax on the excess, and unused leave, down to the net figure.
Redundancy pay uses your base rate for ordinary hours: no overtime, penalties, bonuses or allowances.
Pre-filled from the National Employment Standards scale for 5 completed years. Awards, agreements and contracts can pay more; edit to match yours.
Estimates only, not financial or tax advice. Models a genuine redundancy for an employee under Age Pension age; payments over pension age, resignations and non-genuine redundancies are taxed differently (no tax-free amount and a whole-of-income cap). Withholding is shown; your final tax settles at assessment. Confirm entitlements with Fair Work and tax with the ATO or your accountant.
Frequently asked questions
How is redundancy pay calculated?
The National Employment Standards set a scale of weeks by years of continuous service: 4 weeks after 1 year, rising to 16 weeks at 9 years, then stepping down to 12 weeks at 10 or more years. It is paid at your base rate for ordinary hours, excluding overtime, penalties, bonuses and allowances. Awards, agreements and contracts can pay more, so the weeks field is editable.
How much of a redundancy payout is tax free?
For a genuine redundancy in 2026-27, the first $13,598 plus $6,801 for each completed year of service is completely tax free. It is not counted as income anywhere, not even for HECS or benefit tests. Anything above that limit becomes an employment termination payment.
How is the rest of the payout taxed?
The excess over the tax-free limit is an ETP, taxed at 32% if you are under 60 or 17% if you are 60 or over, up to the $270,000 ETP cap, and 47% above it (rates include Medicare). Unused annual leave and long service leave are withheld at a flat 32% when the termination is a genuine redundancy.
Who does not get NES redundancy pay?
Employees of small businesses with fewer than 15 employees (in most cases), employees with less than 12 months of service, casuals, fixed-term and seasonal employees whose contract simply ends, and dismissals for serious misconduct. Some industry awards, like building and construction, have their own schemes that pay regardless of business size.
What makes a redundancy genuine for tax purposes?
The job itself must be abolished and you must be under Age Pension age on the day of dismissal. If you are over pension age, resign, or the dismissal is for another reason, there is no tax-free amount and the whole payment is taxed as an ETP with an extra income test. This calculator models the genuine case; get advice for the others.