Wages
How often will I be paid?
You will get your wage weekly (every week), or once in 2 weeks (fortnightly).
Your employer has to pay tax and superannuation on behalf of you. You can ask for your money from tax every end of financial year (July) and from superannuation fund after you have already left Australia.
Are there any differences in wages for working week days and weekends?
During weekends and holidays wages are usually higher than on working days. The calculation is on average your regular wage multiply by 1.5 for weekends and multiply by 2.5 for public holidays). This rule is not generally applicable for all employers.
What influence the wages?
The average wage in Australia can vary according to:
- the place where you apply for a job (in big cites and city centres you can usually have higher wages)
- the period of the year when you apply for a job (durind holidays season you have a bigger change to ge a better paid job)
- your personal experience, education etc.
See a table with examples of average wages for student jobs here.
What factors can influence my earnings?
According to your student visa conditions, you can work in Australia legally up to 20 hours per week during your course and without any limits in the time between two courses – during your holidays.
It takes usually one month to find a job, and you have one month after you finish the school when you can work without any limits. The gross wage per hour is AU$ 15 on average. The rate of your income tax depends on the length of your stay (see more in the section Tax obligations in Australia).
Can the type of my school influence my income?
The important factor is also the type of your course, as students who study at vocational education and training schools (VET) have usually full-time study only for 36 weeks per year, and have 16 weeks of holidays in a year.
You can also benefit from a combination of English language course and vocational school or university, as you can get from four to eight weeks of holidays in that way, and you can work without 20 hour limits during these holidays.
Here you can see real examples of student's incomes in Australia.