Who should use this declaration
Complete this declaration if you want to:
- advise your payer that you have become, or ceased to be, an Australian resident for tax purposes
- claim or discontinue claiming the tax-free threshold
- advise your payer of your Higher Education Loan Program (HELP), VET Student Loan (VSL), Financial Supplement (FS), Student Start-up Loan (SSL) or Trade Support Loan (TSL) repayment obligations, or that you have repaid your loan in full
- claim or vary your entitlement to a tax offset (including the seniors and pensioners tax offset – SAPTO).
You must have completed a Tax file number declaration with your current payer before completing a Withholding declaration.
If you give the wrong information, you may have insufficient amounts withheld from your payments and you may have a large tax debt at the end of the income year.
How to get this form
You can get this form by either:
Easier online
It's fast and easy to complete your Withholding declaration when you link to ATO online services through myGovExternal Link..
Sign into myGovExternal Link and go to your linked ATO online services. The online forms can be used for employment and non-employment related payments.
For more information on how to complete the form online, see Access and complete employment forms in ATO online.
Paper copy
To get a paper copy of this form:
- order onlineExternal Link – Withholding declaration (NAT 3093)
- phone 1300 720 092 (24 hours a day, 7 days a week).
Only order what you need now as we may update the form.
Download
You can also download the Withholding declaration (NAT 3093, PDF 364KB)This link will download a file form and either:
- fill in the form on screen, then save and print the form
- print the form and fill it in by hand.
How to complete the paper form – payee
How to complete the following questions if using the paper form:
- Questions 1–2
- Question 3 – What is your tax file number (TFN)?
- Question 4 – Are you an Australian resident for tax purposes or a working holiday maker?
- Question 5 – Do you want to claim the tax-free threshold from this payer?
- Question 6 – Do you have a Higher Education Loan Program (HELP), VET Student Loan (VSL), Financial Supplement (FS), Student Start-up Loan (SSL) or Trade Support Loan (TSL) debt?
- Question 7 – Do you want to claim or vary your tax offset entitlement by reducing the amount withheld from payments made to you?
- Question 8 – Do you want to claim the seniors and pensioners tax offset (SAPTO) by reducing the amount withheld from payments made to you?
- Sign and date the declaration
- Privacy of information
Questions 1–2
Complete these questions by providing your personal information.
Question 3 – What is your tax file number (TFN)?
We and your payer are authorised by the Taxation Administration Act 1953 to request your TFN. It is not an offence not to quote your TFN. However, quoting your TFN reduces the risk of administrative errors and having extra tax withheld. Your payer is required to withhold the top rate of tax from all payments made to you if you do not provide your TFN or claim an exemption from quoting your TFN.
How to find your TFN
If you already have a TFN and don't remember the number, you can find it online through myGov by going to your linked ATO online services.
If you don't have a myGov account linked to ATO online services, you can find your TFN on:
- your notice of assessment
- correspondence we send you, such as a statement of account
- an income statement or payment summary (provided by your payer)
- your superannuation account statement.
If you have a registered tax agent, you can ask them for your TFN.
If you still can't find your TFN after checking these options, phone us.
If you don't have a TFN
You may be able to claim an exemption from quoting your TFN but you have to use a paper Withholding declaration form. Then print X in the appropriate box if you:
- have lodged a Tax file number – application or enquiry for individuals or made an enquiry to obtain your TFN
- are claiming an exemption from quoting a TFN because
- you are under 18 years of age and do not earn enough to pay tax, or
- you are an applicant for or recipient of certain pensions, benefits or allowances from
- Services Australia – however, you will need to quote your TFN if you receive a JobSeeker, Youth Allowance, Austudy or Parenting Payment
- the Department of Veterans’ Affairs – a service pension under the Veterans’ Entitlement Act 1986
- the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission.
Question 4 – Are you an Australian resident for tax purposes or a working holiday maker?
Generally, we consider you to be an Australian resident for tax purposes if you:
- have always lived in Australia or you have come to Australia and now live here permanently
- are an overseas student doing a course that takes more than 6 months to complete
- migrate to Australia and intend to reside here permanently.
If you go overseas temporarily and don't set up a permanent home in another country, you may continue to be treated as an Australian resident for tax purposes.
If you are in Australia on a working holiday visa (subclass 417) or a work and holiday visa (subclass 462), you must print X in the working holiday maker box. Special rates of tax apply for working holiday makers. For more information, see Working holiday makers.
If you’re not an Australian resident for tax purposes or a working holiday maker, you must print X in the foreign resident for tax purposes box, unless you are in receipt of an Australian Government pension or allowance.
Temporary residents can claim super when leaving Australia, if all requirements are met. For more information, see Departing Australia superannuation payment (DASP).
Foreign resident tax rates are different
A higher rate of tax applies to a foreign resident’s taxable income and foreign residents are not entitled to a tax-free threshold nor can they claim tax offsets to reduce withholding, unless you are in receipt of an Australian Government pension or allowance.
. If you are an Australian resident for tax purposes you must answer no to Question 5 – Do you want to claim the tax-free threshold from this payer?
For more information, see Your tax residency.
Question 5 – Do you want to claim the tax-free threshold from this payer?
The tax-free threshold is the amount of income you can earn each financial year that is not taxed. By claiming the tax-free threshold, you reduce the amount of tax that is withheld from your pay during the year.
Answer yes if you want to claim the tax-free threshold, you are an Australian resident for tax purposes and one of the following applies:
- You are not currently claiming the tax-free threshold from another payer.
- You are currently claiming the tax-free threshold from another payer and your total income from all sources will be less than the tax-free threshold.
Answer yes if you are a foreign resident in receipt of an Australian Government pension or allowance.
Answer no if none of the above applies or you are a working holiday maker.
If you receive any taxable government payments or allowances such as JobSeeker, Youth Allowance or Austudy payment, you are likely to be already claiming the tax-free threshold from that payment.
Question 6 – Do you have a Higher Education Loan Program (HELP), VET Student Loan (VSL), Financial Supplement (FS), Student Start-up Loan (SSL) or Trade Support Loan (TSL) debt?
Answer yes if you have a HELP, VSL, FS, SSL or TSL debt.
Answer no if you do not have a HELP, VSL, FS, SSL or TSL debt, or you have repaid your debt in full.
You have a HELP debt if either:
- the Australian Government lent you money under HECS-HELP, FEE-HELP, OS-HELP, VET FEE-HELP, VET Student loans prior to 1 July 2019 or SA-HELP
- you have a debt from the previous Higher Education Contribution Scheme (HECS).
You have an SSL debt if you have an ABSTUDY SSL debt.
You have a separate VSL debt that is not part of your HELP debt if you incurred it from 1 July 2019.
For more information, see Study and training support loans.
Question 7 – Do you want to claim or vary your tax offset entitlement by reducing the amount withheld from payments made to you?
There are 2 categories of tax offsets in this section at this question:
- Invalid or invalid carer tax offset
- Zone or overseas forces tax offset.
For more information, see Withholding declaration – calculating your tax offset.
You may end up with a tax debt at the end of the year if you overestimate your entitlement to any of these benefits. Similarly, underestimating may lead to a tax refund.
If you cannot estimate your entitlements to certain benefits for the year, you can claim it at the end of the financial year on your tax return.
Question 8 – Do you want to claim the seniors and pensioners tax offset (SAPTO) by reducing the amount withheld from payments made to you?
Claim the tax offset from only one payer
You are not entitled to reduce your withholding amounts, or claim the seniors and pensioners tax offset (SAPTO), with more than one payer at the same time.
If your income comes from more than one source, and need help with this question, phone us.
How your income affects the amount of your tax offset
You must meet the eligibility conditions to receive SAPTO. Your rebate income, not your taxable income, determines the amount of SAPTO, if any, you will receive.
Answer yes if you are eligible and choose to claim SAPTO from this payer by reducing the amount withheld from payments made to you during the year.
For more information, see Withholding declaration – calculating your tax offset.
Sign and date the declaration
Make sure you have answered all questions in Section A, then sign and date the declaration. Give the declaration to your payer so they can work out how much tax to withhold from payments they make to you.
Privacy of information
We respect your privacy and only collect and disclose information, including your tax file number, as authorised by taxation law.
Varying your withholding
Downward variation
The main purpose of varying or reducing the amount of withholding is to make sure that the amount withheld during the income year best meets your end-of-year tax liability.
You may want to apply for a variation if the normal rate of withholding leads to a large credit at the end of the income year because your tax-deductible expenses are higher than normal.
To apply, you must complete a PAYG withholding variation application and send it to us.
Upward variation
If you want to increase the rate or amount of withholding from your pay you can arrange an upward variation with your payer by either:
- entering into an agreement with your payer. Your request should be in writing and can be in any format.
- completing your withholding declaration online through ATO online services. See How to get this form.
Payer obligations
Section B of the paper form is to be completed by the payer.
If you withhold amounts from payments, or are likely to withhold amounts, the payee may give you either a:
- paper copy of Withholding declaration (NAT 3093) with Section A completed.
- printed summary of their employee tax and/or details summary from ATO online services.
A Withholding declaration applies to payments made after you receive the declaration. Use the information on this form to determine the amount of tax to be withheld from payments based on our PAYG withholding tax tables.
If the payee gives you another declaration, it overrides any previous declarations.
The information in the completed Withholding declaration form must be treated as sensitive. Once you have completed, signed and dated the declaration, file the declaration form. Do not send the declaration to us.
Under the TFN guidelines in the Privacy Act 1988, you must use secure methods when storing and disposing of TFN information. Under tax laws, if a payee submits a new Withholding declaration or leaves your employment, you must still keep this declaration for the current and next financial year.