myTax 2019 Medicare levy reduction or exemption

This is about whether you qualify for a Medicare levy reduction or exemption.

Essentials

Australian residents for tax purposes are subject to a Medicare levy of 2.0% of their taxable income unless they qualify for a reduction or exemption.

A Medicare levy reduction is based on your taxable income. In some cases you may not have the pay the levy at all. If your taxable income is above the thresholds, you may still qualify for a reduction based on your family income.

A Medicare levy exemption may apply if you meet one of the following exemption categories:

• You meet certain medical requirements
• You are a foreign resident
• You were not entitled to Medicare benefits.

You need to consider your eligibility for a reduction or an exemption separately.

Based on the information you provide in your tax return, we will work out and apply any levy reduction or exemption for you.

If you were not an Australian resident for tax purposes for the whole of 2018–19, you may be exempt from the Medicare levy. For the meaning of Australian resident for tax purposes, see Work out your tax residency status for tax purposes.

Completing this section

The following steps will provide us with the information we need in this section to work out any Medicare levy reduction or exemption for you.

1. Show the Number of dependent children and students.
   For more information, see Working out your number of dependent children.
   
   Note: We may have populated this for you based on information previously provided to us. Check and correct if necessary.
2. Indicate if you were in one of the exemption categories at any time during 2018–19.
   If Yes, go to step 3.
   If No, go to step 6.
3. Work out the number of days that you qualify for full exemption and then enter the number into Full 2% levy exemption – number of days.
4. Work out the number of days that you qualify for half exemption and then enter the number into Half 2% levy exemption – number of days.
5. If you entered one or more days in Full 2% levy exemption – number of days, answer the question Were you a temporary resident for Medicare purposes and have a Medicare entitlement statement from the Department of Human Services (now known as Services Australia)?
6. You have completed the Medicare levy reduction or exemption section and can go to the Medicare levy surcharge section.