South Australia Enrolled Nurse Pay 2025–26
South Australian enrolled nurses have their own scale, with an EN qualification allowance and rural/remote incentives available on top.
Assistant in NursingRegistered NurseClinical Nurse (senior clinical grades)Nurse Management (NUM / Director of Nursing)
Pay scale
Base rates, in force from 1 January 2026 (incl. 4% interim increase) — before penalties, allowances and overtime. Entry/each step shown (1 January 2026 (incl. 4% interim increase)).
| Step | Weekly | Hourly | Annualised |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enrolled Nurse (Certificate) - not authorised in medication administration — 1st increment | $1,275.46 | $33.56 | $66,552 |
| Enrolled Nurse (Certificate) - not authorised in medication administration — 2nd increment | $1,296.35 | $34.11 | $67,642 |
| Enrolled Nurse (Certificate) - not authorised in medication administration — 3rd increment | $1,324.21 | $34.85 | $69,095 |
| Enrolled Nurse (Certificate) - not authorised in medication administration — 4th increment | $1,352.08 | $35.58 | $70,550 |
| Enrolled Nurse (Certificate) - not authorised in medication administration — 5th increment | $1,379.98 | $36.32 | $72,005 |
| Enrolled Nurse (Certificate) - not authorised in medication administration — 6th increment | $1,407.83 | $37.05 | $73,459 |
| Enrolled Nurse (Certificate) - not authorised in medication administration — 7th increment | $1,435.73 | $37.78 | $74,914 |
| Enrolled Nurse (Diploma) / EN (Certificate) authorised in medication administration — 2nd increment | $1,357.00 | $35.71 | $70,806 |
| Enrolled Nurse (Diploma) / EN (Certificate) authorised in medication administration — 3rd increment | $1,387.97 | $36.53 | $72,422 |
| Enrolled Nurse (Diploma) / EN (Certificate) authorised in medication administration — 4th increment | $1,414.80 | $37.23 | $73,822 |
| Enrolled Nurse (Diploma) / EN (Certificate) authorised in medication administration — 5th increment | $1,449.60 | $38.15 | $75,638 |
| Enrolled Nurse (Diploma) / EN (Certificate) authorised in medication administration — 6th increment | $1,491.50 | $39.25 | $77,824 |
| Advanced Skills Enrolled Nurse — 2nd increment | $1,519.36 | $39.98 | $79,278 |
Ways to earn more
- Progress through the EN scale ($1,275.46–$1,519.36/wk).
- Claim any qualification/continuing-education allowance you're eligible for, and salary-package about $11,660/yr tax-free.
- Register as a registered nurse to move onto the RN scale (from $1,491.50/wk).
Allowances you can claim
On top of base pay — the allowances most relevant to this role.
Qualification allowance — Enrolled Nurses$2,619.10/yr (from Jan 2025)
Annual allowance of 3.5% (calculated on increment 6 of the Diploma scale) for one or more post-enrolment courses of at least 6 months' duration. From first full pay…
Professional Development Allowance$2,547.70/yr (from 1 July 2025)
Paid into salary fortnightly (including during paid leave) to fund CPD for AHPRA registration. Increased each July 2023–2025 by $400 plus salary increases: it reached…
Rural & Remote Service Incentive PaymentUp to $6,696.80/yr (Zone 4, Yr 5, from Jan…
Annual incentive paid fortnightly to nursing/midwifery staff at sites in Zones 2, 3 or 4, escalating by year of service (Years 1–5; nothing after the 5th year in a…
Rural & Remote — one-off incidental (relocation) paymentZone 2 $502 / Zone 3 $668 / Zone 4 $837 (from…
A one-off incidental payment paid when you take up an appointment at a Zone 2, 3 or 4 site, on top of the annual Zone incentive. From first full pay period on/after 1…
On-call allowance$38.70 weekday / $67.60 weekend-PH-RDO (from…
Paid per on-call period (between rostered shifts, max 24h). Mon–Fri $38.70; Weekends/Public Holidays/RDOs $67.60 from Jan 2025. If a period spans two days at different…
Uniform allowance$9.20/week (from Jan 2025)
Paid to full-time employees (pro-rata part-time, excluding casuals) required to wear a distinctive uniform/clothing item. $8.60 (2023) → $8.90 (2024) → $9.20 (2025). NOT…
Salary packaging~$11,660/yr tax-free
As a public-hospital employee you can package about $9,010 of everyday expenses plus ~$2,650 of meal entertainment FBT-free, plus a novated car lease — and it doesn't reduce any penalty or allowance.
Leave, study & the full conditions
Leave and study support (annual, parental, long-service, study leave, the career-break scheme), the overtime, minimum-break and on-call rules, and the complete allowance list apply across all South Australia nurse classifications — see the full South Australia nurse pay & conditions guide.
Pay figures are drawn from the Nursing/Midwifery (SA Public Sector) Enterprise Agreement 2022. Confirm your exact classification, step and allowances against the current instrument and your payslip.