South Australia public hospital pay guide · 2025–26
SA Junior Doctor Salary & Take-Home Pay | 2025–26
Estimate South Australia junior doctor pay (Intern → Registrar) for 2025–26. The calculator helps you compare different terms by showing how penalties, overtime, tax and HECS/HELP move your take-home, with SA sources linked below for reference.
Includes quick answers, worked examples, calculator shortcuts, and direct links to the underlying award or agreement sources.
Estimate my pay (SA)On this page
What determines your pay in SA?
- Base rate: your level (intern → resident/medical practitioner → registrar) and year progression.
- Penalties: weekends, afternoons/evenings, nights, and public holidays.
- Overtime: SA is mostly calculated on total rostered hours per 2-week cycle (and above contracted hours for part-time).
- On-call & recall: remote call allowances + recall payments (plus travel rules).
- Allowances/protections: worked-through meal break penalty, fatigue taxi/facilities, regional incentives (where eligible).
- Tax + HECS/HELP: HECS is calculated on gross income; tax depends on taxable income after deductions/packaging.
- Salary packaging: can improve take-home without changing your roster (if eligible).
Levels and base rates (SA)
| Level | Base salary | After-tax + HECS (take-home) |
|---|---|---|
| Intern | $88,869 | $66,363 |
| Resident - Year 1 | $96,569 | $70,444 |
| Registrar - Year 1 | $104,266 | $74,523 |
| Registrar - Year 2 | $120,432 | $83,091 |
| Registrar - Year 3 | $130,438 | $88,285 |
| Registrar - Year 4 | $138,137 | $91,992 |
| Registrar - Year 5 | $145,834 | $95,379 |
| Registrar - Year 6 | $153,533 | $98,767 |
| Senior Registrar - Year 1 | $158,151 | $100,798 |
| Senior Registrar - Year 2 | $164,308 | $103,508 |
See how this state compares
Want the national picture? See how this state compares across base pay, take-home estimates, leave and penalties.
SA EBA high-yield summary
This section focuses on clauses doctors in training commonly use on roster and payroll queries.
Instruments referenced: SA Health Salaried Medical Officers Enterprise Agreement 2025 (Medical Practitioner Group / MPG) and the South Australian Medical Officers Award (exam leave clause 6.5).
Who this applies to
- Applies across SA Health public sector services including DHW, public hospitals under the Health Care Act 2008, and SA Ambulance Service (Cl 2.1).
- Junior-doctor-relevant stream is Part E: Medical Practitioner Group (MPG); Part D "Medical Officers" is legacy/no new appointments (Cl 49.1-49.2).
- MPG includes interns, medical practitioners, senior registrars (Part E coverage list).
- Exclusions include some other agreements and university employees (Cl 2.2).
Ordinary hours and roster protections
- Ordinary hours average 38/week; paid for all hours worked; roster set by employer (Cl 58).
- Hard roster caps (unless the clause exception applies):
- Max 12 hours/shift (meal breaks excluded) (Cl 58.4.1)
- Max 68 hours/week (Cl 58.4.2)
- Max 272 hours/4-week cycle (Cl 58.4.3)
- Rostered duty excludes proximate call/remote call/recall duty (Cl 58).
- Minimum 10 clear hours between rostered duties (unless otherwise agreed under clause 13) (Cl 61).
- Minimum shift engagement: 3 hours (Cl 61).
- Rosters must be published at least 28 days before they start; changes after publication are by agreement unless patient safety/clinical service risk applies (Cl 74).
Penalty rates and overtime
| Item | Rate / rule | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Weekend rostered duty | +50% (Fri 00:00 - Sun 24:00) | Cl 69.1 |
| Sunday rostered duty >8h | Extra hours at +75% (in lieu for those hours) | Cl 69.2 |
| Afternoon/evening duty | Start >=12:00 and finish after 18:00: +15% | Cl 70.1 |
| Night duty | 00:00-08:00: +25% | Cl 70.2 |
| Public holiday work (rostered/recalled; not prox call) | +150% for all time worked (in lieu of other penalties) | Cl 71 |
| Full-day public holiday on RDO (Mon-Fri) | 1 day added to annual leave | Cl 71 |
| Overtime (full-time) | >76 hours/2 weeks: +50% | Cl 62.1 |
| Overtime (full-time high) | >110 hours/2 weeks: +100% (in lieu) | Cl 62.2 |
| Sunday hours over 76 hours/2 weeks (full-time) | +100% (not in addition) | Cl 62.3 |
| Overtime (part-time) | Required hours above contracted fortnight hours: +50% | Cl 62.5 |
| Overtime (part-time high) | >110 hours/2 weeks: +100% (in lieu) | Cl 62.6 |
On-call and key allowances
| Allowance / payment | Rate / rule | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Remote call allowance (night/part day) | $48.38 (increases per schedule to $54.98 by 14 Apr 2028) | Cl 63 + Sch 3.2A |
| Remote call allowance (full day) | $76.85 (increases per schedule to $87.34 by 14 Apr 2028) | Cl 63 + Sch 3.2B |
| Recall (non-Sun/non-PH) | +50% first 3h then +100%; 15-min blocks; minimum 3h | Cl 64.1 + Cl 64.3.1 |
| Recall (Sunday) | +100%; 15-min blocks; minimum 3h | Cl 64.2 + Cl 64.3.1 |
| Recall includes travel | Paid from start of travel to return home | Cl 64 |
| Proximate call pay | Hourly rate per hour on prox call; if recalled +50%; public holiday prox call 1.75× | Cl 63 |
| Proximate call limits | After 10-12h duty prior; 21:00-08:30 min 8h; max 8 nights/28 days | Cl 63.4.1-63.4.4 |
| Proximate call fatigue protection | If work during prox call exceeds 5h -> no duty next 24h | Cl 63.4.3 |
| Worked-through meal break penalty | If instructed to work >6h without a meal break -> +50% until break taken/completed | Cl 73.3 |
| Regional incentive (eligible) | MMM4 $19,750; MMM5 $26,333; MMM6 $32,916; MMM7 $39,493 (indexed; max 5 years; not base salary) | Cl 12.1-12.3 |
| Fatigue facilities / taxi home | If unsafe to drive due to fatigue: facilities >=8h or taxi home if unavailable | Cl 16.1-16.3 |
| Recall travel costs | PV/taxi/govt vehicle + necessary parking reimbursement | Cl 65.1.1-65.1.4 |
| Childcare reimbursement | If <24h notice to work outside rostered/required hours and paid childcare needed | Cl 14.21 |
| Relocation expenses | Reimbursed per HR Manual | Cl 11.1 |
Leave and study entitlements used most by trainees
Annual and personal leave
- Annual leave: 28 calendar days per service year; 35 days if regularly rostered/required over 7 days incl Sundays/PHs (Cl 72.1.1-72.1.2).
- Minimum annual leave block: 7 calendar days; can be taken in 1-3 periods (Cl 72.5).
- Annual leave loading: 17.5% if more beneficial (Cl 72.7.3).
- Part-time sick leave: pro-rata of 91.2 hours (Cl 75).
Study / professional development
- Accredited trainees: exam leave is via the Award clause 6.5 (EBA Cl 76.1.1(a); Award cl 6.5).
- Accredited trainees: 5 paid PD days/year (accumulates to 10 days/2 years) (Cl 76.1.1(b)).
- Accredited trainees: PD reimbursement up to $10,000/year (accumulates to $20,000/2 years) (Cl 76.1.1(c)).
- Not in accredited training: 1 week PD leave/year (accumulates to 2 weeks/2 years) + reimbursement up to $4,500/year (accumulates to $9,000/2 years) (Cl 76.2.1).
Parental leave
- Paid maternity/adoption/surrogacy leave: 16 weeks (20 weeks with 5 years SA public sector service) after 12 months continuous service (Cl 14.9).
- Partner leave: up to 2 weeks/10 working days via accrued sick leave (Cl 14.15).
- Return part-time option until child’s second birthday (subject to notice requirements) (Cl 14.20).
Safe rostering and fatigue rules
- 4 days off (24h each) per 28-day cycle + 1 weekend free (Cl 59.1.1-59.1.2).
- Max 8 consecutive days (Cl 59.1.3). If required to exceed under the clause exception: +50% for the additional day(s) (Cl 59.1.4).
- If >1 hour overtime between 23:00-06:00: 10 consecutive hours off. If instructed back without the break: +50% until released + still get time off to reach the 10 hours (Cl 59).
- Day/night changeover: 48 hours off immediately before change (never <24h) unless the clause exception applies (Cl 60).
- Meal breaks: 30 minutes by 6 hours (Cl 73.1-73.2).
Practical junior doctor wins
- Accredited training pay bump: medical practitioner steps 2-5 accepted into accredited training move up one salary increment (Cl 56.2-56.3).
- Training time recognised: part of the 38-hour week is intended to support training/education activities; rosters should consider this (Cl 77.2).
Worked examples (SA)
Intern
- Roster: 38h/wk, some evenings, one weekend shift/month, some public holidays.
- Includes: penalties for nights/weekends; occasional overtime, four weeks of leave.
RMO
- Roster: ~40–44h/wk, some evenings/nights, 2–3 weekend shifts/month, some public holidays.
- Includes: penalties for nights/weekends; occasional overtime, four weeks of leave.
Year 3 Registrar
- Roster: 45–55h/wk, every second weekend, some public holidays, overtime most weeks.
- Includes: mix of nights/afternoons and ~5 weeks of leave (annual + study).
* After tax and HECs repayments have been deducted
FAQ: SA doctor pay
What is the difference between Gross and Net?
Gross pay is your total earnings before anything is taken out (base pay + penalties + overtime + allowances). Net pay (take-home) is what you actually receive after deductions like tax and HECS/HELP withholding.
How is HECS/HELP calculated?
From the 2025–26 income year, compulsory HECS/HELP repayments use marginal rates — meaning you only pay the higher rate on the part of your income above each threshold.
- $0 – $67,000: Nil
- $67,001 – $125,000: 15c for each $1 over $67,000
- $125,001 – $179,285: $8,700 + 17c for each $1 over $125,000
- $179,286 and over: 10% of your total repayment income
How do I increase my income?
The biggest levers for junior doctor pay are:
- Roster mix: more nights/weekends/public holidays usually increases penalties.
- Overtime: paid at higher rates (but comes with fatigue risk).
- Allowances: if your role attracts them (on-call/call-back, specific units/sites).
- Salary packaging: can improve take-home without changing hours (if eligible).
- Progression: moving up levels (intern → RMO → registrar) increases base rates over time.
What is salary packaging?
Normally: you get paid → tax gets taken out → you spend what’s left. Salary packaging lets you use some of your pay before tax for approved expenses, so less of your income is taxed. It’s not “free money” — it’s a tax benefit available to many healthcare workers because of special rules.
How much can you salary package?
Typical caps (varies by employer/provider):
- Living expenses cap: about $9,010 per FBT year (FBT year runs 1 April to 31 March)
- Meal entertainment cap: up to $2,650 per FBT year (often via a meal/entertainment card)
A common “headline” maximum is ~$11,660 per FBT year packaged if you’re eligible for both and your employer allows both.
Sources and disclaimer
- SA EBA 2025
- South Australian Medical Officers Award (exam leave clause 6.5)
- ATO study and training support loans rates and thresholds
Estimates only; confirm with the state/territory award/EBA and your employer’s HR/payroll.