A tax file number (TFN) is your personal reference number in Australia’s tax and super system, and it’s free from the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). On a working holiday visa you apply online once you’ve landed in Australia: the ATO says it takes about 20 minutes, and it posts your TFN to your Australian address within 28 days. You can start work before it arrives, but if your employer doesn’t have it within 28 days of you telling them you’ve applied, they must take 45% tax from your pay.
Everything below is from official pages as of November 2026. Still sorting the visa? Start with our working holiday visa guide, and for the whole move, our complete guide to moving to Australia from Ireland.
Short version
- It’s free: applying for a TFN costs nothing, so never pay a website to get one for you.
- Apply once you land: the online application needs you to be in Australia with a valid work rights visa, such as the 417. You can’t do it from Ireland.
- Allow 28 days: the ATO posts your TFN to the Australian postal address on your application, so use one where you’ll still get mail in a month.
- Work in the meantime: mark the box on your TFN declaration saying you’ve applied, then give your employer the number within 28 days, or they must withhold 45%.
- 15% on the first AUD 45,000: that’s the working holiday maker rate for 2026/27, but only if your employer is registered with the ATO as a working holiday maker employer. If not, they withhold 30%.
- It’s yours for life: use the same TFN on a second or third visa, and never post it in a Facebook group.
What is a tax file number?
The ATO calls your TFN your personal reference number in the tax and superannuation systems. It’s usually 9 digits and it’s yours for life. Think of it as roughly Australia’s version of your PPS number, only narrower: Citizens Information says your PPS number helps you access social welfare, public services and information in Ireland, while a TFN is about tax and super.
You don’t legally have to have one, but the ATO is blunt: without one you pay more tax, and you can’t lodge your tax return online.
| TFN at a glance | As of November 2026 |
|---|---|
| Cost | Free |
| Who can apply online | People located in Australia with a valid work rights visa, including the 417 and 462 |
| Time to fill in | About 20 minutes, no documents to send |
| How it arrives | By post to your Australian postal address, within 28 days |
| How long it lasts | For life, even if you go overseas and come back |
Can you apply for a TFN before you arrive in Australia?
No. It’s one of the questions we see most in our groups, and the ATO is clear: its online application is for people located in Australia with a valid work rights visa, and its instructions say you must already be in Australia to apply. Its paper form for people living outside Australia is for people who already have Australian income, such as rent, so it isn’t a shortcut either.
Irish passport holders aged 18 to 35 can apply for the Working Holiday visa (subclass 417), which the ATO lists as a valid visa for its online TFN application. So the order is: visa granted, fly out, land, apply. What you can sort from Ireland:
- A postal address for your first month, such as a friend’s or relative’s place. The form accepts “care of” addresses and PO boxes.
- Your money. CurrencyFair is our main partner for moving euro into Australian dollars, and our money checklist for moving to Australia covers the rest.
- Everything else, using our moving to Australia checklist.
How to apply for a TFN online, step by step
Once you’ve landed, apply through the ATO’s TFN application page for permanent migrants and temporary visitors. It’s free and you don’t send any documents.
- Check your visa. It must have work rights and be linked to your passport. You can check its conditions in VEVO.
- Set your device to an Australian time zone. The ATO says the wrong time zone can cause errors when you submit. If your laptop is still on Irish time, change it first.
- Have your details ready: passport details, names and date of birth exactly as on your passport, any other names, spouse details, your addresses, phone and email.
- Fill in the screens and submit. The ATO checks your passport details with the Department of Home Affairs.
- Write down your ATO receipt ID. You’ll need it if you have to chase your TFN.
Irish and British passports? Use the one your visa is linked to. The ATO says the passport country you pick must match the nationality on your visa.
Go by an anglicised name? List it under other names: the ATO’s help notes use an anglicised first name as an example. An apostrophe, like O’Brien, is fine.
Which address to use
Your postal address must be in Australia, as that’s where the letter goes, and it can be a “care of” address or a PO box. Your home address can be your address in Ireland. Use a postal address where you’ll still get mail in a month, not a hostel you’re leaving on Friday.
How long does a TFN take?
The ATO says you should receive it within 28 days of it getting your completed application. Don’t apply twice while you wait, as that causes delays. If nothing has arrived after 28 days, contact the ATO with your receipt ID. Its individual enquiries line is 13 28 61.
Working before your TFN arrives: the 28 day rule
You don’t have to wait for the letter to start work. Your employer will ask you to fill in a Tax file number declaration, on paper or online. As a working holiday maker:
- Question 1: if you’re still waiting for your number, mark the box to say you’re applying for a TFN. You then have 28 days to give it to your employer, who withholds at the standard rate in the meantime.
- Question 8: mark the working holiday maker box. Your employer will check your visa anyway, but the ATO says to tell them so they tax you correctly.
- Question 9: answer No to the tax-free threshold, as the ATO says working holiday makers do.
If 28 days pass without your TFN, the ATO’s tax table for working holiday makers says your employer must withhold 45%, the same as if you never give one. So the day your letter lands, give your employer the number in person or through their payroll system, not by email.
The ATO also says never to give your TFN in a job application. Looking for that first job? Browse the Irish Around Oz job board, including jobs for working holiday makers.
The working holiday maker tax rate for 2026/27
On a 417 or 462 you’re taxed at the working holiday maker rates if you’re a foreign resident for tax purposes, which the ATO says most working holiday makers are, or an Australian resident who isn’t from one of its non-discrimination article countries. Ireland isn’t on that list, though the UK is.
These are the ATO’s rates for the 2026/27 income year (1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027), from its working holiday maker tax table:
| Taxable income (2026/27) | Working holiday maker rate |
|---|---|
| AUD 0 to 45,000 | 15% on each dollar |
| AUD 45,001 to 135,000 | 30% on each dollar over 45,000 |
| AUD 135,001 to 190,000 | 37% on each dollar over 135,000 |
| AUD 190,001 and over | 45% on each dollar over 190,000 |
The brackets are the same as 2025/26 on the ATO’s working holiday maker tax rates page. There’s no tax-free threshold: the 15% starts from your first dollar.
Your employer must be registered
The 15% only applies if your employer has registered with the ATO as an employer of working holiday makers, before their first payment to you. Penalties may apply if they don’t. You don’t register yourself: that’s the employer’s job.
An unregistered employer must withhold at foreign resident rates: 30% from every dollar up to AUD 135,000. The ATO’s working holiday makers page shows the difference on a AUD 1,000 week: AUD 150 withheld by a registered employer, AUD 300 by an unregistered one.
- Check your first payslip. If close to a third of a normal week’s pay has gone in tax, ask whether your employer is registered.
- Withholding isn’t your final bill. The ATO uses your tax return to work out whether you owe more or get money back. Our tax refund guide for working holiday makers explains how.
- Same rules on your 88 days. Doing regional work on a farm? Ask about registration before you start.
- An ABN doesn’t change it. If you’re really an employee, the ATO says your employer must use the working holiday maker tax table even if you give them an ABN.
Your TFN and super
Your employer has to pay super for you too, and must pass your TFN to your super fund. If your fund doesn’t have it, give it to them yourself: the ATO says that stops extra tax being taken from your contributions and helps you trace every super account in your name.
That matters when you go home. You claim your super as a departing Australia superannuation payment (DASP) after you’ve left and your visa has ended, and entering your TFN in the DASP online system lets it search for your accounts. The ATO taxes a DASP paid to working holiday makers at 65%. Our guide to claiming your super back walks you through it.
Your TFN and your bank account
Your bank will ask for your TFN, because tax law authorises banks to collect it. It’s not an offence to say no, but the ATO says that if you don’t quote your TFN (or claim an exemption) and an account earns AUD 120 or more in interest a year, tax is withheld from that interest at the top rate plus the Medicare levy.
You don’t need a TFN to open the account. CommBank, for example, lets you add your TFN in its app or NetBank at any time. Our first week in Australia checklist puts the bank account, TFN and the rest in order.
The ATO also says foreign residents should tell their bank, so tax is withheld from interest when it’s paid and the interest stays out of their tax return. Most working holiday makers are foreign residents for tax purposes, so ask your bank which option fits.
Keep your TFN safe
- Never pay for a TFN. The ATO has warned about fake websites, advertised on social media, that charge a fee for a TFN and then take your money and personal details.
- Never post it in a group. Asking a tax question in our groups? Leave out the number and don’t post a photo of the letter. The ATO says letting anyone else use your TFN, giving it away or selling it is a crime.
- Only give it to those who need it, such as the ATO, your employer after you start, your bank and your super fund.
- Not by email. The ATO says not to put your TFN in emails, and that it will never ask for it by email or threaten to cancel it.
- Not sure? Call the ATO’s scam line on 1800 008 540 or use its verify or report a scam page. If you think your TFN has been stolen or misused, phone its Client Identity Support Centre on 1800 467 033.
Leaving Australia, or coming back on a second visa
The ATO says you keep your TFN even if you change jobs or name, move interstate or go overseas. So when you come back on a second or third working holiday visa, or any other visa, use the same number. Don’t apply for a new one.
Forgotten it? Check myGov or the ATO app, a notice of assessment, an income statement or your super statement, as the ATO’s lost or stolen TFN page explains.
- On a bridging visa while your next working holiday visa is processed? The ATO’s tax table says working holiday maker rates still apply if your last visa was a 417 or 462.
- Moving to a different visa, such as a sponsored one? Tell your employer, as the ATO says they must then withhold at a different rate.
Lodging your tax return at the end
Australia’s income year runs from 1 July to 30 June. If you lodge your own return, it’s due by 31 October, or the next business day if that falls on a weekend. You can lodge online with myTax, which needs a myGov account linked to the ATO and your TFN.
The ATO says you don’t need to lodge a return, or a non-lodgment advice, if all your income was salary or wages as a working holiday maker and your taxable income was under AUD 45,001. You do need to lodge to claim deductions, and if you leave Australia for good before 30 June you can lodge early. Our tax refund guide covers the details.
Just landed and waiting on your TFN letter? Our Facebook groups are full of Irish people in Australia who’ve been through it, from the first job to the first tax return. Just keep your TFN to yourself.
FAQ
Do I need a TFN to work in Australia?
You need a visa with work rights. A TFN isn’t legally required, but without one you pay more tax: a working holiday maker who hasn’t given a TFN, or said they’ve applied, has 45% withheld.
Can I apply for a TFN before I arrive in Australia?
No. The ATO’s online application is for people located in Australia with a valid work rights visa, and its instructions say you must already be in Australia to apply.
How long does a TFN take?
The ATO says within 28 days of receiving your completed application, by post to your Australian address. If it hasn’t arrived after 28 days, contact the ATO with your receipt ID.
How much tax do working holiday makers pay?
For 2026/27, 15% on the first AUD 45,000, then 30%, 37% and 45% on higher bands. Your employer must be registered as a working holiday maker employer to withhold 15%, otherwise they withhold 30%.
What happens if I don’t give my employer my TFN?
If you’ve told them you’ve applied, you have 28 days to give it to them. After that, or if you never give one, they must withhold 45%.
Do I need a new TFN for my second working holiday visa?
No. Your TFN is yours for life, so use the same one. You’ll find it in myGov or on an old income statement or super statement.
Should I get an ABN instead of a TFN?
Not for an ordinary job. The ATO says an ABN means running your own business and paying your own tax, and an employee must be taxed at working holiday maker rates anyway.
Is a TFN the same as a PPS number?
Roughly, but narrower. A PPS number covers social welfare and public services in Ireland, while a TFN is just for Australian tax and super.
