APS Pay Offer 2026: 9% Over Three Years, Proposed
The Commonwealth tabled its pay offer for the Australian Public Service on 13 October 2026: three pay rises adding up to 9%, extra increases for some lower-paid ranges and a minimum 3.0% step between pay points. It is a proposal in bargaining, not a pay rate anyone is paid yet.
Published 15 October 2026 by Wage Calculator. Every figure below is traced to the government page that announced it, with that page’s own date.
The short answer
The offer proposes 3.2% from March 2027, 3.0% from March 2028 and 2.8% from March 2029. The first rise would start in March 2027 or when the new enterprise agreement comes into effect, whichever is later. The APSC adds the three together as 9%; applied one after another they come to 9.3%, on our arithmetic.
Some lower-paid salary ranges in some agencies would get up to 0.5% a year on top, and an eligible employee moving up their range would get at least 3.0% a step, on a common September date.
In the APSC’s own words: “This proposal remains subject to bargaining, it is not an agreed outcome.” The figures are from the APSC’s Pay Offer page, last updated 14 October 2026.
The three proposed APS pay rises.
| Rise | Proposed increase | From |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 3.2% | March 2027, or when the new enterprise agreement comes into effect if that is later |
| Year 2 | 3.0% | March 2028 |
| Year 3 | 2.8% | March 2029 |
The APSC says every eligible APS employee would get these rises, and calls them guaranteed. Its 9% is 3.2%, 3.0% and 2.8% added together, which is 9%. Because each rise applies to a salary the one before has already lifted, the three together raise a salary by 9.3%. That figure is ours, worked out as 1.032 times 1.030 times 1.028.
The APSC says the offer is above the 2.5% a year inflation rate forecast in the 2026-27 Budget over a similar period. Its page names months, not pay periods, so the exact first pay period for each rise is not set out yet.
Extra increases for lower-paid APS salary ranges.
Pay fragmentation is the gap between what different APS agencies pay for the same work. To narrow it, the offer proposes an extra increase of up to 0.5% each year, or up to 1.5% over the life of the agreement, for some lower-paid salary ranges within some agencies. It would come on top of the annual pay rise and, where it applies, on top of salary advancement.
The APSC says the measure would uplift at least one classification in 101 of 110 agencies (92%), and that by the end of the agreement 38% of maximum pay points and 45% of minimum pay points would have risen by more than the headline offer. It does not list which agencies or classifications.
A minimum 3.0% step between pay points.
Salary advancement
An eligible employee moving to the next pay point in their range would get at least 3.0% until they reach the top. The APSC says most agencies would have to reprofile at least one classification’s pay scale, and that the final step to the maximum will not always meet the minimum. An agency already paying more than 3.0% a step keeps its higher arrangement.
A common September date
Advancement would take effect on a common September date across the APS. With the pay rises in March, the APSC says that means eligible employees get a salary increase every 6 months. Someone already at the top of their range gets the pay rises only.
What the offer could mean: the APSC's five examples.
The APSC published five hypothetical employees to show how the pieces fit together. Each starts from that agency’s current salary, and actual outcomes depend on agency, classification, position in the range and eligibility for advancement. The salaries below are the APSC’s, as printed.
| Example | Agency | Salary now | At the end | Increase, APSC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sarah, APS6 minimum | Services Australia | $99,734 | $119,682 | $19,946, 20.0% |
| Roger, APS5.2 | Department of Veterans' Affairs | $96,112 | $108,683 | $12,571, 13.1% |
| Amal, EL1.4 | ACCC | $141,555 | $154,680 | $13,125, 9.3% |
| Mila, APS6.1 | ATO | $101,142 | $123,245 | $22,103, 21.9% |
| Jonah, APS6.4 Maximum | DCCEEW | $112,044 | $123,898 | $11,854, 10.6% |
Sarah, APS6 minimum, Services Australia
Starts on $99,734.
- When the new agreement starts: first pay rise (3.2%), to $102,925.
- First year: pay fragmentation uplift, then a pay point advance (0.5% and 3.0%), to $106,543.
- March 2028: second pay rise (3.0%), to $109,739.
- September 2028: pay point advance (3.0%), to $113,031.
- March 2029: third pay rise (2.8%), to $116,195.
- September 2029: pay point advance (3.0%), to $119,682.
The APSC puts the pay fragmentation uplift at $515.
Roger, APS5.2, Department of Veterans' Affairs
Starts on $96,112.
- When the new agreement starts: first pay rise (3.2%), to $99,188.
- September 2027: pay point advance to APS5.3 (3.0%), to $102,644.
- March 2028: second pay rise (3.0%), to $105,723.
- March 2029: third pay rise (2.8%), to $108,683.
Amal, EL1.4, ACCC
Starts on $141,555.
- When the new agreement starts: first pay rise (3.2%), to $146,085.
- March 2028: second pay rise (3.0%), to $150,467.
- March 2029: third pay rise (2.8%), to $154,680.
Mila, APS6.1, ATO
Starts on $101,142.
- When the new agreement starts: first pay rise (3.2%), to $104,379.
- September 2027: pay point advance to APS6.2 (3.0%), to $107,510.
- March 2028: second pay rise (3.0%), to $110,735.
- September 2028: pay point advance to APS6.3, to $114,057.
- March 2029: third pay rise (2.8%), to $117,361.
- September 2029: pay point advance to APS6.4, to $123,245.
Jonah, APS6.4 Maximum, DCCEEW
Starts on $112,044.
- When the new agreement starts: first pay rise and pay fragmentation uplift (3.2% and 0.2%), to $115,852.
- March 2028: second pay rise and pay fragmentation uplift (3.0% and 0.5%), to $119,924.
- March 2029: third pay rise and pay fragmentation uplift (2.8% and 0.5%), to $123,898.
How we checked the APSC's examples.
We rebuilt every step from the salary printed before it, applying the stated percentages one after another and rounding to the dollar. 14 of the 20 steps that state a percentage match to the dollar. These do not:
- Sarah, March 2029: 2.8% on $113,031 gives $116,196, and the APSC prints $116,195.
- Sarah, September 2029: 3.0% on $116,195 gives $119,681, and the APSC prints $119,682.
- Roger, September 2027: 3.0% on $99,188 gives $102,164, and the APSC prints $102,644, a step of 3.5%.
- Amal, March 2028: 3.0% on $146,085 gives $150,468, and the APSC prints $150,467.
- Mila, March 2029: 2.8% on $114,057 gives $117,251, and the APSC prints $117,361, a step of 2.9%.
- Jonah, when the new agreement starts: 3.2% then 0.2% on $112,044 gives $115,861, and the APSC prints $115,852, a step of 3.4%.
- Sarah: the printed salaries rise by $19,948 from start to finish, and the APSC prints $19,946. Its 20.0% agrees with either.
A gap of one dollar is consistent with rounding. The APSC does not explain the larger ones. Two steps state no percentage, so there is nothing to check them against. For Sarah, Roger and Mila the APSC also prints how much better off each would be than under their current agreement, and an increase it puts down to the proposed agreement. It does not show how those amounts are worked out, so they are not repeated here.
What happens next in APS bargaining.
APS-wide bargaining began on 21 July 2026, and the offer was tabled at the meeting on 13 October 2026. The APSC’s meeting schedule, retrieved on 15 October 2026, lists the bargaining parties’ response to the pay offer, pay fragmentation and salary advancement for the meeting on 15 October 2026, further meetings on 20 October 2026 and 22 October 2026, and meetings from 5 November 2026 to 22 December 2026 marked to be confirmed. The APSC calls it a proposed schedule that is subject to change.
Until a new agreement is made, APS employees stay on their agency’s current agreement. Those agreements nominally expire on 28 February 2027 and keep operating until replaced. The salary thresholds every agency must pay at least now, by classification, with fortnightly and take-home pay, are on APS Pay Scales.
Where these figures come from.
Provenance
Verified- Tabled
- 13 October 2026
- Status
- Proposal, subject to bargaining
- First rise
- 3.2% from March 2027 or later
- Second rise
- 3.0% from March 2028
- Third rise
- 2.8% from March 2029
- APSC total, added
- 9%
- Compounded, our arithmetic
- 9.3%
- Fragmentation uplift
- Up to 0.5% a year, 1.5% in total
- Minimum pay point step
- 3.0%
- APSC page last updated
- 14 October 2026
- APSC, Pay OfferThe page gave its own last updated date as 2026-10-14. Retrieved 2026-10-15.
- APSC, Chief Negotiator tables proposed APS pay packageThe page gave its own last updated date as 2026-10-13. Retrieved 2026-10-15.
- APSC, APS bargaining meeting scheduleThe page gave its own last updated date as 2026-10-13. Retrieved 2026-10-15.
Nothing on this page is copied from another pay site, and no figure here was taken from a search result summary. How every rate on this site is sourced and checked is set out on the Methodology page.
APS Pay Offer 2026 questions, answered.
What is the APS pay offer for 2026?
The Commonwealth's offer, tabled on 13 October 2026, is pay rises of 3.2% from March 2027, 3.0% from March 2028 and 2.8% from March 2029, which the APSC describes as 9% over three years. It also proposes extra increases of up to 0.5% a year for some lower-paid salary ranges in some agencies, and a minimum 3.0% increase between pay points. The APSC says the proposal remains subject to bargaining and is not an agreed outcome.
When would the first APS pay rise under the offer be paid?
The first rise of 3.2% is proposed from March 2027, or when the new enterprise agreement comes into effect if that is later. The current APS agreements nominally expire on 28 February 2027 and keep operating until they are replaced. The APSC's page gives months, not exact pay period dates.
Is the APS 9% pay offer final?
No. In the APSC's words, "This proposal remains subject to bargaining, it is not an agreed outcome." Its media release calls the offer one of the Commonwealth's preliminary positions. The APSC's meeting schedule lists the bargaining parties' response to the offer for the meeting on 15 October 2026.
Does the 9% compound?
The APSC's 9% is the three percentages added together. Applied one after another, as pay rises are, they lift a salary by 9.3%. That compounded figure is our arithmetic, not the APSC's.
What is the minimum salary advancement in the APS pay offer?
3.0%. Under the proposal, an eligible employee moving to the next pay point in their range would get at least 3.0% until they reach the top of the range, though the APSC says the final step to the maximum will not always meet it. An agency already paying more keeps its higher arrangement. Advancement would take effect on a common September date.
Who gets the APS pay fragmentation uplift?
Some lower-paid salary ranges within some agencies, not everyone. The offer proposes up to 0.5% each year, or up to 1.5% over the agreement, on top of the annual pay rise. The APSC says it would uplift at least one classification in 101 of 110 agencies.
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