Minimum wages increase from 1 July 2026
The Fair Work Commission has announced an increase to the National Minimum Wage and minimum award wages.
The increase applies from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2026.
The Fair Work Commission is the national workplace relations tribunal. It’s a different agency to us and reviews minimum wages each year as part of the Annual Wage Review.
Minimum wages are increasing
The Fair Work Commission (the Commission) has announced its decision (PDF) following the 2026 Annual Wage Review.
From 1 July 2026, the Commission has increased:
The Commission is the national workplace relations tribunal. It’s a different agency to us and reviews minimum wages each year as part of the Annual Wage Review.
The National Minimum Wage applies to employees who aren’t covered by an awardAn award is a legal document that outlines the wages and conditions of employment for employees that are covered by it within a particular industry or occupation. Other known term: modern award. or enterprise agreementAn enterprise agreement sets out minimum employment conditions and can apply to one business or a group of businesses. .
From 1 July 2026, the National Minimum Wage will be:
- $1004.90 per week, or
- $26.44 per hour.
The new National Minimum Wage will apply from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026. This means if your weekly pay period starts on Wednesday, the new rates will apply from Wednesday 1 July 2026.
Learn more about this wage at Minimum wages.
Most employees are covered by an award. Awards are legal documents that outline minimum pay rates and conditions of employment in an industry or occupation.
The Commission has announced a 4.75% increase to minimum wages, provided that:
- the lowest rate in any award that applies to ongoing employment must be at least $1004.90 per week or $26.44 per hour
- any entry-level rate that applies to the first 6 months (or less) of employment must be at least $978.10 per week or $25.74 per hour.
This increase will apply from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2026. This means if your weekly pay period starts on Wednesday, the new rates will apply from Wednesday 1 July 2026.
If you’re not sure of your award, find it using our Pay and Conditions Tool. You can also look at List of awards.
Example: Pay period starting on or after 1 July 2026
Pedro owns a hair salon. His employees are covered by the Hair and Beauty Award.
Pedro’s employees are paid on a weekly pay cycle that runs from Monday to Sunday. 1 July 2026 is a Wednesday, which means it falls in the middle of a pay cycle.
This means that the new pay rates will apply from the next pay cycle which starts on Monday 6 July 2026.
We’re updating our pay tools and resources with the new rates. Our updated tools will be available closer to 1 July 2026.
While we’re updating our website and tools, you can:
- subscribe to get our email updates to be notified when our tools are updated
- bookmark this page in your browser or My account profile and regularly check back for updates
- use our Pay and Conditions Tool to help check which award applies to you, or find it at List of awards
- read more about minimum pay rates under awards and the National Minimum Wage at Minimum wages
- follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) for updates.
If you’re covered by an agreement
An enterprise agreement sets out minimum employment conditions. It can apply to one business or a group of businesses.
If you’re covered by an enterprise agreement, the minimum wage increase may apply. This is because the base pay rate in an enterprise agreement can’t be less than the base pay rate in the relevant award. Read more in our Library article at Annual Wage Reviews and agreements.
If you need help checking if an enterprise agreement applies to you, follow our tips on Finding an agreement.
Fair Work Ombudsman, 2nd June 2026
