Introduction
The Australian Defence Force Pay and Conditions Manual recognises the unique nature of your career in the Defence Force.
Your salary is determined by a number of factors including your employment specialisation, your rank, your trade skills, and how long you have been with us. There's also the opportunity for you to earn extra allowances for specialist skills and deployments overseas including peacekeeping. And just like the civilian world, your pay will increase with annual increments and as you move up the ranks.
Make sure you ask your Case Manager to explain exactly what your pay bracket is for the job you are considering
Salary
While you serve with the ADF, you will be paid a salary, unless you are on unpaid absence. This salary, together with an allowance called 'Service Allowance', forms the member's military salary.
Service allowance:
On top of your salary, a Service Allowance of $10,672 per year pays you for the special demands and conditions of life in the ADF. These include the following:
The need to be on call 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Frequent postings, often at short notice and the effects of this on you and your family.
Service discipline.
Hard living and working conditions.
Service allowance is not paid during your initial training or members above the rank of Major.
Pay Day
You will be paid every other Thursday if you are a Permanent Force member. Reservists are paid monthly.
Pay Increments
Most ranks in the ADF have several salary increment points. Increments are competency based. They provide a way of moving up the salary scale to the highest point for a particular rank as a member's competency in that rank increases.
Members may move up the appropriate increment scale after completing at least 12 months' continuous full-time service on an increment point. If there are any periods when you were not paid a salary, these periods will not count as part of the year for your increment. The 12 months' requirement refers to 12 months of "effective" service.
You will not be entitled to an annual increment unless you are carrying out your duties and responsibilities at the standard expected of your rank and experience.
Becoming a trainee
You will be paid at a trainee rate of salary if you are in one of these groups.
You begin officer or recruit training.
You begin initial category or trade training.
Application to Reservists:
When you are on Reserve service you are paid for the days when you are required to attend.
Work 6 to under 24 hours Paid 1 day's pay
Work 3 to under 6 hours Paid half a day's pay
Work 2 to under 3 hours Paid a third of a day's pay
The Reserve service working day is not six hours long. Six hours is the minimum time a Reservist must work (excluding meal times) to qualify for one days' pay.
The standard working day for members on Reserve service is the same as that applying to Permanent Forces members working at the same location. Regardless of the hours worked in a single 24-hour period, a member cannot receive more than one day's pay. Some members on Reserve service are paid at a discounted rate because they are not deployable in their trade.
Members on Reserve service must complete two years' service to qualify for movement from one increment to the next higher increment. Part-time service counts as half the equivalent period of continuous full-time service.
Reserve salaries are not taxed.