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Australia 183‑day test for tax residency

Tax days · Asia-PacificChecked Updated

Australia 183 days

Tax days
183days, more than half the income year

More than half the income year in Australia, in one stay or several, makes you an Australian resident under the 183-day test.12

A day is
Every day you are physically in Australia in the income year counts, including the days you arrive and leave.3
Year
The test runs on the income year, not the calendar year. The ATO example uses the year ended 30 June 2025.45
Unless
The test does not apply if your usual place of abode is outside Australia and you have no intention to take up residence there.671
Abode
Your usual place of abode is the abode you customarily or commonly use when you are physically in a country.8
Also counts
Residency is decided by 4 statutory tests: resides, domicile, 183-day and the Commonwealth Superannuation test.910
Resident means
An Australian resident for tax purposes declares all income earned in Australia and overseas.11

Worked example

Eight months, split at the end of June

  1. You stay from 1 October 2026 to 31 May 2027: 243 days, all inside the income year that ends on 30 June 2027. That is more than half of it.34How we count: Calendar days from arrival to departure, both included, in one income year ending 30 June.
  2. Stay from 1 March to 31 October 2027 instead, 245 days, and the stay splits: 122 days fall in the year ending 30 June 2027 and 123 in the next. Neither is more than half.34How we count: The same count, split on 30 June.

The rule it rests on: More than half the income year in Australia, in one stay or several, makes you an Australian resident under the 183-day test.12 The test runs on the income year, not the calendar year. The ATO example uses the year ended 30 June 2025.45 The test does not apply if your usual place of abode is outside Australia and you have no intention to take up residence there.671

Questions people ask

What is the 183-day test in Australia?

More than half the income year in Australia, in one stay or several, makes you an Australian resident under the 183-day test.12 The test does not apply if your usual place of abode is outside Australia and you have no intention to take up residence there.671

Do arrival and departure days count?

Every day you are physically in Australia in the income year counts, including the days you arrive and leave.3

Is the Australian tax year the calendar year?

The test runs on the income year, not the calendar year. The ATO example uses the year ended 30 June 2025.45

Can I stay over 183 days and not be a resident?

The test does not apply if your usual place of abode is outside Australia and you have no intention to take up residence there.671 Your usual place of abode is the abode you customarily or commonly use when you are physically in a country.8

Are there other residency tests in Australia?

Residency is decided by 4 statutory tests: resides, domicile, 183-day and the Commonwealth Superannuation test.910 An Australian resident for tax purposes declares all income earned in Australia and overseas.11

Sources

11 official pages, each with its exact words
  1. ATO, Residency: the 183-day test · Australian Taxation Office (ato.gov.au) · read 26 Oct 2026
    Exact words If you're in Australia for more than half the income year, continuously or intermittently, you will be a resident of Australia unless both:
  2. ATO, Residency: the 183-day test · Australian Taxation Office (ato.gov.au) · read 26 Oct 2026
    Exact words Your presence in Australia doesn't need to be continuous for the purposes of the '183-day test'.
  3. ATO, Residency: the 183-day test · Australian Taxation Office (ato.gov.au) · read 26 Oct 2026
    Exact words All the days you're physically present in Australia during the income year will be counted. This includes the day of your arrival and departure.
  4. ATO, Residency: the 183-day test · Australian Taxation Office (ato.gov.au) · read 26 Oct 2026
    Exact words It's important to note that the '183-day test' applies in relation to the year of income, not the calendar year.
  5. ATO, Residency: the 183-day test · Australian Taxation Office (ato.gov.au) · read 26 Oct 2026
    Exact words although he's in Australia for more than 6 months in the year ended 30 June 2025, Lars will not satisfy the 183-day test, as his usual place of abode is outside Australia
  6. ATO, Residency: the 183-day test · Australian Taxation Office (ato.gov.au) · read 26 Oct 2026
    Exact words your 'usual place of abode' is outside Australia
  7. ATO, Residency: the 183-day test · Australian Taxation Office (ato.gov.au) · read 26 Oct 2026
    Exact words you have no intention to take up residence here
  8. ATO, Residency: the 183-day test · Australian Taxation Office (ato.gov.au) · read 26 Oct 2026
    Exact words The phrase is interpreted as the abode customarily or commonly used by you when you are physically in a country.
  9. ATO, Australian resident for tax purposes · Australian Taxation Office (ato.gov.au) · read 26 Oct 2026
    Exact words There are 4 statutory tests to determine your residency:
  10. ATO, Australian resident for tax purposes · Australian Taxation Office (ato.gov.au) · read 26 Oct 2026
    Exact words Resides test Domicile test 183-day test The Commonwealth Superannuation test.
  11. ATO, Australian resident for tax purposes · Australian Taxation Office (ato.gov.au) · read 26 Oct 2026
    Exact words If you're an Australian resident for tax purposes, you must declare all income you've earned in Australia and overseas.
Checked against Australian Taxation Office (ato.gov.au) on 26 Oct 2026 Updated 26 Oct 2026

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