Medicare Levy Surcharge Calculator
If you earn above the threshold and don’t have private hospital cover, you pay an extra 1% to 1.5% on top of the Medicare levy. Work out your surcharge as a single or a family, including years when you were covered for only part of the time.
Your surcharge
Medicare levy surcharge, 2026–27
$1,100.00
1% of $110,000.00, about $91.67 a month.
- Your income for surcharge purposes
- $110,000.00
- Single threshold
- $105,000
- Tier
- Tier 1 (1%)
- Charged on: taxable income plus fringe benefits
- $110,000.00
- Days without hospital cover
- 365 of 365
- Surcharge
- $1,100.00
The surcharge is on top of the 2% Medicare levy. Appropriate hospital cover for you and all your dependants for the whole year means you don’t pay it.
Rates checked 12 October 2026 against the ATO · How we calculate · Calculated in your browser; nothing you enter is sent anywhere.
How the surcharge works
The Medicare levy surcharge is meant to encourage higher earners to take out private hospital cover. You pay it for each day of the year that you, your spouse or any dependent child did not have appropriate hospital cover, if your income for surcharge purposes is above the threshold.
- Singles pay from an income of more than $105,000 in 2026–27.
- Families, including single parents, pay when their combined income is more than $210,000, plus $1,500 for each dependent child after the first.
- The rate, from 1% to 1.5%, depends on your tier, and is charged on your taxable income plus any reportable fringe benefits.
On $110,000 as a single with no cover all year, the surcharge is $1,100. With no cover for only 92 days, it is $277.26. A family with incomes of $120,000 and $95,000 and 2 children has a threshold of $211,500, and the $120,000 earner pays $1,200.
Surcharge thresholds and rates
| Tier | Singles | Families | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base tier | $105,000 or less | $210,000 or less | 0% |
| Tier 1 | $105,001 – $123,000 | $210,001 – $246,000 | 1% |
| Tier 2 | $123,001 – $164,000 | $246,001 – $328,000 | 1.25% |
| Tier 3 | $164,001 or more | $328,001 or more | 1.5% |
| Tier | Singles | Families | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base tier | $101,000 or less | $202,000 or less | 0% |
| Tier 1 | $101,001 – $118,000 | $202,001 – $236,000 | 1% |
| Tier 2 | $118,001 – $158,000 | $236,001 – $316,000 | 1.25% |
| Tier 3 | $158,001 or more | $316,001 or more | 1.5% |
Family thresholds rise by $1,500 for each dependent child after the first. Source: ATO, Medicare levy surcharge income, thresholds and rates, last updated 22 June 2026.
Income for surcharge purposes
The threshold test uses more than your taxable income. It adds:
- reportable fringe benefits, shown on your income statement;
- reportable super contributions, including salary sacrifice and personal contributions you claim as a deduction;
- net investment losses, such as the loss on a negatively geared property or shares.
So salary sacrificing into super or negative gearing lowers your tax, but does not lower your income for this test. The Medicare levy itself is 2% and is separate; see tax rates.
Frequently asked questions
Does extras cover stop the surcharge?
No. Only appropriate private patient hospital cover counts. Extras-only cover, such as dental or physio, does not, and neither does travel insurance or overseas cover.
Is it cheaper to buy hospital cover than pay the surcharge?
Often, but not always. Compare the surcharge from the calculator with the yearly premium of the cheapest hospital policy that qualifies. On $110,000 as a single, the surcharge is $1,100 a year. If a basic hospital policy costs less than that, buying it saves money, as well as giving you cover.
Do I pay the surcharge if my income is low but my partner earns a lot?
Not if your own income for surcharge purposes is $28,011 or less in 2026–27. For example, with $20,000 of your own income and a spouse on $230,000, the family is above the threshold, but you pay $0. Your spouse still pays on their own income if they have no cover.
Is the surcharge taken out of my pay?
Usually not. Employers withhold for the Medicare levy but not the surcharge, unless you ask them to with a Medicare levy variation declaration. Otherwise it is added when you lodge your tax return, which can turn a refund into a bill.