An Australian-resident OnlyFans creator pays ordinary income tax on taxable income, which is creator earnings after platform fees and business deductions plus any other income, and a Medicare levy on top. For 2026-27 the ATO's resident tax rates charge nothing on the first $18,200, 15c for each dollar from $18,201 to $45,000 and 30c from $45,001 to $135,000, rising to 37c and then 45c above $190,000, and the same page notes a separate Medicare levy of 2%. There is no special creator rate and no single percentage that fits everyone, so the worksheet below turns your own figures into an estimate and a weekly amount to put aside.
The resident rates for the two years that matter now
Two income years are live at once. The return due by 31 October 2026 covers 2025-26, unless a registered tax agent's lodgment program gives you longer, while the money you are earning now falls in 2026-27, so use the older column to check a bill you are about to receive and the newer one to plan set-asides. The ATO says these rates apply if you were an Australian resident for tax purposes for the full year and entitled to the full tax-free threshold, and that they exclude the Medicare levy and the Medicare levy surcharge.
| Taxable income | Tax for 2026-27 | Tax for 2025-26 | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 to $18,200 | Nil | Nil | ATO resident rates |
| $18,201 to $45,000 | 15c for each $1 over $18,200 | 16c for each $1 over $18,200 | ATO resident rates |
| $45,001 to $135,000 | $4,020 plus 30c for each $1 over $45,000 | $4,288 plus 30c for each $1 over $45,000 | ATO resident rates |
| $135,001 to $190,000 | $31,020 plus 37c for each $1 over $135,000 | $31,288 plus 37c for each $1 over $135,000 | ATO resident rates |
| $190,001 and over | $51,370 plus 45c for each $1 over $190,000 | $51,638 plus 45c for each $1 over $190,000 | ATO resident rates |
Read the bands as steps, not as a rate on everything. Each extra dollar in the 30c band costs 30c of income tax plus 2c of Medicare levy, and only the dollars above $135,000 move to 37c, as the same ATO table shows. That is why the share of a creator's whole income going to tax rises gradually rather than jumping when a threshold is crossed.
Medicare levy and what the quick calculators leave out
The ATO's page explaining what the Medicare levy is puts it at 2% of taxable income, with reductions or exemptions possible depending on your and your spouse's income and circumstances. The Medicare levy surcharge is a separate amount that may apply on top, depending on your personal circumstances; check it on the ATO's surcharge pages rather than guessing.
The ATO's own tools have gaps worth knowing. Its simple tax calculator works out tax on taxable income before offsets, leaves out the Medicare levy, the surcharge and study loan repayments, and, when checked, covered income years up to 2025-26 only, so it cannot yet price the current year. The fuller income tax estimator brings in the surcharge, study loan repayments and offsets, but its limitations say it cannot be used if you had income subject to averaging.
Estimate worksheet
Work through the lines once with last year's figures to check the method, then again with a forecast for this year. Every amount should be in Australian dollars.
- Line A, gross creator income. Subscriptions, pay-per-view, messages, tips, brand deals, affiliate income and the market value of non-cash items, as set out in our guide to gifts and barter income.
- Line B, platform fees. Take them from your statements. OnlyFans' contract between fan and creator defines its fee as 20% of all fan payments; if you already record only the net amount credited to you as income, skip this line rather than subtracting the fee twice. Our OnlyFans calculator shows the fee maths.
- Line C, other business expenses. Only the business share, worked out with the method in our creator deduction worksheet.
- Line D, business profit. A minus B minus C.
- Line E, other income. Wages, interest and anything else taxable, less any other deductions you claim.
- Line F, taxable income. D plus E.
- Line G, income tax. Apply the band from the rates table above that contains F.
- Line H, Medicare levy. F multiplied by 2%, the rate on the ATO's Medicare levy page, unless a reduction or exemption applies.
- Line I, credits already paid. Tax withheld from wages, PAYG instalments paid during the year and offsets such as a foreign income tax offset for US tax withheld.
- Line J, estimated amount still to pay. G plus H minus I.
- Line K, set-aside per week. J divided by the weeks you have left to save; the ATO's own PAYG instalment example divides an annual estimate by 52 to get a weekly figure.
If you are registered for GST, keep the GST you collect out of line A altogether. The ATO's assessable income page says gross income does not include GST, and that money belongs on your BAS rather than in your spending account.
One deduction sits outside the business and belongs on line E: personal super contributions. The ATO's page on super for sole traders says self-employed people do not have to pay super guarantee for themselves, can choose to contribute, and in most cases can claim a deduction for personal contributions until they turn 75, while contributions above the yearly cap may attract extra tax. Check the cap and the paperwork your fund needs before you count a contribution in the estimate.
Where creator tax estimates usually go wrong
- Starting from bank deposits. Wallet balances, fees and US tax withheld at source mean deposits rarely equal income; declare what you earned and claim any offset separately, as our YouTube tax guide for Australians shows line by line.
- Subtracting the platform fee twice. If your statement already shows earnings after the fee, the fee is not a second deduction.
- Leaving out goods and trips. Non-cash income raises taxable income just as cash does, so a quiet cash year with a busy gifting calendar can still produce a bill.
- Using the wrong year's table. As the ATO rates page shows, the first taxed band and the base amounts above it differ between 2025-26 and 2026-27, so a set-aside built on last year's figures drifts.
- Forgetting the extras. Study loan repayments and the Medicare levy surcharge sit outside the rates table; the ATO's income tax estimator includes both if they apply to you.
Placeholder worked example
The letters stand in for your own figures. The formula on line G is only valid when taxable income falls in the 30c band of the 2026-27 resident rates; use the matching row of the rates table for any other band or year.
| Line | Placeholder or formula | Note |
|---|---|---|
| A, gross creator income | GROSS | All platforms and deals, converted to dollars |
| B, platform fees | FEES | Zero if you already report net payouts |
| C, other expenses | COSTS | Business share only |
| D, business profit | PROFIT = GROSS minus FEES minus COSTS | Can be a loss in a start-up year |
| F, taxable income | TI = PROFIT plus OTHER | OTHER is line E |
| G, income tax | $4,020 plus 0.30 times (TI minus $45,000) | Valid from $45,001 to $135,000 on the 2026-27 table |
| H, Medicare levy | 0.02 times TI | Before any reduction, per the ATO levy page |
| I, credits | PAID | Wage withholding, instalments, offsets |
| J, still to pay | G plus H minus PAID | Below zero means credits exceed the estimate, though non-refundable offsets cannot create a refund |
| K, weekly set-aside | J divided by WEEKS | WEEKS is the time left before the bill |
For a forecast of line A itself, our payout forecast worksheet builds one from your own assumptions, and our gross versus net explainer shows where agency fees fit if you use one.
From estimate to PAYG instalments
Business income arrives without tax taken out, which is why the ATO steers creators towards PAYG instalments. Under the ATO's entry rules, an individual enters automatically with instalment income of $4,000 or more, tax payable of $1,000 or more and notional tax of $500 or more on their latest return, and anyone new to business or expecting to cross those lines can opt in early. Instalments paid during the year are offset against the tax assessed when you lodge.
Most people pay quarterly, on 28 October, 28 February, 28 April and 28 July according to the ATO's instalment due dates. The same page offers some special professionals, including performing artists, the option of two instalments: 75% of the year's total by 28 April and the rest by 28 July.
Income averaging: raise it, do not assume it
Income averaging can lower the tax on an unusually good year for special professionals. The ATO's 2026 guide to special professionals counts as a performing artist someone who uses intellectual, artistic, musical, physical or other personal skills in the presence of an audience, or who performs or appears in a film, on tape or disc, or in a broadcast, and its eligibility page says eligibility begins in the first year taxable professional income exceeds $2,500.
Whether a creator's income fits is far from settled. An edited private ruling from December 2021, now archived, answered yes for one influencer who appeared online, but the ATO's note on that record says archived edited advice should not be regarded as indicative of its current views and cannot be relied on. Ask your agent whether averaging applies to any of your income before you plan around it.
Limitations of this estimate
An estimate is only as good as the figures you enter, and this one assumes a full-year Australian resident trading as a sole trader with no unusual offsets, study loan repayments or surcharge. It uses ATO rates and pages checked on 1 October 2026; future rate changes, residency changes and part-year thresholds are outside it, as are companies, whose different rates and rules are compared in our guide to the sole trader or company decision. For the obligations around the bill, such as GST, ABN and lodgment, start from the Australian OnlyFans tax overview. A registered tax agent, whose registration you can confirm on the Tax Practitioners Board register, can turn the estimate into a lodged return and an instalment plan.