How to Apply for an Australian Tax File Number

The first pay slip came in short, or payroll asked for a number nobody mentioned before the flight. The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) defines a tax file number (TFN) as your personal reference number for tax and superannuation; without one an employer must withhold more tax. The ATO issues it free, online, in about 20 minutes, never through an agency, a fee, or an email.

Confirm you can use the foreign passport holder route

Temporary visitors and migrants in Australia with a valid work rights visa apply through Individual Auto-Registration (IAR), described on the ATO's permanent migrants and temporary visitors TFN page. Working holiday visas (417 and 462) qualify; it is free, nothing is posted, and you must already be in Australia. Visas carrying condition 8101, 8103, or 8116 (no work) cannot use IAR.

Gather the details the form asks for

The ATO's online TFN registration instructions list what you need: passport number and country, names and date of birth exactly as printed, other names, spouse details, existing TFN or ABN, phone, email, and two addresses. The postal address must be in Australia, where the TFN letter goes; the home address cannot be a post office box. Set the device to an Australian time zone first, or submission can fail.

Submit the application and keep the receipt ID

Start from the Apply online for a TFN using the IAR link on that page. The screens run Identification, Tax file number, Address, Contact, then Summary, where you tick the declaration and select Submit. Write down the ATO receipt ID on the results screen; it is needed to chase the application and later to prove identity.

Tell payroll you have applied, then wait up to 28 days

The TFN is posted within 28 days; do not lodge a second application, and chase after 28 days with the receipt ID. The ATO's payer information and obligations page says a worker who ticks on the TFN declaration that they have applied has 28 days to supply the number, with tax withheld at the standard rate meanwhile and the top rate after that. So complete the declaration on day one and hand over the number when the letter lands.

Link the ATO to myGov once the letter arrives

Follow the myGov help page for linking the ATO: sign in, open View and link services, select Link next to Australian Taxation Office, confirm your details, and answer identity questions. The ATO's linking information list accepts the TFN application receipt and the travel document you applied with; its linking page notes that a secret-question sign-in cannot link, so use myID, a passkey, an authenticator, or SMS. Once linked, the myGov TFN page shows Find my TFN.

If you are an Australian citizen or resident. Use the free Australian residents TFN application instead, via Australia Post, a Services Australia office, or paper form.

If someone wants a fee, or an email asks for your TFN. The ATO's verify or report a scam page says it never asks for a TFN, bank details, or myGov login by email, and never charges a fee to release a refund. Its scam safety page adds that a TFN goes only to those with a legitimate need: your employer, bank, or tax agent.

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