How Old Do You Have to Be to Work in Australia? By State

There is no single national answer to how old you have to be to work in Australia. Each state and territory sets its own minimum working age, and most young people can start some form of paid work somewhere between 11 and 15, depending on where they live and the kind of job. Certain high-risk and licensed roles have a hard floor of 18 everywhere in the country. The Fair Work Act 2009 covers wages, leave, and unfair dismissal, but it does not set a minimum age. That is left to the states.¹

Minimum Working Age in Each State and Territory

The rules below cover general employment. Entertainment work, family businesses, and hazardous work carry separate requirements, and parental consent is usually required for anyone under 15 or 16.

New South Wales

NSW has no blanket minimum age for most jobs. Children over 10 can work outside school hours, capped at 10 hours per week and no more than 4 hours on any school day. Some regulated activities need an employer’s authority. Door-to-door sales have their own floor: a worker must be at least 14 years and 9 months old.²

Victoria

Employers in Victoria need a Child Employment Licence to hire anyone under 15, paid or unpaid. Within that system, children as young as 11 can deliver newspapers and advertising material, and those 13 and over can work in retail, hospitality, and other general roles. Parents employing their own child in the family business are exempt from the licence and from the standard hours and breaks rules.³

Queensland

Queensland’s general minimum age is 13. Children as young as 11 can do delivery work under adult supervision between 6 am and 6 pm.⁴ Once employed, children aged 13 and over cannot work between 10 pm and 6 am.⁵

Western Australia

The minimum age for general employment (retail, fast food, cafés, newspaper delivery) is 13. An employer can only hire a 13- or 14-year-old with written permission from a parent. Children of any age can work in a family business, in entertainment, or for charities and not-for-profits, as long as school attendance is not affected.⁶

South Australia

South Australia does not specify a minimum age for casual or part-time work. The core rule is that it is unlawful to employ a child in work that would make them unfit to attend school or benefit from attending. Some industrial awards also restrict what workers under 18 can do.

Tasmania

There is no set minimum age for casual or part-time work in Tasmania, but young workers cannot be employed during school or training hours without an approved exemption. Some jobs have their own age rules; you must be 18 to work behind a bar, for example.

Northern Territory

The NT has no legislated minimum working age, but anyone under 15 is limited to safe, age-appropriate work like babysitting, helping in a family business, or delivering newspapers. It is illegal for anyone under 15 to work between 10 pm and 6 am.⁷

Australian Capital Territory

The ACT sets no specific minimum age, but a High Risk Employment Permit is required to employ anyone under 15 in high-risk work. That category includes dangerous machinery or substances, toxic chemicals, work at heights, heavy construction, and serving alcohol or providing gaming services.⁸ Outside those categories, children under 15 are generally limited to light work with adult supervision.

Work That Requires You to Be 18 Anywhere in Australia

Some roles have national age floors that override the state rules, because the work itself carries risks the law will not let younger people take on.

High-Risk Work Licences

You must be at least 18 to hold a high-risk work licence anywhere in the country. That licence covers operating forklifts, cranes, hoists, reach stackers, boom-type elevating work platforms, scaffolding, and dogging and rigging.⁹ There is no workaround. A 17-year-old cannot legally operate a forklift regardless of experience or employer sign-off.

Construction Sites

To enter a construction site in any capacity you need a general construction induction card, known as a White Card. The minimum age to hold one is 14.¹⁰ A White Card only gets you on site; any high-risk work still needs the separate licence, which means 18.

Serving Alcohol

The legal drinking age is 18 across Australia, and licensed venue rules reflect that. Workers under 18 can hold jobs in licensed venues (running food, clearing tables, working in the kitchen) but generally cannot serve or supply alcohol directly. Some jurisdictions draw a hard line at 18 for any bar work. Anyone who does serve alcohol must complete Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) training.

Entertainment: The Age-Zero Exception

Child performers are the notable exception to age minimums. Most states allow children of any age to work in film, television, theatre, and modelling, but the conditions are strict. In NSW, children aged 8 to 15 in entertainment can work up to 8 hours a day, no more than 5 days a week, only between 6 am and 11 pm, with a mandatory one-hour break after every 4 hours. Babies under 12 weeks require specific permission. Employers usually need a permit and written consent from a parent or guardian.¹¹ Victoria has no age floor for entertainment either, but requires a Child Employment Licence.³ Creative Workplaces sets national guidance capping children under 15 at 10 hours per week total across all employers, with daily limits of 3 hours for those under 3, 4 hours for ages 4 to 12, and 6 hours for ages 12 to 14.¹²

When You Can Actually Work

Meeting the age minimum is only step one. Every state limits when and how much young people can work, and the common thread is that school comes first.

Not During School Hours

Children generally cannot work during school hours. In Victoria, students doing entertainment work during school hours need a written exemption from school attendance before they start.¹³ The details vary by state, but the principle holds everywhere.

Daily and Weekly Caps

Victoria illustrates how these caps work in practice. During a school term, children under 15 can work a maximum of 3 hours a day and 12 hours a week. During school holidays those rise to 6 hours a day and 30 hours a week.³

Night Work and Breaks

Most states ban late-night work for young workers. Queensland and the Northern Territory both prohibit work between 10 pm and 6 am for anyone under 15, and younger children doing delivery work in Queensland face a tighter 6 pm to 6 am cutoff. In Queensland, a school-aged child must get at least a one-hour break after four hours of work and at least a 12-hour break between shifts for the same employer.⁵

Unpaid Trial Shifts

An employer can ask you to do a short unpaid trial to show you can do the job, but it should only last as long as genuinely needed, anywhere from an hour to a single shift depending on the role. The trial must involve demonstrating skills directly relevant to the vacancy, under direct supervision. If a “trial” runs for a full week, or the employer is having you do productive work rather than showing your abilities, it is almost certainly unlawful and the hours should be paid.¹⁴

Parental Consent and Employer Permits

Several states require the employer to hold a permit or licence before hiring anyone under 15. Victoria’s Child Employment Licence covers both paid and voluntary work, and the employer must also have written parental or guardian consent before the child starts.³ In Western Australia, written parental permission is mandatory for employing 13- or 14-year-olds.⁶ The ACT’s High Risk Employment Permit sits alongside these state schemes for under-15s in higher-risk roles.⁸

Employers must also match tasks to the young worker’s age and maturity, run risk assessments, and provide adequate supervision. Workplace health and safety laws apply to young workers the same way they apply to adults, and workers’ compensation covers minors.

Pay, Tax, and Super for Under-18s

Once you have a job, three practical things change.

Junior Pay Rates

Most modern awards set junior pay rates as a percentage of the adult rate, rising with each birthday. A 17-year-old in retail might earn 60% of the adult rate and jump to 70% at 18. If you are not covered by any award or enterprise agreement, you get a percentage of the National Minimum Wage, which is $24.95 per hour as of 1 July 2025.¹⁵ The exact percentage depends on the award.¹⁶

Tax File Number

Apply for a Tax File Number before you start. Without one, your employer must withhold tax at the top marginal rate. There is a narrow exception for under-18s who have not lodged a TFN declaration: no withholding is required as long as weekly pay stays below $350 (or $700 fortnightly, or $1,517 monthly).¹⁷ Where all your income comes from a job, you are taxed at normal adult rates, so the $18,200 tax-free threshold applies and most young part-time workers owe little or no tax.¹⁸

Superannuation

For workers 18 and over, employers must pay super on all ordinary earnings regardless of hours. For under-18s, super is only compulsory if you work more than 30 hours in a week. The super guarantee rate is 12% for the 2025–26 financial year.¹⁹ If you are under 18 and consistently working fewer than 30 hours a week, your employer legally does not have to contribute to your super.²⁰

If Something Goes Wrong

If an employer is underpaying you, asking you to work unlawful hours, running extended unpaid “trials,” or ignoring safety rules, you can report the situation to the Fair Work Ombudsman. Tip-offs can be made anonymously through their online form, and information may be shared with the relevant state or territory enforcement body.²¹ Each state also has its own workplace safety regulator for health and safety complaints.

1
Fair Work Ombudsman. Minimum Working Age
2
NSW legislation. Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) (Child Employment) Regulation 2015 – Part 4 Door-to-Door Sales
3
Victorian Government. Employing Children Under 15 Years Old
4
Queensland Government. Child Employment Regulation 2016 – Division 1 General Restrictions on Children Working
5
Business Queensland. Restrictions on Children Working in Queensland
6
Government of Western Australia. When Children Can Work in Western Australia
7
NT.GOV.AU. School-Age Children in Jobs
8
Australian Business Licence and Information Service. High Risk Employment Permit – Australian Capital Territory
9
Safe Work Australia. High Risk Work Licences
10
Service NSW. Apply for a General Construction Induction Card (White Card)
11
NSW legislation. Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) (Child Employment) Regulation 2015 – Part 2 Employers, Employer Authorities and Exemptions
12
Creative Workplaces. Employing Children and Young People
13
Department of Education Victoria. Exemption from School Attendance and Enrolment – Policy
14
Fair Work Ombudsman. Unpaid Trials
15
Fair Work Ombudsman. Minimum Wages
16
Fair Work Ombudsman. Junior Pay Rates
17
Australian Taxation Office. Tax File Number and Withholding Declarations
18
Australian Taxation Office. Tax Rates if You Are Under 18 Years Old
19
Australian Taxation Office. Super Guarantee
20
Australian Taxation Office. Work Out if You Have to Pay Super
21
Fair Work Ombudsman. Send Us an Anonymous Tip-Off