← All posts

Chef salary in Australia in pounds: award pay from £539 a week, and a higher floor if sponsored

Tips · 2026-10-24 · 10 min read

A chef salary in Australia, in pounds, starts at about £539 a week for a grade 1 cook and rises to about £640 for a chef de partie under the Hospitality Award minimums from 1 July 2026. A sponsored chef role on the Core Skills route has to pay far more than that: at least AUD79,423 a year, roughly £41,600. Here are the grades, casual and super rules, and the UK costs that take a slice.

All the pound figures are rough comparisons at the Reserve Bank of Australia rate of 22 October 2026 (0.5238 pounds per Australian dollar). Rates change, so check the RBA exchange rate table before you compare an offer.

Where kitchen pay in Australia comes from

Most employees in Australia have their minimum wage set by the award for their industry or occupation, and award rates may be higher than the National Minimum Wage. For cooks and chefs that is usually the Hospitality Industry (General) Award 2020.

The Fair Work Commission raised modern award wages by 4.75 per cent in its Annual Wage Review 2026, announced on 2 June 2026 and effective from 1 July 2026. Fair Work says most of these changes start from the first full pay period on or after 1 July.

For comparison, the National Minimum Wage is AUD26.44 an hour or AUD1,004.90 a week from 1 July 2026, about £13.85 an hour or £526 a week. That weekly figure is based on 38 ordinary hours, the same full-time week the award grades use.

Hospitality Award cook and chef grades, converted to pounds

These are the full-time minimum rates in the award, with amendments up to 1 July 2026. You can read the grades yourself in the Hospitality Industry (General) Award 2020.

The step from cook to commis chef is the step into the tradesperson grades, so the work you actually did matters. These are floors, not offers: an employer can pay above the award, and a sponsored role usually has to.

Over a full year, a commis chef on the minimum earns about AUD58,193, roughly £30,482. A chef de partie on the minimum earns about AUD63,497, roughly £33,260. Sous chef and head chef pay sits above these grades, so judge each offer on its own figures.

Hours, casual work and penalty rates

Under the National Employment Standards, an employee can work a maximum of 38 hours a week unless the employer asks for reasonable extra hours. Ask how extra hours are paid before you sign.

Casual staff do not get paid annual leave, while full-time and part-time staff get 4 weeks a year. In return, casuals are paid a loading. The National Minimum Wage Order sets a 25 per cent casual loading for award-free employees; at that rate a commis chef's AUD29.45 would become about AUD36.81 an hour, roughly £19.28. Treat that as a rough guide only and check the award's own casual rate for your grade.

Weekend, public holiday and late-night work can pay more under the award. Talynx has a plain guide to what weekend and late shifts should pay in Australia, which is worth reading before you agree to a roster.

Sponsored chef roles: the pay floor is higher

If you want to stay longer than a working holiday allows, the usual route is employer sponsorship on the Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482). Our guide to the 482 visa for people in the UK covers the whole route.

In the Core Skills stream, the worker must be nominated in an occupation on the Core Skills Occupation List and paid the Annual Market Salary Rate for that occupation, and no less than the Core Skills Income Threshold (CSIT). Home Affairs sets the CSIT at AUD79,423 for nominations lodged from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027. The Home Affairs salary requirements page sets out these rules, and the official occupation list shows whether your occupation is on the CSOL.

In pounds, that threshold is roughly £41,600 a year, or about AUD1,527 a week (about £800). That is about AUD15,926 a year above the chef de partie award minimum. So if a sponsored offer is quoted at award rates, ask how it meets the threshold before you go further.

Senior kitchen roles are the ones most likely to clear that bar. Our live listings include a chef de partie and sous chef role in Sydney and a chef job in Brisbane; read each ad for its pay and sponsorship terms.

For UK passport holders the English side is simpler: subclass 482 applicants holding a UK passport are exempt from the English test. Your trade is a different question. The UK is on Trades Recognition Australia's Offshore Skills Assessment Program country list for Chef and Cook, and our post on skills assessment for Australia from the UK explains when one is needed.

What comes out of the pay packet

Superannuation is paid by the employer on top of wages, at 12.00% from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027. On a chef de partie's award minimum for a full year, that is about AUD7,620 into a super fund.

Tax depends on your visa. On a working holiday, the latest working holiday maker rates on the ATO page (2025-26) are 15c for each $1 up to $45,000, then $6,750 plus 30c for each $1 over $45,000. On those rates, a full year as a commis chef on the minimum would mean about AUD10,708 in tax. Residents are taxed on the 2026-27 resident rates, which start with nil up to $18,200, plus the Medicare levy of 2%.

gov.uk says the UK has a double taxation agreement with Australia, so you do not pay tax on the same income in both countries, and you will need an Australian tax file number. You can apply for one online once you are in Australia with work rights; it is free and should arrive within 28 days.

A student loan is the cost many people forget. Your plan depends on where and when you studied. For a Plan 2 loan, the 2026-27 overseas lower threshold for Australia is £29,385.00, and a commis chef's yearly award minimum of about £30,482 is already above it. Check the Plan 2 overseas thresholds before you budget.

How to compare an Australian kitchen offer with your UK pay

1. Find the award grade. Match your duties to the grade in the table, not just the job title, and note the weekly and hourly minimum.
2. Check the offer against it. Full-time, part-time or casual? How many hours? Is the pay above the award, and are weekends and late shifts paid at higher rates?
3. If the job is sponsored, compare the yearly salary with the CSIT of AUD79,423 and ask the employer how the Annual Market Salary Rate was set.
4. Convert at today's rate. Use the RBA table, not an old figure, and remember super is on top, not inside the salary.
5. Take off tax and UK costs. Use the ATO rates for your visa, and check your student loan plan and threshold.
6. Get your kitchen history ready. Build AI CV can help you set out your sections, stations and service in a CV that Australian head chefs can read quickly, and a Talent Tabloid profile lets you show verified work history.

If you are going on a working holiday first, our working holiday budget in pounds sets these wages against your first weeks' costs. Kitchen work found on a working holiday can also lead somewhere: see what UK workers on a 417 should check before asking about sponsorship.

A quick look at New Zealand

New Zealand works differently. From 1 April 2026 its adult minimum wage is NZD23.95 an hour before tax, roughly £10.17 using the RBA rates of 22 October 2026, and the immigration median wage is NZD35.00 an hour, roughly £14.86. Since 9 March 2026 Immigration New Zealand has recognised chef roles split by skill and seniority under the National Occupation List for AEWV applications. Our comparison of moving to Australia or New Zealand from the UK covers the wider choice.

Common mistakes UK chefs make with Australian pay

• Comparing an Australian hourly rate with UK take-home pay. Compare before-tax with before-tax, then add super to the Australian side.
• Assuming a job title sets the grade. The award grade follows the work and skills, so a "chef" doing cook grade 2 duties may be paid at that grade.
• Accepting a sponsored offer at award rates without asking how it meets the CSIT.
• Forgetting the casual trade-off: a higher hourly rate, but no paid annual leave.
• Not telling the Student Loans Company about the move, which can build up arrears.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a chef earn in Australia in pounds?

Under the Hospitality Award, the minimum for a commis chef is AUD1,119.10 a week from 1 July 2026, about £586 at the RBA rate of 22 October 2026. A chef de partie's minimum is AUD1,221.10, about £640. Employers can pay more, and many sponsored roles must.

What is the minimum pay for a sponsored chef job in Australia?

In the Core Skills stream of the Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482), the worker must be paid the Annual Market Salary Rate for the occupation and no less than the Core Skills Income Threshold. That threshold is AUD79,423 for nominations lodged from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027, roughly £41,600.

Do casual cooks in Australia get paid more per hour?

Casual staff usually get a loading instead of paid annual leave, which casual employees do not get. The National Minimum Wage Order sets 25 per cent for award-free staff, so check the Hospitality Award or the Fair Work pay guide for the casual rate that applies to your shift.

Is superannuation included in an Australian chef salary?

No. Super is paid by the employer on top of wages, at the general super guarantee rate of 12.00% from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027. Your pay slip should show your earnings, the tax taken and the super paid.

Will my UK student loan follow me to an Australian kitchen?

It can. You must tell the Student Loans Company if you leave the UK for more than 3 months, and you are expected to keep repaying unless you prove your overseas income is below the threshold. For a Plan 2 loan in Australia the 2026-27 lower threshold is £29,385.00.

Key takeaways

• Hospitality Award minimums from 1 July 2026 run from AUD1,029.10 a week (about £539) for a grade 1 cook to AUD1,221.10 (about £640) for a chef de partie.
• Sponsored Core Skills roles must pay at least AUD79,423 a year, roughly £41,600, and the market rate for the occupation.
• Super at 12.00% is paid on top of wages; casuals get a loading instead of paid annual leave.
• Budget for Australian tax and, if you have one, your UK student loan.
• Pound figures are rough comparisons at the 22 October 2026 RBA rate; check the rate on the day you compare.

#chef salary australia #cook wages australia #hospitality award #commis chef pay #uk chefs #sponsored chef jobs