How do I set up a Working Holiday Maker?¶

A Working Holiday Maker (WHM) is a worker on a subclass 417 or 462 visa. Setting one up correctly means keeping a few details in step across two tabs — if they don't match, the ATO rejects the pay run, or tax is withheld at the wrong rate. Work through the steps below and the employee's Readiness badge will tell you when everything lines up.

Step 1. Set the income type on the Employment tab¶

Open the employee under Payroll → Employees, go to the Employment tab and set Income Type to Working Holiday Makers.

The Employment Type stays Employee — a Working Holiday Maker is your employee, not a contractor.

Step 2. Set the Country of Income¶

Once the income type is Working Holiday Makers, a Country of Income field appears on the same tab. Choose the worker's home country (for example, the country on their passport).

This is required for WHM — the pay run can't be finalised without it, and leaving it blank is one of the most common causes of a rejected lodgement.

Step 3. Match the tax category on the Tax tab¶

Go to the Tax tab and set Tax Category to H - Working Holiday Maker. This is the step people miss: the income type and the tax category must both point at "Working Holiday Maker". If one says WHM and the other doesn't, the ATO rejects the submission.

Then choose the Tax Scale that fits:

Registered Employer — you're registered with the ATO as a WHM employer (see Step 5).
Unregistered Employer — you're not registered, so foreign resident rates apply.
Foreign Resident No TFN — the worker hasn't provided a Tax File Number.

Step 4. Enter the Tax File Number¶

Still on the Tax tab, enter the worker's TFN. Without a TFN, tax is withheld at the highest flat rate — so add it as soon as the worker provides it.

Step 5. Register as a WHM employer (once per business)¶

To use the registered Working Holiday Maker rate, your business must be registered with the ATO as a WHM employer. Turn this on under Payroll → Settings in the Working Holiday Maker (WHM) section — switch on Registered WHM employer with the ATO.

If you're not registered, leave it off and pick Unregistered Employer as the tax scale in Step 3. The app explains the difference on the settings card.

Registration is with the ATO, not in myaccountant. Turning the switch on tells myaccountant you've already registered with the ATO. If you haven't, register with the ATO first.

Step 6. Check the Readiness badge¶

Back on the Employees list, each employee shows a Readiness badge. For a Working Holiday Maker it flags, among other things:

Income type and tax category don't match — one says Working Holiday Maker and the other doesn't. Fix whichever is wrong (Step 1 or Step 3).
No TFN — add it (Step 4).
Business not registered as a WHM employer — register and switch it on, or use the Unregistered Employer scale (Step 5).

Clear these before you finalise the pay run and your STP lodgement will go through cleanly.

Understand the concepts (Academy):

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