{"id":"C2004A04002","name":"Remuneration and Allowances Act 1990","slug":"remuneration-and-allowances-act-1990","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"71 of 1990","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":26498,"registerId":"commonwealth-C2004A04002-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-01","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"Part 1","sectionType":"part","heading":"Preliminary","content":"## Part 1—Preliminary","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Short title","content":"#### 1 Short title\n\n This Act may be cited as the Remuneration and Allowances Act 1990.","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"2","sectionType":"section","heading":"Commencement","content":"#### 2 Commencement\n\n (1) Subject to subsection (2), this Act commences on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.\n (2) Part 3 commences on 1 July 1990.","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"Part 2","sectionType":"part","heading":"Remuneration and allowances","content":"## Part 2—Remuneration and allowances","sortOrder":3},{"sectionNumber":"3","sectionType":"section","heading":"Operation of Part","content":"#### 3 Operation of Part\n\n (1) This Part has effect in spite of:\n (a) anything in any Determination of the Remuneration Tribunal made on or before 1 June 1990; or\n (b) any provision of an Act, being a provision providing for the remuneration or allowances of the holder of an office to be determined by the Remuneration Tribunal (including section 21 of the Workplace Relations Act 1996); or\n (c) any provision in the Judicial and Statutory Officers (Remuneration and Allowances) Act 1984 that is inconsistent with this Part.\n (2) Where, after 1 June 1990, the Remuneration Tribunal has made, or makes, a Determination that is inconsistent with a provision of this Act:\n (a) subject to subsection (3), the Determination operates according to its terms in spite of the provision of this Act; and\n (b) the provision of this Act ceases to operate.\n (3) A Determination referred to in subsection (2) that purports to take effect from a day earlier than 1 June 1990 takes effect on 1 June 1990.\n (4) Where a resolution disapproving of a Determination referred to in subsection (2) is passed as mentioned in subsection 7(8) of the Remuneration Tribunal Act 1973, the provision of the Act overridden by the Determination operates with effect from the day on which the resolution is passed.","sortOrder":4},{"sectionNumber":"3A","sectionType":"section","heading":"Operation of Remuneration Tribunal Determination","content":"#### 3A Operation of Remuneration Tribunal Determination\n\n Determination No. 12 of 1994 of the Remuneration Tribunal, dated 30 June 1994, does not operate on or after the date of commencement of this section.","sortOrder":5},{"sectionNumber":"4","sectionType":"section","heading":"Remuneration and allowances of holders of judicial offices etc.","content":"#### 4 Remuneration and allowances of holders of judicial offices etc.\n\n The holders of the offices specified in Schedule 1 are entitled to remuneration and allowances in accordance with the provisions of that Schedule.","sortOrder":6},{"sectionNumber":"5","sectionType":"section","heading":"Remuneration and allowances of Secretaries of Departments and holders of public offices","content":"#### 5 Remuneration and allowances of Secretaries of Departments and holders of public offices\n\n The holders of the offices specified in Schedule 2 are entitled to remuneration and allowances in accordance with the provisions of that Schedule.","sortOrder":7},{"sectionNumber":"8","sectionType":"section","heading":"Appropriation","content":"#### 8 Appropriation\n\n The salaries, allowances and contributions payable under this Act are to be paid out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, and the Fund is accordingly appropriated for that purpose.","sortOrder":8},{"sectionNumber":"8A","sectionType":"section","heading":"Regulations","content":"#### 8A Regulations\n\n The Governor‑General may make regulations prescribing matters:\n (a) required or permitted by this Act to be prescribed; or\n (b) necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying out or giving effect to this Act.","sortOrder":9},{"sectionNumber":"Part 3","sectionType":"part","heading":null,"content":"## Part 3\n\n```html\n

Rate per annum of Salary

Office

from 1.7.90

$

from 1.1.91

$

President of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal

131,734

139,638

President of the Australian Competition Tribunal

131,734

139,638

President of the Law Reform Commission

131,734

139,638

Solicitor‑General

The salary and allowances payable to a Judge of the Federal Court of Australia

\n```","sortOrder":12},{"sectionNumber":"Part 4","sectionType":"part","heading":null,"content":"## Part 4\n\n```html\n

Rate per annum of Salary

Office

from 1.7.90

$

from 1.1.91

$

from 1.7.91

$

Master, Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory

97,590

104,421

111,710

\n```","sortOrder":13},{"sectionNumber":"Part 5","sectionType":"part","heading":null,"content":"## Part 5\n\n| | Rate perannum ofSalary |\n| ------------------------------------------------------------ | ---------------------- |\n| Office | from 1.7.90$ |\n| President, Australian Industrial Relations Commission | 143,789 |\n| Deputy President, Australian Industrial Relations Commission | 131,734 |\n| Commissioner, Australian Industrial Relations Commission | 92,214 |\n\n3. Additional Remuneration\n\nA Judge who is also Aboriginal Land Commissioner, Chairperson of the Australian Electoral Commission, Chief Judge of the Supreme Court of Norfolk Island, President of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, President of the Law Reform Commission or President of the Australian Competition Tribunal is to receive $750 per annum in addition to the rate per annum of salary of the office of Judge.\n\n4. High Court Canberra Allowance\n\nAn allowance at the rate of $16,524 per annum is payable from 5 December 1989 to the Chief Justice and Justices of the High Court of Australia who do not establish their places of residence in Canberra.\n\n5. Travelling Allowance\n\nThe rates and conditions of payment of travelling allowance for holders of offices specified in Parts 1 and 2 of clause 2, President of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, President of the Australian Competition Tribunal, President of the Law Reform Commission, President of the Australian Industrial Relations Commission and Deputy Presidents of the Australian Industrial Relations Commission are as determined in Determination No. 3 of 1990 of the Remuneration Tribunal. The rates of payment of travelling allowance for Commissioners of the Australian Industrial Relations Commission are as determined in Determination No. 18 of 1989 of the Remuneration Tribunal. Other office holders are to have the same rates and conditions of payment of travelling allowance as are determined in clause 4.1 of Part 4 of Determination No. 2 of 1990 of the Remuneration Tribunal.\n\n6. Wage Adjustments\n\nThe rates of salary specified in clause 2 are to be adjusted in accordance with safety net review decisions relating to allowances made by the Australian Industrial Relations Commission after the commencement of this Act.\n\n7. Annual Leave Loading\n\nAn annual leave loading is payable to:\n\n(a) the holder of an office specified in Part 4 of clause 2; and\n\n(b) the holder of an office of Commissioner, Australian Industrial Relations Commission;\n\non the same terms and conditions applying to persons engaged under the Public Service Act 1999.","sortOrder":14}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The original 1990 Act appears to have been a time-limited, specific intervention to set judicial and senior executive remuneration at particular rates effective mid-1990. However, the content shows significant expansion and updating over time: references to the 'Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 1)' (a court structure that didn't exist in 1990), the 'Australian Fair Pay Commission' (established 2006), the 'Public Service Act 1999', and offices like 'Director-General of National Intelligence' indicate the legislation has been repeatedly amended to remain current. The inclusion of section 3A specifically nullifying a 1994 Remuneration Tribunal determination also suggests the Act has been used as an ongoing vehicle to override independent pay-setting decisions, expanding beyond its original temporary purpose into a persistent mechanism for controlling senior public sector remuneration."},"complexity_factors":["Multiple overlapping commencement dates (Royal Assent, 1 July 1990, plus specific dates for salary rates)","Complex interaction with Remuneration Tribunal determinations—section 3 creates a hierarchy where the Act overrides some determinations but is itself overridden by later determinations, with exceptions for retrospective effect and parliamentary disallowance","Extensive cross-referencing to external instruments (Remuneration Tribunal Determinations No. 2 of 1990, No. 3 of 1990, No. 18 of 1989, etc.) without reproducing their content","Multiple schedules with different salary structures and adjustment mechanisms (some tied to Fair Pay Commission decisions, others to Safety Net Review decisions, others to Public Service Act conditions)","Conditional logic for allowances (e.g., District Allowance only applies if office is in a classified region; annual leave loading only for specific office holders)","Fragmented presentation with HTML table markup embedded in the legislative text, making it harder to parse than standard legislative formatting"],"plain_english_summary":"This law sets the salaries and allowances for some of Australia's most senior public officials. It covers:\n\n**Who gets paid under this Act:**\n- **High Court judges** (the Chief Justice and other Justices)\n- **Federal Court judges** and senior judges of the Family Court\n- **Senior tribunal heads** (like the President of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal)\n- **Secretaries of government departments** (the top public servants in each department)\n- **Other senior public office holders** (like the Defence Force chiefs, the Auditor-General, the Tax Commissioner, and heads of agencies like ASIO and the ABC)\n\n**What it does:**\n- **Fixes specific dollar amounts** for salaries, with different rates applying from 1 July 1990 and 1 January 1991 (and in some cases 1 July 1991)\n- **Overrides other decisions**: The Act generally takes precedence over decisions made by the Remuneration Tribunal (the independent body that usually sets public sector pay) for the offices listed\n- **Includes extras**: Some office holders get additional payments—like a $750 annual bonus for judges who also chair certain commissions, a Canberra allowance for High Court judges who don't live there, and annual leave loading for some positions\n- **Provides for wage adjustments**: Some salaries are adjusted based on broader wage-setting decisions by industrial relations bodies\n- **Pays for travel**: Sets out how travelling allowances work, usually by referencing Remuneration Tribunal determinations\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThis Act ensures transparency about what Australia's most senior judges, public servants, and agency heads earn. It also establishes a hierarchy of pay that reflects the seniority and responsibility of different roles. By setting these salaries in legislation rather than leaving them entirely to administrative decisions, it provides stability and public accountability for high-level public sector remuneration."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":6,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The version provided shows the Act operating beyond a single static schedule of 1990 salaries. It contains cross‑references to later statutory frameworks and bodies (for example, the Public Service Act 1999 for leave loading and the Australian Fair Pay Commission or 2005 safety‑net decisions for wage adjustments). It also includes a later provision nullifying a specific Remuneration Tribunal Determination (s 3A). Those features indicate the Act’s scope has evolved from simply listing 1990 pay rates to a persistent statutory framework that (a) embeds mechanisms for ongoing adjustment tied to later institutions and decisions and (b) intervenes selectively in Tribunal determinations. In short, the instrument has grown from a one‑off schedule to a hybrid regulatory structure linking parliamentary schedules, Tribunal discretion and later wage‑setting machinery."},"complexity_factors":["Multiple large salary tables across Parts and schedules with staggered effective dates (1 July 1990, 1 Jan 1991, 1 July 1991 etc.)","Cross‑references to external instruments and decision bodies: Remuneration Tribunal Determinations, Public Service Act 1999 terms, safety‑net review decisions, Australian Fair Pay Commission / Australian Industrial Relations Commission decisions","Conditional override mechanics in s 3 (Act displaces pre‑1 June 1990 determinations but can be displaced by later Tribunal Determinations, with anti‑backdating and parliamentary disapproval consequences)","A specific repeal/nullification of a Tribunal Determination (s 3A), creating bespoke exceptions","Delegation of detail to Tribunal Determinations for travelling allowances and other conditions, requiring consultation of multiple documents to determine entitlements","Multiple commencement dates (overall Royal Assent; Part 3 fixed to 1 July 1990) increasing temporal complexity","Reference to later institutions and rules introduced after 1990 (e.g. Public Service Act 1999 and Australian Fair Pay Commission), indicating the Act has been amended or adapted over time","Mix of statutory tables (hard figures) and mechanisms for automatic or tribunal‑driven adjustments (hybrid rules)"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this Act does, in plain English**\n\n- This law fixes the salaries and certain allowances for named Commonwealth offices (judges, heads of courts and tribunals, departmental Secretaries, senior public-office holders and some commission members). Those amounts are listed in the Parts and schedules of the Act (see Parts 2–5 and the Secretaries/Public Offices listings). (see Parts 2–5 and schedules)\n\n- It says those salaries and allowances are to be paid from the Consolidated Revenue Fund (the Commonwealth’s central bank account). (s 8)\n\n- It overrides earlier Remuneration Tribunal determinations that existed up to 1 June 1990 so that the Act’s listed rates take effect instead. However, if the Remuneration Tribunal makes a later Determination that conflicts with the Act, the Tribunal’s Determination will operate and the Act provision will cease to operate (with a rule that any such tribunal Determination cannot be back‑dated earlier than 1 June 1990). This creates a priority rule between the Act and Tribunal determinations. (s 3(1)–(4))\n\n- The Governor‑General may make regulations needed to implement the Act. (s 8A)\n\n- The Act incorporates certain additional payment rules by reference: travelling allowances are paid under particular Tribunal Determinations; some offices get specified additional small annual payments; an allowance for High Court justices who live outside Canberra is specified; and annual leave loading and some wage‑adjustment mechanisms are linked to other instruments or institutions (for example, the Public Service Act, safety‑net review decisions, or later wage‑setting bodies named in the text). (clauses on travelling allowance, Additional Remuneration, High Court Canberra Allowance, wage adjustments, and annual leave loading)\n\n\n**Who is affected**\n\n- Directly: the office‑holders named in the schedules and Parts (High Court justices, Federal Court judges, Chief Justices, Masters, Secretaries of Departments, heads of agencies and the other listed full‑time public offices). They receive the listed salary rates and any specified allowances.\n\n- Indirectly: the Commonwealth (because payments are charged to the Consolidated Revenue Fund) and taxpayers (the public source of those funds). The Remuneration Tribunal and the Governor‑General are affected as decision‑makers under the Act’s interaction rules. Employers outside the Commonwealth are not affected by these salary listings.\n\n\n**How it works, mechanically**\n\n- The Act contains tables that state annual salaries payable to each named office, with effective dates shown (for example, from 1 July 1990, and later dates for staged increases). Those tables are the primary source of the pay rates for the listed offices (Parts 2–5 and Secretary/Public Office Parts).\n\n- In cases where the Remuneration Tribunal has already set rates (before 1 June 1990) the Act displaces those Tribunal determinations for the offices covered (s 3(1)). If the Tribunal subsequently issues an inconsistent Determination (after 1 June 1990), that later Determination takes precedence and the corresponding provision of the Act stops operating (s 3(2)). If Parliament passes a resolution disapproving of such a Tribunal Determination, the Act‑provision that was overridden comes back into force from the day the resolution is passed (s 3(4)). (s 3)\n\n- A particular Tribunal Determination (No. 12 of 1994) is explicitly made inoperative from the commencement of the section that states that (s 3A).\n\n- Travel allowances and district allowances are not set directly in most cases; instead the Act points to specific Remuneration Tribunal Determinations or to the District Allowance rules that apply to public servants and says those same rates/conditions apply. (travelling allowance clauses; district allowance clause)\n\n- Adjustments to the listed rates are tied to separate wage‑setting or safety‑net processes (the Act references later wage‑setting bodies/decisions for ongoing adjustments). That means the Act’s figures are not necessarily fixed permanently; they can be adjusted by the processes the Act references. (clauses on wage adjustments and reference to Public Service Act for leave loading)\n\n\n**Stated purpose and an analytical check**\n\n- The instrument’s stated purpose is to set and prescribe remuneration and allowances for specified Commonwealth offices (this is the operative effect throughout the Parts and schedules).\n\n- Tests against costs and incentives:\n - Who pays: salaries and allowances are paid from the Consolidated Revenue Fund (s 8). That is a public cost borne by the Commonwealth budget.\n - Who decides: the Act itself sets initial rates; the Remuneration Tribunal can later alter them by Determination and thereby displace the Act provision (s 3). The Governor‑General may make implementing regulations (s 8A). That design splits authority between Parliament (which legislates the tabled rates) and the Remuneration Tribunal (which can vary rates later), creating a two‑tier decision structure.\n - Behavioural effect: named office‑holders receive fixed, listed pay and specified allowances; the combination of statutory tables and tribunal powers constrains how pay can change — either by the statutory route (Parliamentary amendment) or by Tribunal Determination. For recruitment and retention, predictable pay schedules and linkage to wage‑setting processes can reduce uncertainty for incumbents.\n\n- Trade‑offs and implementation issues:\n - Cost vs flexibility: the Act gives Parliament a clear, transparent list of rates (easy to audit), but it also enables the Remuneration Tribunal to override those rates later (flexibility). That creates a trade‑off between legislative certainty and delegated adjustment power (s 3).\n - Administrative burden: the Act relies heavily on Remuneration Tribunal Determinations and other instruments (travel allowance Determinations, Public Service Act terms). Administration therefore requires coordination between the Tribunal, relevant agencies, and the Treasury for payments and adjustments.\n - Timing and backdating: the Act prevents the Tribunal from back‑dating an overriding Determination to earlier than 1 June 1990 (s 3(3)), reducing retroactive pay changes but preserving the Tribunal’s post‑June 1990 authority.\n - Concentrated benefits/diffuse costs: benefits (salary increases or allowances) go to a relatively small, named group of office‑holders; the cost is borne by the general revenue (a diffuse payer). That is a straightforward distributional fact embedded in the structure (s 8 and the schedules).\n\n\n**Concrete compliance and discretion notes**\n\n- The Remuneration Tribunal retains discretion to change pay for these offices after 1 June 1990 and, when it does, its Determination can displace the Act’s provision (s 3(2)). But Parliament retains a check via the disallowance procedure referenced (s 3(4)).\n\n- The Act delegates implementation detail for some allowances to Tribunal Determinations and to the Public Service rules (for leave loading and district allowance). That reduces duplication of detail in the Act but requires users to consult multiple instruments to know the full payment entitlements. (clauses on travelling allowance, leave loading, district allowance)\n\n\n**Sections to look at if you need the source lines**\n\n- Overriding and interaction with Tribunal Determinations: section 3 (and section 3A for a specific Determination).\n- Appropriation (who pays): section 8.\n- Regulation‑making: section 8A.\n- Salary and allowance tables and office lists: the Parts and schedules (Parts 2–5, Secretaries/Public Offices lists) and the clauses that define travelling allowance, additional remuneration, wage adjustments and leave loading.\n\n\nSummary conclusion (descriptive): The Act is a statutory schedule of pay and allowances for named Commonwealth offices, combined with rules that make those rates operational (funding, implementing regulations) and that define how future Tribunal determinations and other wage‑setting processes interact with the statutory listings. (s 3; s 8; schedules)\n"},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"summary":{"complexity_score":6,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The Act's original scope was to set fixed transitional salary rates for senior officials at a point in time (mid-1990). However, through amendments — notably section 3A invalidating a specific 1994 Tribunal determination, and the addition of the Australian Fair Pay Commission reference replacing the original wage-adjustment mechanism — the scope has shifted from a purely transitional instrument to one with ongoing operational effect as a framework law governing the relationship between legislative salary-setting and Tribunal determinations."},"complexity_factors":["Multiple interacting legal instruments — the Act's provisions can be switched on or off depending on subsequent Remuneration Tribunal determinations and Parliamentary resolutions, creating a dynamic hierarchy of authority","Cross-references to numerous other Acts and Tribunal determinations (e.g., Remuneration Tribunal Act 1973, Judicial and Statutory Officers Act 1984, Workplace Relations Act 1996, multiple numbered Tribunal Determinations)","Multiple effective dates across different parts and salary tables (1.7.90, 1.1.91, 1.7.91, 5.12.89) requiring careful date-tracking","The override mechanism in sections 3(2)–3(4) creates a conditional, self-modifying legal structure that is non-intuitive — provisions of the Act can lapse and revive depending on external events","Large volume of specific offices and salary figures across multiple schedules requiring comparison and cross-referencing","References to now-abolished bodies (e.g., Australian Industrial Relations Commission, Australian Wheat Board, Pipeline Authority) adding historical interpretation complexity","Salary adjustment clauses tied to external wage-setting decisions by bodies that have since been restructured or replaced"],"plain_english_summary":"## What This Law Does\n\nThe **Remuneration and Allowances Act 1990** is a federal law that sets the pay rates and allowances for some of Australia's most senior public officials — including **judges, department heads (Secretaries), and holders of major public offices**.\n\n## Who Does It Affect?\n\nThis law directly affects the pay packets of:\n- **High Court judges** (including the Chief Justice)\n- **Federal Court and Family Court judges**\n- **ACT Supreme Court judges**\n- **Tribunal presidents** (e.g., the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, Australian Competition Tribunal)\n- **Secretaries of government departments** (the top public servants running each federal ministry)\n- **Senior public office holders** such as the Commissioner of Taxation, AFP Commissioner, Auditor-General, Chief of the Defence Force, and many others\n\n## What Does It Actually Set?\n\nThe law locks in specific salary figures (in dollar amounts) for each of these roles, with different rates applying from **1 July 1990** and **1 January 1991** (and in some cases, 1 July 1991). For example:\n- The Chief Justice of the High Court was set at $170,503/year (from July 1990), rising to $180,733 (from January 1991)\n- Secretaries of most departments were set at $117,258/year\n- Commissioners of the Australian Industrial Relations Commission were set at $92,214/year\n\n## Key Rules to Know\n\n1. **This law overrides earlier Tribunal decisions**: It trumps any pay determinations made by the Remuneration Tribunal (the independent body that normally sets these salaries) on or before 1 June 1990.\n\n2. **But future Tribunal decisions can override THIS law**: If the Remuneration Tribunal later makes a new determination that contradicts this Act, the Tribunal's determination wins — and this Act's conflicting provisions switch off automatically.\n\n3. **Parliament can reverse that**: If Parliament passes a resolution disapproving of a Tribunal determination, this Act's original provisions snap back into effect.\n\n4. **Salaries adjust automatically**: The salary rates are to be adjusted in line with wage-setting decisions by relevant industrial bodies (originally the Australian Industrial Relations Commission, later the Australian Fair Pay Commission).\n\n5. **Extra entitlements apply**: Office holders also receive travelling allowances, annual leave loading (on the same terms as regular public servants), and in some cases district allowances for remote postings.\n\n## Why Does This Matter?\n\nThis is a **transitional and benchmark-setting law** — it was designed to lock in pay certainty for senior officials at a specific moment in time (mid-1990), while setting up a framework for how future pay changes would work. The figures themselves are now very dated (1990 dollars), and in practice the Remuneration Tribunal has since made many determinations that supersede most of this Act's specific numbers. The Act's main ongoing significance is its **framework rules** about how Tribunal determinations interact with legislation."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/remuneration-and-allowances-act-1990","history":"/api/acts/remuneration-and-allowances-act-1990/history","analysis":"/api/acts/remuneration-and-allowances-act-1990/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/remuneration-and-allowances-act-1990/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/remuneration-and-allowances-act-1990/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/remuneration-and-allowances-act-1990/documents"}}