We build free tools to help everyone navigate life in Australia - whether you just arrived on a visa or you've been here your whole life.
Government websites are confusing. Centrelink rules are complicated. Visa pathways are hard to understand. We believe everyone deserves clear, simple tools that give you answers in seconds - not hours of Googling.
SettleAU started, like most useful things, because I got sick of repeating myself.
I'm an Australian citizen, born and raised here, but over the last decade I've watched friends from all over the world try to make the same move I never had to think about. A mate from Manila came over on a 482 to work in hospitality. A uni friend from Mumbai chased a skilled visa for years before finally landing PR through a regional pathway. A colleague from Ireland did the working holiday, the partner visa, the citizenship application, the whole journey. And then my own partner came here when we got married, navigating their way through the partner visa process while I tried to be useful from the inside.
Every single one of them asked me the same questions. How much tax am I going to pay? When does my waiting period end? Can I get Medicare yet? What's the deal with HECS for international students? Will Centrelink help if I lose my job? Each time I'd go hunting through Services Australia, the ATO, and the Department of Home Affairs to try to give them a real answer, and each time I'd come away thinking the same thing: this information shouldn't be this hard to find.
It's strange. Australia is one of the most migration-dependent economies in the world, but the government does almost nothing to help new arrivals actually understand the system. Tax brackets aren't explained for working holiday makers anywhere obvious. Centrelink waiting periods are buried in policy documents written for caseworkers. Medicare exemptions for visa holders are technically available but require you to know exactly which form to ask Services Australia for. Even the migration agents people pay good money to often give half-right answers because the rules genuinely change every few months.
After helping my partner through their visa journey, I sat down one weekend and started building a proper tax calculator that handled visa-holder cases correctly. Then a Centrelink eligibility tool. Then a NARWP countdown so people could see exactly when they'd qualify for what. Then a cost-of-living comparison, a rent affordability calculator, a child care subsidy estimator. Before I knew it I had a folder full of tools that I'd been emailing to friends one at a time, and it occurred to me that there was no good reason to keep doing it that way.
SettleAU is the result. It's everything I've ever been asked by someone trying to move here, in one place, free, with the maths shown openly so you can check it. If you're planning a move to Australia, in the middle of a visa application, or just trying to figure out what comes next, this is the site I wish I'd been able to point my friends to a decade ago.
SettleAU is organised into five pillars, each built around a real decision you need to make when you live in Australia:
We also publish long-form guides and articles on topics that need more than a calculator - like the difference between the 309 and 820 partner visas, how Reciprocal Health Care Agreements actually work, or what to expect in your first 30 days in Australia.
Government rules in Australia change all the time. Tax brackets shift each financial year, Centrelink thresholds move with inflation, visa fees update every 1 July, and migration policy can change with each federal budget. We try hard to keep up:
We hold ourselves to a simple standard: if we wouldn't recommend it to a friend, we won't publish it. In practice that means:
SettleAU is free to use. To cover the cost of hosting and ongoing development we rely on a mix of display advertising, affiliate partnerships with selected financial and migration service providers, and reader donations. We never let advertisers or partners influence the substance of our content - calculators and guides are written first, monetisation comes after, and we'll always tell you when a link is a paid one. If you'd rather support us directly, drop us a line at the email below.
SettleAU is an independent, one-person project. I'm an Australian citizen with a background in software, and I built this site after years of fielding the same questions from friends, colleagues, and family members trying to make their lives here. Helping my partner through the partner visa process was the moment it really sunk in just how impenetrable the system can be from the outside, and how few of the resources out there actually answer the questions people have.
I write under the SettleAU name rather than my own because the goal is the content, not the person. The information here is either accurate and useful or it isn't, and that's the only thing that should matter. If you spot a mistake, the contact form is below and I read every message. If you're a registered migration agent, tax agent, or financial counsellor who'd like to contribute a guide based on your own expertise, I'd genuinely love to hear from you.
SettleAU provides general information only. Our tools are not a substitute for professional financial, medical, legal, or migration advice. We are not registered tax agents, financial advisers, lawyers, or MARA-registered migration agents.
We are not affiliated with the Australian Government, Services Australia, the Department of Home Affairs, the Australian Taxation Office, or any government agency.
While we do our best to keep information accurate and up to date, rates and rules change. Always verify important decisions with the relevant government agency or a qualified professional.
We'd love to hear from you. The fastest way to reach us is via the feedback form, or you can email hello@settleau.com.au. We read every message and respond to most within 1-2 business days.
If you've found an error in a calculator or guide, please include the specific page URL and what should be corrected - we prioritise accuracy fixes ahead of everything else.