Ballarat private schools exempt from new tax

The so-called 'hit list' of high-fee Victorian schools to be slugged with the new tax has been reported on for a month but it was only this week that the government revealed a higher threshold than anticipated, meaning Ballarat schools will be exempt.

A total of 60 independent and religious schools will lose their longstanding payroll tax exemption from July next year, Education Minister Natalie Hutchins announced on Thursday.

Ms Hutchins was tasked with determining which non-government schools kept their exemption, with the consent of Treasurer Tim Pallas, and set the income threshold at more than $15,000 per student.

Even higher fee schools in Ballarat like Ballarat Clarendon and Ballarat Grammar are listed among the exempt schools.

Loreto College was also exempt but its sister school, Mandeville Hall in Toorak was not so lucky.

The full list of the non-exempt schools has been published and focuses principally on Melbourne elite school including includes St Kevin's College in Toorak, Kew's Xavier College and Haileybury College in Keysborough.

The $15,000 threshold will apply until at least the start of 2029 to provide budget planning certainty, with other non-government schools opening in coming years to also be assessed against the threshold.

More than 660 non-government schools will remain exempt.

"We're making sure exemptions from payroll tax flow to the schools that genuinely need support," Ms Hutchins said in a statement.

Last month's Victorian budget stated about 110 high-fee schools would lose the exemption, raising $422.2 million over the forward estimates to help the state rein in mounting net debt.

Premier Daniel Andrews later clarified the number of affected schools would be fewer than that following backlash from peak bodies for the independent and Catholic sector.

AAP

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