Workers compensation rules differ in every state and territory

I employ one part-time person. Who do I actually insure, and why does the answer change depending on which state I'm in?

Why the answer genuinely changes by state

Workers compensation is not a policy you shop for the way you shop public liability. It is a statutory scheme, legislated separately by each state and territory, and the question “do I need it” is answered by that state’s law rather than by an underwriter’s appetite. Safe Work Australia describes 11 main workers compensation schemes in Australia — one for each state and territory plus three Commonwealth schemes — and notes that each is governed by different laws and may vary in the way it operates.

business.gov.au puts it in the same family of legally-required cover: it lists workers compensation insurance among the insurances you may need to run a business, “if you have employees”.

So the useful thing is not a general answer but a state-by-state one. Here is what the official regulator pages say, in their own terms, for the four states that cover most small-business questions we get asked. Thresholds and rules change — treat these as the shape of the rule, and confirm the current figure on the regulator’s site before you rely on it.

New South Wales

icare, the NSW regulator, says you’re an employer if you pay or hire anyone to work for you — full time, part time or casually, under a verbal or written contract. That “any” arrangement catches people out: a single casual shift can make you an employer for scheme purposes.

You do not need a policy, icare says, if you meet all of the following: you pay $7,500 or less in wages in a financial year, you do not hire an apprentice or trainee, and you are not a member of a group of businesses. All three conditions, not any one of them.

Victoria

WorkSafe Victoria frames it slightly differently: employers generally must register for WorkCover insurance if they engage anyone in Victoria. It also notes the self-employed edge — if your company employs you personally, then you are a worker of your own company and need to register.

Victoria’s exemption is narrower in wording than NSW’s. WorkSafe says you do not need to register if you or your company has no apprentices and does not or is not liable to pay more than $7,500 in a financial year in remuneration. WorkSafe also lists exemptions for sole traders, individuals in a partnership, and individual trustees of a trust.

Queensland

Queensland is the strictest of the four in framing. Business Queensland states that businesses that employ workers must hold and maintain an accident insurance policy to cover their workers against work-related injuries or illness, and that a business must take out a policy within five business days after employing people in Queensland. Penalties may apply if you miss that window. There is no small-wage exemption offered on this page — the duty attaches to employing workers, not to employing enough of them.

South Australia

ReturnToWorkSA frames the test around the remuneration you expect to pay for the coming year rather than last year’s wages. It states that if the remuneration you expect to pay to your workers for 2026–27 is less than $16,806, you may not have a requirement to be registered. That is a materially higher figure than the $7,500 thresholds in NSW and Victoria — which is the whole point of this guide. The SA figure is indexed and moves; check the current one on the ReturnToWorkSA site.

The part-time question you actually asked

Your question was about one part-time person. Directly: in NSW, one part-time hire means you are an employer, and you need a policy unless all three exemption conditions are met. In Victoria, you generally need to register unless the no-apprentice and $7,500 remuneration conditions are both met. In Queensland, you must hold cover within five business days of employing them, full stop. In South Australia, it turns on whether your expected 2026–27 remuneration to workers stays under $16,806.

Employee or contractor — get this right first

Before any of the thresholds matter, the classification does. business.gov.au notes that employees and contractors have different responsibilities around insurance, tax and super, and that contractors often use their own tools and methods and may work for more than one client. It also warns that a business incorrectly telling an employee they are a contractor — sham contracting — is illegal. If your classification is genuinely unclear, get advice before you decide which scheme applies; misclassification is a legal question, not an insurance one.

What to do next

Registration in most states is arranged through the regulator or its appointed insurer for your trade. This is the one area where “compare quotes” is the wrong instinct: the scheme is prescribed. If you are unsure whether you are an employer, or which scheme applies, a licensed broker or your state regulator can tell you before you incur a penalty.

Get quotes to compare

Some pages contain a referral link to BizCover. If you use it and take out a policy, we may receive a commission at no extra cost to you. Referral arrangements do not influence which cover types we explain or how we explain them.

Sources

Regulator pages as published at the time of writing. Check the live page for the current threshold before you rely on it.

• Safe Work Australia — Workers compensation
• icare (NSW) — Who needs a policy
• WorkSafe Victoria — Do I need to register for WorkCover insurance?
• Business Queensland — Workers' compensation
• ReturnToWorkSA — Employer remuneration return
• business.gov.au — Employee or contractor?