Australian surgeons paid more than Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s tax office figures show
Australians who work as head and neck surgeons are typically paid more than the Prime Minister, new figures from the IRS show.
A small number of specialty surgeons, who operate on the brain, ear, nose and throat, earn even more than Anthony Albanese at $564,356.
Neurosurgeons had the highest median taxable income of $604,582 in fiscal year 2020-21, based on their total salary and bonuses minus employment deductions.
The nation’s 182 brain surgeons, including 29 women, are the only profession where typical pay exceeds $600,000.
Australia’s highest paid occupation on average – with Charlie Teo among them – had a large gender pay gap, with men typically earning $655,149 compared to $337,797 for women.
Ear, nose and throat surgeons – formally known as otolaryngologists – typically earned $577,568.
Australians who work as head and neck surgeons tend to be paid more than the Prime Minister, new figures from the IRS show (Photo: Stock image of a plastic surgeon with a patient)
Proof that head work pays, plastic and reconstructive surgeons were well paid with $568,439.
They earned more than those who operated on the heart, with cardiologists at $507,684.
To be among the top 0.8 percent of Australia’s income earners requires a taxable income of $377,553, with only 117,011 people in this position out of 15,134,189 taxpayers.
This is more than double the upper marginal tax bracket of $180,000, where the 45 percent tax rate goes into effect, before rising to $200,000 on July 1, 2024, when Stage Three tax cuts begin.
That meant gynecologists, who specialize in women’s health, came in at the top one percent with an average taxable income of $398,888.
But this was much lower than that for urologists at $527,844, with men’s reproductive health being a much more lucrative profession.
A small number of specialist surgeons, who operate on the brain, ear, nose and throat, have even higher earnings than Anthony Albanese at $564,356 (the Prime Minister is pictured right with his girlfriend Jodie Haydon)
Treating erectile dysfunction and diagnosing prostate cancer pays more financially than back surgery, with orthopedic surgeons earning $502,927 compared to vascular surgeons earning $477,280.
Cardiothoracic surgeons, who specialize in the heart and lungs, earned $461,185.
This gave them an edge over gastroenterologists, who specialize in the digestive system, at $458,794.
That meant Nationals MP David Gillespie, a gastroenterologist from 1991 to 2013, took a pay cut to get into politics, with federal backbenchers in parliament paying a base salary of $217,060, based on a Remuneration Tribunal ruling from 2022.
Neurosurgeons had the highest median taxable income of $604,582 in fiscal year 2020-21, based on their total salary and bonuses minus work deductions (Photo: Dr. Charlie Teo)
Gastroenterologists earned even more than anesthesiologists with $426,894 anesthetizing patients for surgery.
They earned more than cancer doctors who administered chemotherapy, with radiation oncologists typically earning $353,274.
These doctors were paid slightly more than critical care specialists at $340,598 and financial dealers at $341,798.
GPs had an average taxable income of $158,475, with a shortage of doctors in regional areas as more Australians studying medicine choose to become higher paid specialists.
Surgeons generally had a median taxable income of $457,281—nearly triple the level of suburban and rural family physicians, who earned barely more than school principals at $136,525, bank managers at $144,560, and dentists at $155,049.