Set out NSW weekly compensation from earnings, capacity and time on payments
MaintainedLast reviewed
Key facts
- Human involvement
- YellowClose supervision
- How AI is used
- From the payslips, certificate of capacity and payment history, set out pre-injury average weekly earnings, current capacity, earnings and the entitlement period the lawyer names. Apply only a percentage the benefits guide states for that period. Do not state a maximum other than the indexed cap for the dates supplied.
- What the lawyer must review
- The lawyer decides the weekly amount. The guide's percentages are not a determination
- From 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027 the maximum weekly compensation amount is $2,662.10
- A primary psychological injury has a 130-week cap unless the impairment gate in the guide is met
- Confirm the injury date and whether the worker is in an exempt category
Rules that apply
The document starts from the task name. Change it if this piece of work is different.
The work product
Forum. NSW workers compensation weekly payments under the Workers Compensation Act 1987
Produce. A workings sheet of earnings, capacity, period and the percentage the guide states for that period, capped at the indexed maximum.
Have ready. Payslips and the insurer's pre-injury average weekly earnings figure; Certificate of capacity and payment history; The entitlement period and injury type named by the lawyer.
Example of the limit. Illustrative example: The lawyer names the second entitlement period and no current work capacity. The sheet applies 80 per cent of the pre-injury average weekly earnings and caps it at $2,662.10. It does not decide that the second period has been reached.
Stop and hand it back when
- The lawyer has not named the entitlement period or the injury type.
- The worker may be exempt, or the claim is a dust-disease claim under the 1942 Act.
- The only percentage available is one the guide does not state for that period.
Sources for this task were checked on 2026-10-23.
Who does what
| Role | What they do |
|---|---|
| Assistance | From the payslips, certificate of capacity and payment history, set out pre-injury average weekly earnings, current capacity, earnings and the entitlement period the lawyer names. Apply only a percentage the benefits guide states for that period. Do not state a maximum other than the indexed cap for the dates supplied. |
| Lawyer | Set the scope, supervise the work closely, verify every part relied on, resolve omissions and exceptions, and approve the exact output. |
Checklist
- First entitlement period in section 3.1: 95 per cent of pre-injury average weekly earnings, or that figure less current earnings where there is capacity, capped at the maximum weekly compensation amount.
- Second entitlement period: 80 per cent where there is no capacity; 95 per cent less earnings where the worker has returned for at least 15 hours a week; 80 per cent less earnings where there is capacity but fewer than 15 hours. After 130 weeks the guide says up to 80 per cent, and section 38(3)(a) requires a written application to continue.
- For a relevant-conduct injury, the interim rate during the determination period is 75 per cent of pre-injury average weekly earnings. The insurer has 42 days from the claim form. Other claims: provisional payments within 7 days, or 21 days after a claim form if a reasonable excuse was given.
- Section 39A stops weekly payments for a primary psychological injury after an aggregate of 130 weeks unless permanent impairment is at least 25%. Section 39B gives a further period, ending at an aggregate of 182 weeks, where impairment is at least 21% but less than 25%, only if the worker has applied and either has no work capacity or is working at least 15 hours a week and earning at least the indexed amount. The rate is the lesser of 60% of pre-injury average weekly earnings less current earnings, and the maximum weekly compensation amount less current earnings. The benefits guide adjusts the $225 figure printed in the Act to $251 from 1 July 2026, and says that degree of permanent impairment must be at least 26% from 1 July 2027 and at least 28% from 1 July 2029.
Forms and precedents for this task
| Form or precedent | Kind | AI use | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Certificate of capacity / certificate of fitness (SIRA) | Form | AI use Yellow | Link to SIRA's certificate of capacity and certificate of fitness for workers compensation and CTP, including the doctor's certificate and the person's employment declaration. |
| Motor accidents schedule of earnings (Personal Injury Commission) | Form | AI use Yellow | Link to the Motor Accidents Division approved schedule of earnings for a merit review, with the weekly-benefit periods and the earnings columns the form sets out. |
Signed-in accounts can read the full text of each one. All precedents.
Sources
- SIRA: Workers compensation benefits guide · 2026-10-23
- SIRA: Weekly payments · 2026-10-23
The weekly payments page, updated 1 July 2026, describes the psychological-injury extension as 21 to 24 per cent, and more than 24 per cent as possibly continuing. Section 3.1 of the benefits guide uses the figures above, and also says physical impairment of 21 to 30 per cent, and impairment greater than 30 per cent, can continue to pension age. The lawyer follows the Act where the pages differ.
The maximum of $2,662.10 applies from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027. Exempt workers and dust-disease claims under the 1942 Act are outside these arrangements.
A certificate of capacity and wage records are health and financial information. Keep them in a firm-controlled tool.