What Victoria’s budget means for you and your family

New taxes, soaring debt, public job cuts and more — find out what the Victorian budget means for you and your family.

Here is your bite-size guide to Victoria’s state budget.

Economy

Operating budget will record surplus of $1bn in 2025-26, rising to $1.2bn by 2026-27.

Economic growth expected to fall to 1.5 per cent next financial year (2023-24), down from 2.75 per cent this financial year (2022-23).

Net debt is set to soar from $116.7bn in 2022-23 to a whopping $171.4bn in 2026-27.

Unemployment on track to increase to 4.25 per cent in 2023-24 and 4.75 per cent in 2025-26, up from 3.75 per cent in 2022-23.

Inflation set to outpace wage growth until 2024-25.

Taxes

About 860,000 owners of investment properties, holiday homes or businesses premises will pay $4.7bn over four years to pay down debt.

Business with payrolls of more than $10m will pay a 0.5 per cent levy to pay down Covid debt. Businesses with payrolls of more than $100m will pay an extra 0.5 per cent. In total it will raise $3.9bn over four years.

About 26,000 businesses will have their payroll tax cut when the tax-free threshold is lifted to $900,000 next year and $1m the following year.

Health

A total of $4.9bn overall boost the state’s healthcare system.

$2.3bn to hospitals, including $960m for new and upgraded facilities.

$201m will be spent on a range of initiatives, including $73m for additional nursing staff. $37m in sign-on bonuses for new nursing graduates and $34m to improve midwife to patient ratios.

$44m to deliver eight new PET scanners, including four at hospitals in Ballarat, Shepparton, Warrnambool and Wangaratta.

$4m mental health training program for apprentices.

Victoria’s hospitals will get an influx of $2.3bn.

Energy

$1bn investment to restart the SEC includes $12m to VET qualifications, new jobs and funding the business case for the SEC, $10m in a Hydrogen Energy Worker Training Centre and $20 million to meet emission reduction targets of 75‑80 per cent by 2035.

$15.3m package to ensure energy safety laws keep up with rapidly evolving technology.

$58.2m to install 100 new neighbourhood batteries.

$27m to Victorian Renewable Energy Terminal at Port of Hastings.

$19m for 10,000 students to undertake work experience in the clean energy sector.

Regions

Native logging shut down fast tracked by six years, with the industry grinding to a halt from January 1 next year. A $200m transition support package for workers has been announced.

$32.5m funding boost for Visit Victoria to promote regional tourism, more than $22.5m allocated to the regional music industry and $4m to park management along the Great Ocean Road.

No money allocated for Geelong Fast Rail, with the project still under a cloud and subject to the federal government’s infrastructure review.

$5bn will be invested to continue work on lower V/Line fares, free kinder, schools, TAFE, university.

$10m will be delivered to Tiny Towns Fund for regional and outer suburban communities of up to 5000 people.

Education

$618m to build nine new schools, early works for three more new schools and new stages at two new schools.

$47.8m for eight new toy libraries, 10 new bilingual kinders and 150 bush kinders.

$450m for better facilities for Catholic and independent schools.

$235m package for students with disabilities, including $11.3m to attract more disability workers, speech pathologists and occupational therapists to regional Victoria.

$618m has been allocated to build nine new schools.

Families

$400m to roll out another round of $250 Power Saving Bonus to every Vic household.

$3.9m for half price camping fees at campgrounds, $10.2m to keep zoos free for kids on weekends, public holidays and school holidays.

$51.4m to fund public libraries in 2023/2024.

Transport and infrastructure

Airport Rail Link and Geelong Fast Rail funding and works on hold and up in the air until Commonwealth government review is complete in August.

$650m in Melton train line upgrade, including four level crossing removals, VLocity trains that will increase capacity by up to 50 per cent and create 1000 jobs during construction.

Commitment to removing 110 level crossings by 2030, including 25 recently identified.

$694m in road upgrades including stage two of the Barwon Heads Roads upgrade.

$6.6bn to maintain Victoria’s roads over the next decade.

$601m for 23 new VLocity trains to be built in Victoria, supporting 500 local manufacturing jobs.

Emergency services

$4.9bn to build and upgrade hospitals and boost healthcare services.

$677m investment in ongoing flood recovery.

$23m allocated to rebuild the Rochester and Heathcote VicSES Emergency Hubs.

$17.5m to skills training and equipment to prepare for rapid response to any emergency animal disease detection.

$36.5m to bushfire services.

$4.9bn will be spent to build and upgrade hospitals and boost healthcare services

Housing and real estate

Stamp duty on business or commercial property sales will be replaced by an annual property tax set at 1 per cent of a site’s unimproved land value.

$134m to provide access to housing and homelessness support across the state.

Women and family violence

$153m to establish 20 new comprehensive women’s health clinics, an aboriginal clinic and a mobile clinic.

$535m towards support for children in residential care.

$77m to support victim-survivors of family violence, including $25m for aboriginal frontline family violence services, $23m to provide free tampons and pads to women and girls in 700 public places.

$5m boost to support 70 women-led start-ups.

Law and order, Courts

$620m is set to flow across justice and emergency services, including youth diversion programs and support for communities over-presented in the criminal justice system.

$70.7m for regional law courts and drug and alcohol programs.

$7.1m to expand Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service’s regional hub model.

$22.8m to provide special family violence legal assistance across Melbourne.

$25.9m to expand roadside drug testing program, testing 150,000 motorists per year.

Owners of multiple properties will be slugged with a new tax.

Indigenous Australians

First Nations Australians are set to benefit from $140m investment to improve outcomes for Indigenous children, including funding child protective services.

$138m will also be rolled out over four years to support Treaty negotiations, starting later this year.

Workers

Disadvantaged jobseekers will benefit from a $35m boost to the Jobs Victoria Mentors program.

Free regos for eligible trade apprentices.

$24.1m to expand WorkSafe, including bringing 20 specialist inspectors on board.

Sports, Tourism, Culture, Arts

A $478m investment in supporting creative industries, securing big sporting events, upgrading sporting clubs, boosting regional economies and creating tourism jobs includes.

$200m to improve sporting facilities.

$23m to fund some of Victoria’s biggest events, shows and live sports.

$32m to boost the Go Fishing Victoria program.

$1.5m to extend free public Wi-Fi access in the Melbourne CBD.