The proposal is to continue the Efficiency Dividend (ED) rate at its 2018-19 level of 2 per cent for two additional years (2019-20 and 2020-21) and set the ED rate at 1.5 per cent in 2021-22. The standard ED rate of 1.0 per cent would continue to apply from 1 July 2022.

Under this proposal existing exemptions from the ED would continue to apply. In addition, Commonwealth agencies with an Average Staffing Level (ASL) of less than 200, and specified entities would be exempt from the temporary increase in the ED from 1 July 2019 to 30 June 2022. The current temporary exemption from the application of ED, which expires on 30 June 2020, for the Office of National Intelligence and the Australian Signals Directorate, would also be made ongoing.