Winners and losers: What's in the latest Federal Budget for you

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has handed down the 2025-26 Federal Budget - his fourth since Labor was returned to government in 2022.

In his Budget night speech, Chalmers was keen to emphasise that, in his opinion, the country had turned a corner.

"Inflation is down, incomes are rising, unemployment is low, interest rates are coming down, debt is down, and growth is picking up momentum."

However, the Treasurer also stressed that there was more work to do on the cost-of-living front.

"We know the welcome improvements in the aggregate numbers don't always immediately translate to how people are feeling and faring. We've made a lot of progress together but we know many people are still doing it tough."

So what kind of cost-of-living measures does the Budget contain? And were there any surprises? Here's a look at some of the major takeaways as well as the Budget winners and losers.

Winners

Taxpayers

In what was no doubt a Budget surprise, the government announced that all taxpayers will benefit from additional tax cuts in the coming years.

The proposal would see the existing 16% tax rate - which applies to taxable income between $18,201 and $45,000 - dropped to 15% from July 1, 2026. Then from July 1, 2027, the rate would be lowered again to 14%.

The government says that the measure could see an average worker pocket $268 in tax savings in the 2026-27 financial year and $536 in the 2027-28 financial year compared to the 2024-25 financial year.

Students with debt

The government has promised that three million Australians with outstanding HECS-HELP and other forms of student loans will see 20% of their debt wiped away from June 1.

The measure will cost $16 billion to implement, as outlined in today's Budget , but will be dependent on the government gaining another term and then successfully passing legislation.

Apprentice tradies

In an effort to encourage more Australians to take up apprenticeships related to the residential construction sector, like electricians and carpenters, the government has outlined a $10,000 incentive payment scheme in the Budget .

If re-elected, the governments says that it will start rolling out the payments from July 1 this year. The change will mean that on top of their existing wages, eligible apprentices will receive $2,000 after six months, 12 months, 24 months, 36 months and once their apprenticeship is complete.

Brewers and bars

Announced earlier this month, the Budget confirmed the government's decision to freeze indexation applied to draught beer excise - a change which will remain in place for two years starting in August.

While the measure has been welcomed by representatives of the hospitality and brewery sectors, beer drinkers are unlikely to see much of difference when it comes to the price of a pint at the pub.

Bulk-billed GP visits

As part of a wider $8.5 billion investment into Medicare, the government has committed to expanding bulk-billing incentives to ensure that more Australians can visit a general practitioner (GP) for free.

The new measure will kick in on November 1 this year, with the government aiming to achieve the milestone of having 90% of GP visits bulk-billed by 2030 - up from 78% at present.

Businesses and homes with energy bills

Energy costs have been a hot topic following the news that households in some parts of the country could see increases of up to 9% on their energy bills in the coming months.

The government confirmed in the Budget that another wave - albeit a smaller one than in previous Budgets - of energy bill relief is on its way though. All households, as well as eligible small businesses, are set to receive $150 in rebates which will start flowing through from July 1.

Early education centres

The government has set aside $1 billion in the Budget to establish a new Building Early Education Fund which will go towards the cost of building and expanding 160 child care centres across the country.

Should the government be re-elected for another term, the building fund will begin to roll out from July 1 of this year.

PBS-listed medicines

$689 million has been allocated over the next four years in the Budget to bring down the price of certain medicines listed under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS).

Pending legislation, the government will reduce the cost of PBS-listed medicines to a maximum of $25 per script for general customers from January 1, 2026. Meanwhile, scripts for pensioners and concession cardholders will remain frozen at $7.70 until 2030.

Prefabricated home builders

With a target of 1.2 million new homes to build by 2029, it's unsurprising that the government is looking for ways to get more houses online, faster. One solution, the government argues, is in prefabricated homes, which it says are 50% faster to build.

Given that, the government has earmarked $49.3 million worth of funding in the Budget to support state and territory governments to invest in the prefab and modular housing industry.

Losers

Foreign property buyers

Initially announced back in February but outlined in the Budget, foreign buyers will be banned from purchasing established dwellings in Australia for two years from April 1, 2025, to March 31, 2027.

The policy will apply to all foreign purchases aside from those made by Australian permanent residents, New Zealand citizens or spouses of Australian citizens, Australian permanent residents or New Zealand citizens (if purchases are made jointly).

Multinational tax dodgers

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) will receive more funding to crack down on multinational corporations and other large taxpayers that aren't meeting their obligations.

In the Budget, the government allocated $999 million towards extending and expanding tax compliance activities managed by the ATO, including $717 million over four years for a two-year expansion and a one-year extension of the Tax Avoidance Taskforce.

Scammers

While losses fell year-on-year from 2023 to 2024, Australians still lost more than $2 billion to scams and scammers last year.

In order to continue the push back against scammers, the government has allocated an additional $6.7 million in funding in the Budget to extend the operation of the National Anti-Scam Centre.

Supermarkets

Major supermarkets and their pricing practices have been under increased scrutiny - not to mention the subject of multiple inquiries - in recent years amid the recent cost-of-living crisis.

And that scrutiny doesn't seem like it will be letting up anytime soon, as the government has allocated $38.8 million for the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to crack down on misleading and deceptive pricing practices in both the supermarket and retail sector.

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