Microdata: Personal Income of Migrants, Australia

The Personal Income Tax and Migrants Integrated Dataset (PITMID) was created by linking administrative data on permanent migrants to Australian Taxation Office (ATO) Personal Income Tax records. The permanent migrant data was compiled by the Australian Government from various departmental systems and a number of external sources, including the Department of Home Affairs and Department of Human Services (Medicare Australia). The Department of Home Affairs is the custodian of the data.

The PITMID data is available in the ABS DataLab for the following financial years: 

• 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17
• 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2013-14
• 2009-10 and 2010-11

Data in this product relates to persons 15 years and over who have migrated to Australia under a permanent or provisional visa with an arrival date between 1 January 2000 and 30 June 2019.

This product contains estimates on the sources of personal income that migrants received in the 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17 financial years and provides a breakdown of total personal income by the following sources:

• Employee income
• Own unincorporated business income
• Investment income
• Other income (excludes Government pensions and allowances)
• Total income (excludes Government pensions and allowances)

A test file is available to assist users in understanding the structure of the data and to test code. Read more about this in Data and file structure.

Access to the data is available through the ABS DataLab, which enables in-depth analysis using a range of statistical software packages. Further information about the ABS DataLab and other general information to assist users in understanding and accessing microdata are available from the Microdata Entry Page. For further information users should email microdata.access@abs.gov.au.

We acknowledge the continuing support provided by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and the Department of Home Affairs for the Migrant PIT Data Integration Project. The provision of data as well as ongoing assistance provided by our stakeholders is essential to enable this important work to be undertaken. The enhancing of migrant related statistics through data linkage by the ABS would not be possible without their cooperation and support.

Information about data sources, scope and coverage, income concepts and sources and data quality are available in the Methodology page of 3418.0 - Personal Income of Migrants, Australia.

A complete list of data items included in the Personal Income of Migrants microdata product is provided in an Excel workbook that can be accessed from the Data downloads section.

Data items are available at two levels: 

• Person Level
• Job Level

The Data Item List spreadsheet contains the following categories of data items:

• Demographic
• Country of birth
• Citizenship
• Migration
• Visa
• Personal income
• Occupation
• Job Level

The following geographies are available:

• Geography - Geography is available at State/Territory of current residence and Remoteness Area level, classified according to the Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS): Volume 5 - Remoteness Structure, July 2016 (cat. no. 1270.0.55.005).
• Geography - ASGS - Geography is available at levels Statistical Area 2, Statistical Area 4 and State/Territory, classified according to the Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS): Volume 1 - Main Structure and Greater Capital City Areas, July 2016 (cat. no. 1270.0.55.001).
• Geography - ASGS - Geography is available at Local Government Area level, classified according to the Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS): Volume 3 - Non-ABS Structures, July 2016 (cat. no. 1270.0.55.003).

Users intending to apply for access to the ABS DataLab should ensure the data they require, and the level of detail required, are available and applicable for the intended use. The test file would be helpful for this purpose.

A test file is available from the Data downloads section to assist users in understanding the structure of the data and to test code. This test file does not contain real data and cannot be used for analysis. The purpose of the test file is to allow researchers/analysts to become familiar with the data structure and prepare code/programs prior to applying for, or commencing, an ABS DataLab session. This aims to maximise the value of sessions by saving users' time and resources once they enter the ABS DataLab environment.

The DataLab is an interactive data analysis solution available for high end users to run advanced multivariate statistical analyses, for example, multiple regressions and structural equation modelling.

The DataLab environment contains recent versions of the following analytical software: 

• SPSS
• Stata
• SAS
• R
• Python

Robust controls have been implemented in the DataLab to prevent the identification of individuals and organisations. These controls include environmental protections, removal of direct identifiers from and confidentialisation of the microdata, access safe guards and output clearance. All outputs from DataLab sessions are cleared by an ABS officer before release. See About the DataLab for more information.

Please read the Responsible Use of ABS Microdata, User Guide (cat. no. 1406.0.55.003) before applying for access.

A test file is available in the Data downloads section to help you understanding the structure of the data and to test code.

To apply for access to Personal Income of Migrants in the DataLab, see DataLab Process or contact Microdata Access Strategies via microdata.access@abs.gov.au.

This release previously used catalogue number 3418.0.55.001.