AFP overseas deployment
missions, pay, tax and cover

No state police force sends officers overseas in any numbers. The AFP does it as part of its core job: fighting transnational crime at its source, supporting Pacific neighbours and responding to regional crises. Its 2024-25 annual report puts the footprint at 34 countries, 36 AFP posts and 7 partnership programs, costing $176 million that year.

The AFP's own "Our global work" page says "almost 40 countries", a looser figure; we use the annual report's 34 because it's a dated, counted number. The work splits into three kinds of role, and they suit different people:

If you're still deciding whether to join the AFP or a state force, overseas work is one of the AFP's clearest differences. Our AFP profile covers the rest of the package, and how to join the AFP covers recruitment.

About 106 AFP members were deployed in the Pacific and Timor-Leste at 30 June 2025, according to the annual report. The AFP's Pacific page describes "over 100 AFP members" across Samoa, Fiji, PNG, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Nauru and Tonga. Each country has its own bilateral program.

Papua New Guinea

Program

PNG-Australia Policing Partnership

Notes

Extra staff in 2024 under the Bilateral Security Agreement; new sites at Kokopo and Mount Hagen

Solomon Islands

Program

RAPPP (Royal Solomon Islands Police Force partnership)

Notes

Also the Solomon Islands Assistance Force sent after the November 2021 unrest

Vanuatu

Program

Vanuatu-Australia Policing and Justice Program

Notes

Joint policing and justice program

Tonga

Program

Tonga-Australia Policing Partnership

Notes

Plus the Families Free of Violence program

Samoa

Program

Samoa-Australia Police Partnership

Notes

Samoa hosted the first Pacific Police Support Group deployment (CHOGM, October 2024)

Nauru

Program

Nauru-Australia Policing Partnership

Notes

Phase 1 was due to end in 2025

Timor-Leste

Program

Timor-Leste Police Development Program

Notes

Delivered with DFAT

Country	Program	Notes
Papua New Guinea	PNG-Australia Policing Partnership	Extra staff in 2024 under the Bilateral Security Agreement; new sites at Kokopo and Mount Hagen
Solomon Islands	RAPPP (Royal Solomon Islands Police Force partnership)	Also the Solomon Islands Assistance Force sent after the November 2021 unrest
Vanuatu	Vanuatu-Australia Policing and Justice Program	Joint policing and justice program
Tonga	Tonga-Australia Policing Partnership	Plus the Families Free of Violence program
Samoa	Samoa-Australia Police Partnership	Samoa hosted the first Pacific Police Support Group deployment (CHOGM, October 2024)
Nauru	Nauru-Australia Policing Partnership	Phase 1 was due to end in 2025
Timor-Leste	Timor-Leste Police Development Program	Delivered with DFAT

From the AFP Annual Report 2024-25 and AFP country pages, read October 2026. Program names change between phases, so check the AFP's current page for the country you're interested in.

PNG is the largest and fastest-growing. The 2024 Bilateral Security Agreement brought extra AFP staff and new sites outside Port Moresby, at Kokopo and Mount Hagen. Solomon Islands combines a long-term partnership with the assistance force sent after the November 2021 unrest. In Timor-Leste, the AFP runs a police development program with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

The AFP also runs region-wide work: the Pacific Transnational Crime Network (since 2002), regional development programs, and the Pacific Policing Initiative. In December 2024 the AFP and Pacific police opened a regional hub and global training centre at Pinkenba in Brisbane. Funding of $400 million over five years has been reported for the Pacific Policing Initiative, but we haven't confirmed that figure on a primary source.

Pacific roles are capacity-building, not front-line policing in someone else's country. You're mentoring, training and advising inside another police service.

Liaison posts are the other side of AFP overseas work. Officers based in embassies and high commissions work with host-country police on investigations that cross borders: drugs, child exploitation, terrorism, cybercrime and people smuggling. The AFP's global work page names five regional commands, led from Washington DC, Jakarta, Beijing, Canberra and London.

The network is still growing. When the AFP opened a post in Paris in November 2023, it said the move took it to 34 countries with more than 200 members based offshore. That "200" counts everyone posted overseas, including liaison officers and mission staff; the Pacific figure of about 106 is a subset.

The long-term and short-term split comes from a 2012 Senate Estimates answer describing how the AFP's overseas determinations were structured at the time. It said work was under way to merge them into one instrument, so today's categories may be different.

For more than half a century, Australian police were part of the UN force in Cyprus. The AFP lowered its flag there on 16 June 2017 and withdrew completely by the end of that month, after 53 years, 111 contingents and more than 1,600 officers. The AFP also deployed to Sudan and South Sudan with the UN: an ATO class ruling (CR 2012/16) covers AFP members serving in South Sudan with the United Nations.

1. 1

   1964 to 2017: Cyprus

   UN

   Australian police in the UN peacekeeping force for 53 years. Withdrawn June 2017.

2. 2

   The International Deployment Group

   IDG

   The AFP's deployment arm for missions; a 2012 Senate answer describes how its overseas determinations worked and lists Sudan among its deployments. The AFP now uses 'International Command' and we couldn't find the date of the change.

3. 3

   December 2024: Pinkenba hub

   PPSG

   A regional hub and global training centre opened in Brisbane, home to the Pacific Police Support Group: 25 AFP officers plus up to 200 Pacific police.

4. 4

   October 2024 onward: PPSG deployments

   Surge

   The first deployment was the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Samoa (40 members from 11 countries), then the Vanuatu earthquake response in December 2024.

We couldn't find an official source on whether any AFP members are still in a UN peacekeeping mission today. If peacekeeping is what draws you, ask the AFP directly. The insurance section below matters here, because peacekeeping is exactly what PSSap's default cover excludes.

The AFP doesn't publish minimum service, rank, clearance level or a selection framework for overseas roles. We looked. What we could confirm from official sources is limited, but useful:

Overseas roles are filled internally, so you need to be an AFP member first. If you're joining from a state force, check our interstate transfer guide and the AFP's lateral entry rules in the AFP profile. Once you're in, the practical route is to build the skills the role advertises and to talk to members who've done it.

Section 40H of the Australian Federal Police Act 1979 lets the Commissioner decide, in writing, what duties a member performs and where (s40H(1)). For duties outside Australia, the Commissioner can also set the terms and conditions that apply while you're overseas (s40H(2)). Where duties meet "special operational needs", the Commissioner can set accommodation arrangements and allowances (s40H(3)).

The enterprise agreement steps aside for these members. The AFP Enterprise Agreement 2024-2027 excludes employees deployed overseas under s40H(1) where a s40H(2) determination is in place, other than in Australia's external territories. Their pay and conditions come from the determination instead.

Overseas deployment allowances

Published?

Not published in the sources reviewed

Where it's set

s40H(2) and (3) determinations

Hardship and family components

Published?

Described, not quantified (2012 Senate answer)

Where it's set

s40H(2) determinations

Rapid Deployment Allowance (roles that must be ready to deploy)

Published?

$10,000 a year; not super salary

Where it's set

EA 2024-2027

Remote Localities Allowance, e.g. Exmouth WA and Pine Gap NT

Published?

$10,970 a year

Where it's set

Commissioner, published for some locations

Core Composite at home

Published?

22% of base; counts for super

Where it's set

EA 2024-2027

What	Published?	Where it's set
Overseas deployment allowances	Not published in the sources reviewed	s40H(2) and (3) determinations
Hardship and family components	Described, not quantified (2012 Senate answer)	s40H(2) determinations
Rapid Deployment Allowance (roles that must be ready to deploy)	$10,000 a year; not super salary	EA 2024-2027
Remote Localities Allowance, e.g. Exmouth WA and Pine Gap NT	$10,970 a year	Commissioner, published for some locations
Core Composite at home	22% of base; counts for super	EA 2024-2027

Our data file records that overseas deployment allowances are not published in any source we've reviewed. External territories (Norfolk, Christmas, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Jervis Bay) stay under the EA; their remote allowance amounts weren't published either.

For context, here's what sworn members earn at home under the EA from 9 December 2025, with the 22% Core Composite for the operations pattern. This is the package you'd be stepping out of, and the base a determination would usually build on.

Band 2 2.4

Base salary

$72,317

With 22% Core Composite

$88,227

Take-home a fortnight

$2,672

Employer super at 15.4%

$13,587

Band 3 3.5

Base salary

$87,836

With 22% Core Composite

$107,160

Take-home a fortnight

$3,167

Employer super at 15.4%

$16,503

Band 4 4.5

Base salary

$103,256

With 22% Core Composite

$125,972

Take-home a fortnight

$3,659

Employer super at 15.4%

$19,400

Band 5 5.3

Base salary

$111,861

With 22% Core Composite

$136,470

Take-home a fortnight

$3,930

Employer super at 15.4%

$21,016

Band 6 6.3

Base salary

$123,420

With 22% Core Composite

$150,572

Take-home a fortnight

$4,261

Employer super at 15.4%

$23,188

Band 7 7.3

Base salary

$132,185

With 22% Core Composite

$161,266

Take-home a fortnight

$4,512

Employer super at 15.4%

$24,835

Band and point	Base salary	With 22% Core Composite	Take-home a fortnight	Employer super at 15.4%
Band 2 2.4	$72,317	$88,227	$2,672	$13,587
Band 3 3.5	$87,836	$107,160	$3,167	$16,503
Band 4 4.5	$103,256	$125,972	$3,659	$19,400
Band 5 5.3	$111,861	$136,470	$3,930	$21,016
Band 6 6.3	$123,420	$150,572	$4,261	$23,188
Band 7 7.3	$132,185	$161,266	$4,512	$24,835

Base and composite figures from the EA tables. Take-home is calculated by us with 2026-27 resident tax and the Medicare levy. Super is 15.4% of ordinary time earnings, which includes the Core Composite (EA s17(5)).

A Band 5.3 member on the operations pattern earns $136,470 with the composite, with about $21,016 a year in employer super. The full scale is on our AFP salary page.

Section 23AG of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 exempts some foreign employment income from Australian tax. The ATO's guidance (updated 8 June 2026) says the AFP, state and territory police and the ADF are all "disciplined forces" for this purpose. "Member" means you've taken the oath or affirmation for operational duties, so unsworn staff aren't covered by this branch.

1. 1

   You're an Australian resident for tax

   Test 1

   Section 23AG is a resident's exemption.

2. 2

   91 days' continuous foreign service as an employee

   Test 2

   Breaks of up to one-sixth of your service so far don't break continuity, and recreation leave and illness count as foreign service. From 1 July 2026, work trips or training in Australia no longer count towards foreign service.

3. 3

   Directly attributable to deployment as a disciplined force member

   Test 3

   Deployment outside Australia by the Australian Government or an Australian Government authority. People employed directly by a peacekeeping force, rather than deployed by Australia, aren't covered.

4. 4

   No non-exemption condition applies

   Test 4

   You lose the exemption if the income is exempt overseas only because of a tax treaty, because the host country doesn't tax employment income, or because of diplomatic or UN privileges and immunities. It can still apply if there's another reason, such as an MOU.

Exempt doesn't mean invisible. You still declare the income in your tax return. The ATO says it is "not taxed" but "will affect the tax you are liable to pay on any other income": this is exemption with progression, so your Australian income is taxed at the higher average rate that applies once your foreign income is counted.

The PSSap exclusion

Most AFP members are in PSSap, CSC's accumulation plan, with default death, TPD and income protection insurance. CSC's insurance guide, issued 1 May 2026 as part of the PSSap PDS (insurer AIA), has a war exclusion that covers "active service or participation in the armed forces, peacekeeping forces or peacekeeping operations". It applies whether the operation is "officially declared, or not declared, armed, unarmed", and it names the Australian Federal Police as an example of an organisation involved in international peacekeeping efforts.

The same exclusion appears in the income protection terms, and terrorist activity is excluded as well. In plain terms: if you're injured or killed on a peacekeeping-type deployment, PSSap's default cover may not pay. Whether a particular Pacific partnership or liaison role counts as "peacekeeping operations" is a question for CSC and the insurer, not something to assume.

Check your PSSap insurance before you deploy, not after. The exclusion names the AFP in the wording.

Workers' compensation

The Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 extends to places outside Australia (s3), and AFP employees are treated as Commonwealth employees (s5(2)). An injury overseas while you're there at the Commonwealth's direction is covered where the place, or your class of employee, has been declared by the Minister (s6(1)(h) and (i)). AFP members also have the first-responder presumption for PTSD (s7(11) to (13)).

Our guides to police TPD and income protection and AFP super explain default cover in more depth. For injuries, see AFP workers' comp.

The AFP doesn't publish a guide to accompanied and unaccompanied postings, schooling or family support for deployed members, so we can only tell you what the official record shows. The 2012 Senate answer said entitlements under the overseas determinations depended on hardship ratings, family composition, and whether a deployment "permits the spouse and family to move with the employee".

Practical things to settle early: what happens to your rental or mortgage while you're away, whether your partner's employer will grant leave, how your children's schooling will work, and what welfare contacts the AFP provides for families at home. Leave entitlements at home are covered in AFP police leave. If you're planning a family around a deployment, see our police parental leave guide; the AFP pays 18 weeks to primary carers.

For many AFP members, an overseas posting is the most memorable part of a career. It builds skills that are hard to get at home: working across cultures, through interpreters and inside another country's legal system. But it isn't free money, and the information gaps mean you have to do more homework than for a domestic move.

Free tool

Know your home pay first

Work out your current fortnightly take-home with the AFP's Core Composite and allowances, so you can compare any deployment offer against it.

Open the take-home calculator →

These are the gaps we couldn't close from official sources. Each one matters to a real decision, so we've named who can answer it.

Current overseas allowance rates and structure under s40H determinations

Who can confirm

AFP People and Culture; the AFP Association (AFPA)

Minimum service, rank and clearance for overseas roles

Who can confirm

AFP International Command and internal expressions of interest

Whether any AFP members remain in a UN peacekeeping mission

Who can confirm

AFP media or International Command

Whether a specific deployment falls within PSSap's peacekeeping exclusion

Who can confirm

CSC and its insurer

Super treatment of overseas allowances

Who can confirm

AFP payroll and CSC

Accompanied status, schooling and family support for a given post

Who can confirm

The AFP team advertising the role

The reported $400 million Pacific Policing Initiative funding

Who can confirm

Attorney-General's Department media releases

Question	Who can confirm
Current overseas allowance rates and structure under s40H determinations	AFP People and Culture; the AFP Association (AFPA)
Minimum service, rank and clearance for overseas roles	AFP International Command and internal expressions of interest
Whether any AFP members remain in a UN peacekeeping mission	AFP media or International Command
Whether a specific deployment falls within PSSap's peacekeeping exclusion	CSC and its insurer
Super treatment of overseas allowances	AFP payroll and CSC
Accompanied status, schooling and family support for a given post	The AFP team advertising the role
The reported $400 million Pacific Policing Initiative funding	Attorney-General's Department media releases

If you've been deployed and can point us to a published source on any of these, we'd like to hear from you so we can update this guide.