Post Judgment Interest NSW: How to Calculate What the Debtor Owes
Under s 101 of the Civil Procedure Act 2005 and Schedule 5 of the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005, interest is payable at the prescribed rate on the unpaid amount of a judgment, unless the court orders otherwise. No interest is payable if the judgment amount is paid in full within 28 days after it takes effect, unless the court orders otherwise.
The Statutory Rate
Post-judgment interest in NSW is calculated at 6 percentage points above the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) cash rate, prescribed under UCPR Schedule 5. The rate was 9.60% per annum from 1 January to 30 June 2026 and is 10.35% per annum from 1 July to 31 December 2026.
The rate moves with the RBA cash rate. When the cash rate changes, the post-judgment rate adjusts accordingly.
The Calculation Formula
Interest is calculated using simple daily interest — not compound:
Interest = Principal × Rate × (Days ÷ 365)
Where:
- Principal = the unpaid amount of the judgment, excluding any order for costs
- Rate = the annual statutory rate as a decimal (e.g., 0.1035)
- Days = the number of days the debt has been unpaid
Example: $15,000 judgment, unpaid for 90 days at 10.35%:
$15,000 × 0.1035 × (90 ÷ 365) = $382.81
The debtor now owes $15,382.81 before enforcement costs.
When Interest Starts Running
For an NCAT order, Legal Aid NSW says you can calculate post-judgment interest from the date NCAT ordered the amount to be paid. The 28-day full-payment exception above still applies. Registering the certificate in the Local Court does not restart the interest period.
If the amount is not paid in full within 28 days, interest can accumulate from the order's payment date through the time it takes you to obtain the s 78 certificate and register it.
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Costs You Can Add to the Debt
Certain enforcement costs are legally recoverable — they're added to the judgment balance under s 137 of the Civil Procedure Act 2005 and UCPR r 39.28:
Recoverable:
- Local Court registration fee (Form 45): $121 standard / $242 corporation; corporations with turnover below $200,000 can pay the standard fee by providing evidence satisfactory to the registrar
- Examination order motion (Form 53): $114 standard
- Sheriff's writ execution fee: $111 per address and attempt, plus 3% of enforcement proceeds
- Process server fees (capped at official Sheriff fee schedules)
- Writ for levy motion (Form 65): no filing fee
Not recoverable:
- Legal advice costs incurred after judgment (unless separately awarded by court order)
- Private investigator fees and asset-tracing costs
- Commercial debt collection agency commissions
Building a Financial Ledger
Before filing any enforcement motion, build a running ledger of the total owed. A properly maintained ledger prevents two problems: overstating the debt (which can get your enforcement application challenged) and understating it (which means you collect less than you're entitled to).
Your ledger should track:
| Column | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Date | When each transaction or fee occurred |
| Description | What the charge or payment was |
| Debit (+) | Amounts added to the debt (fees, interest) |
| Credit (-) | Payments received from the debtor |
| Running total | Outstanding balance after each entry |
Each time you file a new enforcement application, recalculate interest on the unpaid judgment amount (excluding costs) up to that date and include it in the motion.
Partial Payments and Interest
Unless the court orders otherwise, s 136 of the Civil Procedure Act 2005 applies each payment first to interest payable under s 101, then to the balance of the judgment debt. In your ledger, credit a payment to accrued interest first; only any remainder reduces the unpaid judgment amount on which future interest is calculated.
The NSW NCAT Order Enforcement Guide includes a judgment debt ledger worksheet with the interest formula pre-configured for the current statutory rate, so you can track everything in one document.
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