Draft Revenue and Rating Plan 2025-29
Learn more about the draft Revenue and Rating Plan 2025–29.
The City of Melbourne respectfully acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land we govern, the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung and Bunurong / Boon Wurrung peoples of the Kulin and pays respect to their Elders past and present. We acknowledge and honour the unbroken spiritual, cultural and political connection they have maintained to this unique place for more than 2000 generations.
We accept the invitation in the Uluru Statement from the Heart and are committed to walking together to build a better future.
Our $732.4 million draft Budget 2025–26 invests in delivering essential services for our growing community, reducing our reliance on borrowing and ensuring Melbourne remains an admired, dynamic, global capital city.
It strikes a balance on core services such as keeping our city clean, safe and inviting, while easing the pressure on household budget, responsible spending and achieving back-to-back sustainable surpluses.
Key highlights:
Consultation on the draft Budget 2025–26 closed on Monday 2 May, thank you to everyone who made a submission. All submissions will be considered at the scheduled Future Melbourne Committee meeting on 17 June. The final Budget is scheduled for adoption at a Council Meeting on 30 June 2025.
The draft Budget 2025–26 shows how we will finance the delivery of our program of work in 2025-26, while we develop the Melbourne 2050 Community Vision and four-year Council Plan 2025–29.
In accordance with Section 94(1) of the Local Government Act 2020, a Council must prepare and adopt a Budget for each financial year by 30 June.
The Council must ensure the draft Budget contains financial statements and other information including capital works, human resources and grants. The draft Budget must contain the amount the Council intends to raise by general rates, municipal charges, service rates and service charges and whether general rates will be raised by the application of a uniform rate, differential rate or limited differential rate.
The Budget must include a description of services, major initiatives and initiatives to be funded for the financial year and how they will contribute to achieving Council’s strategic objectives.
For the services to be funded in the Budget, the draft Budget must also include the prescribed indicators of service performance that must be reported against in the performance statement and the prescribed measures relating to those indicators.
Any member of the public can make a written submission to the Council on the draft Budget.
All submissions received by the Council on or before 5.00pm 2 June 2025 will be considered in accordance with Section 94(1) of the Local Government Act 2020, by the Council’s Future Melbourne Committee.
Feedback on the draft Budget 2025–26 can be provided on Participate Melbourne from 5.30pm Tuesday 13 May to 5pm, 2 June 2025.
After the Future Melbourne Committee considers community feedback at the scheduled meeting on 17 June, the final Budget is expected to be adopted at the Council Meeting in June 2025.
You can view an electronic copy of the Budget here on Participate Melbourne or visit the City of Melbourne website.
A hard copy of the Budget will be available for inspection at Town Hall Administration Building,120 Swanston Street, Melbourne, Ground Floor (front desk 8.30am to 5pm) for those who cannot access the electronic version.
The draft Budget 2025–26 will be adopted at a Council Meeting in June 2025. You can watch the livestream of the meeting.
Each year our rates are determined by property valuations conducted by the Victorian Government. This means that rates do change depending on the annual evaluation.
For 2025-26, the Victorian Government has set the rate cap increase for all councils at 3 per cent.
To ease cost-of-living pressures, we are proposing to rebate all ratepayers this 3 per cent increase in 2025-26.
In 2025–26 residents and ratepayers will:
We will also allocate $50,000 towards free fitness classes, offer 600 free swimming courses and waive permit fees for exercise classes in our public parks and gardens.
For the eighth consecutive year, there will be no increases to on-street parking fees in the city.
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Timeline item 1 - complete
Unscheduled Council Meeting, with draft Budget open for consultation from 5.30pm
13 May 2025
Timeline item 2 - complete
Community consultation
13 May to 2 June 2025
Timeline item 3 - active
Scheduled Future Melbourne Committee meeting where community members and stakeholders can speak to their submissions
17 June 2025
Timeline item 4 - incomplete
Council Meeting to adopt Budget 2025–26
30 June 2025
Learn more about the draft Revenue and Rating Plan 2025–29.
Acknowledgement of Traditional Owners
The City of Melbourne respectfully acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land we govern, the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung and Bunurong / Boon Wurrung peoples of the Kulin and pays respect to their Elders past and present. We acknowledge and honour the unbroken spiritual, cultural and political connection they have maintained to this unique place for more than 2000 generations.
We accept the invitation in the Uluru Statement from the Heart and are committed to walking together to build a better future.
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Updated December 2024
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