How long do I have to report a workplace injury in NSW?
You should notify your employer as soon as possible and make sure the injury is recorded properly. Delay can create avoidable liability and credibility problems even when the injury is genuine.
NSW workers compensation lawyers
Injured at work? Understand your next step.
Practical legal help for injured workers in NSW. We help with denied claims, weekly payments, treatment disputes, permanent impairment, and work injury damages.
General information only. Strict time limits can apply to NSW claim and dispute pathways.
Helping injured workers across New South Wales
IRO funding may be available
Free initial claim check
Sydney-based, helping clients across NSW
Clear advice in plain English
Legal service provider
NSW workers compensation help from Stephen Young Lawyers
NSW Work Injury Claim is the workers compensation service of Stephen Young Lawyers. Stephen Young Lawyers provides the legal service. Stephen Young Lawyers.
Stephen Young Lawyers was established in 2012. The firm is led by Stephen Young, Principal Solicitor and Accredited Specialist in Personal Injury Law.
Workers across New South Wales can arrange telephone or video appointments. In-person appointments can be arranged at the Sydney office when appropriate.
NSW Work Injury Claim enquiries: (02) 7233 3661
- Content publisher:
- NSW Work Injury Claim
- Published:
- Last legally reviewed:
Key legal sources
- Workers Compensation Act 1987 (NSW)
- SIRA workers compensation
- IRO legal assistance for injured workers
- Personal Injury Commission
This information is general in nature and is not legal advice. You should obtain advice about your own circumstances.
Choose the right path. We’re here to help.
Make a Claim
Not sure where to start?
We’ll guide you through the claim process and the first documents that usually matter.
Weekly PaymentsHaving trouble getting paid?
We can help check rate errors, capacity decisions, payment cuts and stopping notices.
DisputesInsurer or employer disputes?
Start with the written decision, medical evidence and the correct review pathway.
Injury GuidesUnderstand your injury.
Read practical guides about common work injuries, evidence and compensation issues.
Problems that often need early attention
A claim can become harder to resolve when a low starting payment rate, delayed treatment, work-capacity concerns and permanent impairment questions overlap. Start with the written insurer decision, certificate of capacity, wage records and medical evidence so the actual issue can be identified.
1. A denial letter gets treated like the final word
When the insurer issues a liability refusal or a section 78 notice, the key question is usually what evidence was missing or how the issue was framed.
2. A bad PIAWE figure quietly becomes normal
The PIAWE starting figure can affect weekly payments for months if overtime, allowances, penalties, or second-job income are missed. Start with the PIAWE guide or the recalculation pathway.
3. Treatment refusal weakens the whole evidence trail
A treatment refusal can become a capacity, impairment, and causation problem if surgery, scans, psychology, or rehab are delayed. It often feeds later disputes about capacity, impairment, and causation. Compare the treatment denial guide.
4. Threshold planning starts too close to the cutoff
The evidence plan should start before section 39, whole person impairment, section 32A high-needs status, and work injury damages usually need strategy before the pressure point, not after.
Most useful when
These situations are best handled from here
Use this page when you need to work out whether the immediate problem is claim lodgement, liability, weekly payments, treatment approval, work capacity, permanent impairment, high-needs planning, or a possible work injury damages pathway.
- you have received a written insurer decision and need to identify the actual dispute
- weekly payments have been reduced, stopped, or calculated from a figure that looks wrong
- treatment, surgery, scans, psychology, or rehabilitation has been delayed or refused
- the injury may have long-term work capacity, WPI, section 39, or damages consequences
Site pathways
Read these key entry points first
The safest reading path is to start with the page that matches the written problem, not the page that sounds most serious. These entry points keep the same map used across the multilingual homepages while staying grounded in the NSW scheme.
Make a claimUse this if no formal insurer decision has been made yet.Weekly paymentsUse this for PIAWE, capacity, current earnings, and stopped payment issues.DisputesUse this after a denial, treatment refusal, work-capacity decision, or Section 78 notice.Injury guidesUse this to connect the condition, evidence, treatment, capacity, and WPI issues.
Evidence review
Organise documents by issue, not emotion
A NSW workers compensation file usually needs more than one story about the injury. It needs the insurer decision, medical evidence, wage material, work-capacity records, treatment reasons, and long-term impairment issues separated into the questions the scheme actually asks.
Start with the actual insurer decision or claim problem, identify the documents that address it, and then use the NSW guide for that issue.
Denial and Section 78
Read what the insurer is disputing: work contribution, causation, pre-existing condition, psychological injury Section 11A, or missing evidence.
Weekly payments and PIAWE
Separate PIAWE, current earnings, certificate of capacity, suitable duties, and work-capacity assumptions before accepting a payment figure.
Treatment and surgery
A treatment dispute usually asks whether the proposed treatment is reasonably necessary, not only whether pain is genuine.
WPI and high-needs planning
If WPI, section 39 pressure, high-needs status, or work injury damages may arise, long-term evidence should be planned earlier.
Reading pathway
How to use this site
Use the homepage to identify the problem type first, then move to the specific guide. This keeps the next steps focused on the insurer decision, evidence and NSW process that apply to the claim.
- Step 1
If there is no formal decision yet, start with the claim and treatment-evidence pages.
The early file should usually preserve the injury report, certificate of capacity, medical records, wage material, and work restrictions.
- Step 2
If there is a denial, payment cut, treatment refusal, or work-capacity decision, start with the dispute hub.
The insurer’s written reasons help identify whether the issue concerns Section 78, weekly payments, treatment, work capacity, an IME, or PIC procedure.
- Step 3
If the injury has lasting effects, connect the injury guide with WPI, section 39, and damages planning.
Back, neck, psychological, brain, amputation, surgery, chronic pain, and CRPS files may need earlier evidence planning because later thresholds are evidence-heavy.
Official NSW sources
Check against the NSW scheme, not another jurisdiction
The scheme sources should be checked before treating a claim problem as only a fairness issue. Official NSW workers compensation sources explain that claim timing, liability disputes, weekly payment decisions, treatment approvals, and Personal Injury Commission pathways depend on the scheme documents and written evidence, not general fairness alone. These official references are useful starting points when checking the legal framework.
SIRA workers compensationRegulator information about claims, insurers, workers, employers, and benefits in NSW.Personal Injury CommissionThe tribunal pathway for many workers compensation disputes after insurer decisions.Workers Compensation Act 1987 (NSW)Core benefit provisions including weekly payments, medical expenses, and permanent impairment.Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998 (NSW)Claim management, injury management, dispute, and procedural framework provisions.
Workers compensation checkpoints
Key checkpoints in the workers compensation system
These markers help injured workers separate urgent timing issues from evidence-quality issues before accepting the insurer’s position.
48h
employer notification
The employer generally must notify its insurer within 48 hours after becoming aware of the workplace injury.
7
calendar days
Where provisional liability applies, the insurer generally starts provisional weekly payments, gives a reasonable excuse, or determines liability.
21
days
An ordinary weekly-payment claim generally must be accepted with payments commenced or disputed; provisional acceptance can extend final determination.
>10%
Physical section 66 threshold
Under the current general scheme, physical permanent impairment compensation requires WPI greater than 10%; primary psychological injury has a separate 15% threshold.
15%
Damages threshold
Work injury damages generally require at least 15% WPI, employer negligence, and evidence of past or future economic loss.
>20%
Section 39 exception
The 260-week limit does not apply when WPI is more than 20%, but ongoing entitlement remains subject to section 38 and incapacity requirements.
Up to 52 weeks
PIAWE usually uses the relevant pre-injury earnings period, often up to 52 weeks or the worker’s shorter actual period of employment.
First entitlement period
Section 36 rates depend on work capacity, PIAWE, current earnings, and the statutory maximum.
IRO funding may be available
Where ILARS funding is approved, eligible legal costs and reasonably necessary disbursements may be covered.
Second entitlement period
For no current work capacity, section 37 generally uses 80% of PIAWE, subject to the statutory maximum and other scheme rules.
Choose the right NSW work injury reading path
This guide hub routes injured workers to the most relevant NSW workers compensation pathway. If you are early in the claim process or already in dispute with the insurer, these pages cover the most common next steps and evidence requirements under the NSW scheme.
How to Make a NSW Workers Compensation Claim
A NSW claim usually starts with the injury report, certificate of capacity, claim form, and insurer decision timetable.
Start a New Claim
Step-by-step pathways for workers who are just getting started.
What to Do After a Work Injury
A practical checklist for your first days and weeks.
Challenge an Unfair IME Report
What to do when insurer medical evidence is inaccurate.
Prepare for an Independent Medical Exam (IME)
Know what to take, what to expect, and how to protect your evidence.
Pre-existing Condition Dispute Guide
How to respond when the insurer blames symptoms on prior degeneration.
PIAWE Indexation Explained
Check whether your weekly payments should have been increased.
Respond to a Section 78 Notice
Urgent steps when weekly payments or treatment are cut off.
Browse the Full Resource Hub
Access all NSW claim guides, dispute explainers, and evidence checklists.
Latest NSW dispute guides and legal updates
These guides explain common insurer disputes, payment cut-offs, medical entitlement limits, and impairment thresholds.
Section 38 Weekly Payments After 130 Weeks
How capacity tests and earnings can reduce payments after week 130.
Section 78 Notice Response Timeline (NSW)
How to check the insurer’s reasons, evidence, and available review or dispute pathway after a denial.
Work Capacity Decision Review Timeline
How to challenge payment reductions and terminations quickly.
Section 39 and the 260-Week Payment Limit
What happens near cutoff and which exceptions may still apply.
High-Needs Workers and the Section 39 Limit
Why more than 20% WPI may avoid the 260-week limit, while ongoing weekly payments remain subject to section 38.
Section 66 Lump Sum Compensation Guide
WPI thresholds, evidence strategy, and timing for permanent impairment payouts.
NSW system checkpoints before choosing the next page
These are the issues injured workers most often need help with after an insurer starts pushing back.
Weekly payments stopped
Urgent next steps when income support is reduced, suspended, or terminated.
Treatment denied
How to respond when scans, physio, surgery, or specialist treatment are refused.
Work capacity decision
Review rights, deadlines, and evidence strategy after a capacity finding.
Pre-existing condition dispute
Challenge arguments that your symptoms are only degeneration or prior disease.
How we help organise the claim direction
We focus on the practical parts of the NSW scheme that usually decide whether a claim stabilises or gets worse.
Weekly Payments
Denied payments? Calculating pre-injury average weekly earnings correctly is critical. We focus on rate errors, capacity disputes, and cut-off pressure.
Learn more →Lump Sum (WPI)
A section 66 claim may provide lump-sum compensation where the applicable threshold and assessment requirements are met. The accepted injury, medical method, and evidence determine the assessed WPI.
Check eligibility →Work Injury Damages
If your injury was caused by your employer’s negligence, a work injury damages claim may be available alongside the statutory pathway, but only if the impairment threshold and other legal and evidentiary requirements are met.
Are you eligible? →Death Benefit Claims
Dependants may have rights to lump sum compensation, funeral expenses, and weekly support after a fatal workplace incident.
Support for families →Serious injury and long-term impact guides
If your injury involves surgery, nerve damage, chronic pain, or psychological harm, start here. These guides explain what evidence matters and what thresholds can change your entitlements.
Practical support without overpromising outcomes
NSW Work Injury Claim is the workers compensation service of Stephen Young Lawyers. The legal service helps injured workers understand their options and pursue benefits that may be available under the NSW workers compensation scheme.
- ✓Clear strategy: We explain your options, your likely pathway, and what evidence matters.
- ✓Funding information: We explain whether IRO or ILARS funding may be available; approval and eligibility apply.
- ✓Insurer disputes: Help when payments are reduced, delayed, or terminated.
Not sure what to do next?
After a workplace injury, the deadlines and paperwork can feel overwhelming. We can help you understand the process, what documents to gather, and what to expect at each stage.
Referring doctor, union representative, or allied health provider? Use our professional referrals pathway for faster triage of injured-worker matters.
General information only. Every claim depends on the facts.
Homepage FAQs
What if the insurer denies my workers compensation claim?
A denial is not necessarily the end of the claim. Many refusals can be challenged with better medical evidence, wage material, and the correct review or PIC pathway, especially if you move quickly after the insurer decision.
Can I claim more than weekly payments after a lasting injury?
Possibly. Under the current general scheme, physical permanent impairment compensation usually requires WPI greater than 10%, while primary psychological injury has a separate 15% threshold. Work injury damages require at least 15% WPI as well as employer negligence and economic-loss evidence. The result depends on the injury date, evidence, and any applicable exception.
What if my weekly payments were calculated too low?
The starting PIAWE figure often drives the whole claim. If overtime, allowances, penalties, or second-job income were missed, you may need a recalculation request and supporting wage records before the underpayment grows further.
Need answers for your exact situation? Start with a free claim check and get practical next steps.