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IN PHOTO: Australian mining heiress and Chairman of Hancock Prospecting group Gina Rinehart prepares to award medals to competitors at the Australian Synchronised Swimming Championships in Sydney, Australia, April 25, 2015. Rinehart's company is a sponsor of the event. REUTERS/Jason Reed REUTERS/Jason Reed

The latest Taxation Statistics for 2012-13 of the ATO has revealed that Australia's richest live in harbourside Sydney, while the poorest live in rural NSW. And contrary to what is always perceived, the mining industry doesn’t generate much income. The country’s biggest earners are surgeons.

Residents in Darling Point, Edgecliff, HMAS Rushcutters and Point Piper suburbs, or postcode 2027, submit the most tax figures, the ATO said. People in the area were found to be earning an average mean income of $177,514, which is eight times over than those found in Australia’s poorest suburbs, which are in the Delungra, Gragin and Myall Creek suburbs in NSW. The latest Taxation Statistics is based on the information that 12.77 million taxpayers put in their tax returns.

Postcode 2027 hosts a total of 5980 Australia's highest earners. Its counterpart, postcode 2403, has 350 people. The average taxable income in this area was $21,691.

“[Disparity] occurs in all societies. In Australia we do like to be egalitarian, like to call each other mate and go down to the same surf club, but at the end of the day we do have very different incomes and that gap has probably widened,” University of New South Wales economics professor Tim Harcourt told SmartCompany. He said the list draws attention to the disparity of wealth in Australia where it suggests that enormous wealth creation probably occurred in the last 25 years and that a postcode is the biggest determination of such wealth.

The list also showed Australia’s highest earning profession is that of being a surgeon. Australia has 3570 surgeons, and their average taxable income was placed at $361,202.

TOP 5 NATIONAL POSTCODES FOR INCOME

1. Postcode: 2027

State: NSW

Suburb: Darling Point, Edgecliff, HMAS Rushcutters, Point Piper

Number of individuals: 5980

Average income: $177,514

2. Postcode: 3761

State: VIC

Suburb: St Andrews

Number of individuals: 655

Average income: $148,967

3. Postcode: 2023

State: NSW

Suburb: Bellevue Hill

Number of individuals: 6945

Average income: $143,112

4. Postcode: 6011

State: WA

Suburb: Cottesloe, Peppermint Grove

Number of individuals: 6610

Average income: $142,504

5. Postcode: 3142

State: VIC

Suburb: Hawksburn, Toorak

Number of individuals: 10,100

Average income: $142,000

BOTTOM 5 NATIONAL POSTCODES

1. Postcode: 2403

State: NSW

Suburb: Delungra, Gragin, Myall Creek

Number of individuals: 350

Average income: $21,691

2. Postcode: 2359

State: NSW

Suburb: Aberdeen, Bakers Creek, Bundarra

Number of individuals: 375

Average income: $24,742

3. Postcode: 2361

State: NSW

Suburb: Ashford, Atholwood, Bonshaw, Limestone, Pindaroi

Number of individuals: 375

Average income: $25,431

4. Postcode: 2404

State: NSW

Suburb: Bangheet, Bingara, Gineroi, Keera, Dinoga, Elcombe, Upper Bingara, Pallal, Riverview

Number of individuals: 840

Average income: $27,013

5. Postcode: 2424

State: NSW

Suburb: Tiri, Cundle Flat, Cooplacurripa, Cells River, Caffreys Flat, Number One, Mount George, Knorrit Forest, Knorrit Flat

Number of individuals: 210

Average income: $27,537

TOP 10 OCCUPATIONS

1. Surgeons: $361,202

2. Anaesthetists: $319,033

3. Internal Medicine Specialists: $263,601

4. Financial Dealers: $219,213

5. Judicial and Other Legal Professionals: $192,189

6. Psychiatrists: $186,778

7. Mining Engineers: $166,410

8. Other Medical Practitioners: $166,025

9. Chief Executives and Managing Directors: $152,364

10. Generalist Medical Practitioners: $144,498

Source: ATO Taxation Statistics 2012-13

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