Red-collared Lorikeets were originally treated as a full species back in the 1926 RAOU Checklist, but since that time they have largely been regarded as a subspecies of the Rainbow Lorikeet. A recent revision of this group has now reinstated them as a full species.

Red-collared Lorikeets occur only in northern Australia - from the Kimberleys across to the Leichardt River drainage in far NW Queensland.Distinctive field marks are the orange-red neck collar and a black belly.