Payday Super – Your questions answered

From 1 July 2026, employers must pay Superannuation Guarantee (SG) contributions on payday, rather than quarterly. Super must be received by employees’ super funds within seven calendar days of each payday.

The reform is designed to reduce unpaid super (estimated at ~$5.2 billion annually), improve retirement outcomes and help employees see super contributions in real-time.

Under the current legislation, contributions must be received by the fund within seven calendar days of each payday. This includes weekends and public holidays, so paying on or before payday is recommended.

If it’s an “out-of-cycle” payment (bonus, back pay), super can be paid with the next regular pay run instead of immediately.

You can keep your pay frequency but super for that cycle must still reach the fund within seven days of payday.

You can start making more frequent super contribution payments as soon as you are ready. Employment Hero already has customers who are completing super contribution payments as part of their standard payroll cycle.

Yes, Employment Hero will continue to support the Beam integration and ability to export SuperStream alternative file format (SAFF) extracts for other clearing solutions. Clearing houses are updating their processes in response to Payday Super.

The current legislation states Employers remain responsible. We suggest employers submit payments on payday (or earlier) and keep proof of lodgement.

We are still early building this solution so cannot confirm yet if it will support payments from multiple bank accounts. However, this is very valuable feedback that we will account for in development.

It is the employer’s responsibility to re-submit to the correct fund as soon as you have the new details. It is best to keep records; the ATO has limited discretion where the delay is beyond your control.

Yes. Funds must notify employers and the ATO at least 2–4 weeks in advance. There will be improved notifications in the event of fund closure or merger.

This is something you need to model and consider but there is a high risk that more frequent payments mean less flexibility to hold super accruals for quarterly submission. Employers will need to manage cash reserves more carefully.

The current draft legislation does not include any concessions. The new rules apply to all employers, regardless of size. However, Employment Hero has been advocating with the government for a phased roll out, to better support small businesses through the transition.

To date, we have not heard any consideration for cashflow assistance measures for business during the transition period.

We have not received exact details of how this will happen and understand this remains under consideration. However, the ATO does have the ability to match STP payroll data (when wages are paid) with fund data (when super is received) via SuperStream. If there’s a mismatch, employers may face the Superannuation Guarantee (SG) charge.

If contributions aren’t received within seven days of payday, employers incur an SG shortfall, plus interest and penalties (up to 60% of the shortfall).

The ATO does. They will raise the SG charge if payments are late or missing, based on STP and fund data. It is not handled through your clearing house.

Employers must lodge a Superannuation Guarantee (SG) statement with the ATO when super is missed or underpaid. The ATO provides an online SG statement form through the Business Portal/Online Services for Business.

This would primarily depend on the contractual agreement. If a contractor is deemed an “employee” for SG purposes (paid mainly for their labour), Payday Super rules apply. Super is due within seven days of the payday (when you pay them), not the invoice date. We recommend employers carefully review contractor agreements and seek legal advice as required.

You must request their choice. If not provided, the ATO will supply their stapled fund. Employers cannot delay payments waiting for employee information and should revert to the employees’ stapled fund or the employer default fund as needed. Also, for new employees, employers have 21 days to submit the super contribution after the first QE day. If the next QE day is within 14 days, it is still due within 21 days of the first QE day.

Yes. The Payday Super rules apply to all employers, including charities and NFPs.

The Small Business Super Clearing House will close to new users from October 2025 and shut down completely by June 2026. Businesses must switch to an alternative clearing solution.

The fund must receive the payment by 30 June. Pay early, check provider cut-off dates and use faster payment options like NPP to avoid missing deadlines.

There is a risk, as in some cases the timing may result in 13 contributions in a year. The Treasury was provided this feedback during industry commentary on the draft legislation. If this event were to transpire, we recommend employers flag this with affected employees as early as possible.

Super contributions generally cannot be refunded to the employer once allocated. Overpayments stay in the employee’s account. This is why it is important to use an integrated payroll system to help with the accurate calculation and payment of super contributions.