From 1 July 2026, the Australian Government is introducing Payday Super, a major change to how employers calculate, pay and report superannuation contributions. This article explains what Payday Super is, why it’s being introduced, and how to remain compliant.
What is Payday Super?
Payday Super is an Australian Taxation Office (ATO) reform that changes:
- How super guarantee (SG) is calculated
- When super must be paid
- How super is reported
From 1 July 2026:
- Super must be paid on payday, at the same time as salary and wages.
- Contributions must be received by the employee’s super fund within 7 business days (unless an extended timeframe applies, such as for new employees).
- Super guarantee will be calculated as 12% of qualifying earnings (QE). This is a new term that brings together ordinary time earnings (OTE) and other payments.
Read more about meeting your Payday Super obligations from the ATO.
Why is Payday Super being introduced?
The initiative aims to:
- Ensure employees receive their super sooner
- Reduce unpaid or late super
- Improve transparency through more frequent reporting
- Strengthen compliance across the superannuation system
- Reduce long-term super shortfalls for employees
Employers can begin paying super on payday before 1 July 2026 if they wish.
What’s changing from 1 July 2026?
1. Deadline for super payments
Super must:
- Be paid at the same time as qualifying earnings (on payday)
- Be received by the super fund within 7 business days
This is a significant shift from the current quarterly system.
What this means for employers:
With the addition of same-day super, you will need to allow extra admin time when processing payroll to ensure clearing houses receive funds promptly and avoid fees.
- Make budget changes now to reflect the payday super knock-on effect on your cashflow. Learn how to update super in your Agrimaster Full Budget.
- Amend superannuation payments from quarterly to monthly from July 2026.
- Review how this affects your cashflow and, in particular, your low-income months.
Read more about the payment deadlines for Payday Super from the ATO.
2. Calculating super guarantee amounts
Super guarantee will be calculated as 12% of qualifying earnings (QE).
QE includes:
- Ordinary time earnings (OTE)
- Salary sacrifice contributions
- Other payments currently included in salary or wages for super guarantee
This may increase the base amount used to calculate super for some employees.
Read more about what payments are qualifying earnings from the ATO.
3. Reporting super payments
Employers must report:
- Qualifying earnings (QE)
- Super liability
Through Single Touch Payroll (STP).
4. Late super guarantee charge (SGC) and penalties
If the super payment to the clearing house is not received within 7 business days of payday, the ATO can enforce strict penalties.
Penalties will be 25% or 50% of the unpaid super guarantee charge (depending on prior compliance history).
Read more about the super guarantee charge from the ATO.
5. Small Business Superannuation Clearing House (SBSCH)
The ATO’s SBSCH will no longer be available.
All employers must transition to an alternative SuperStream-compliant clearing house.
Read more about how to transition from the SBSCH from the ATO.
Common clearing house options
Super fund–provided clearing houses
- Australian Retirement Trust (ART) – QuickSuper
- AustralianSuper Clearing House
- Hostplus – QuickSuper
- REST – QuickSuper
- AMP SuperStream Gateway
Independent / Commercial clearing houses
- QuickSuper
- SuperChoice
- ClickSuper
- MercerSuper Clearing House
Before transitioning, confirm that your chosen clearing house:
- Supports per-pay-run submissions
- Meets the 7-business-day processing requirement
- Provides clear reporting and error notifications
What you need to do in Wagemaster/WageEasy and Agrimaster
Follow the Help Article here to stay compliant.
