Payday Super

What's payday super?

Payday super is the federal government's proposed legislation to make employers pay their employees' super at the same time as their wages or salary.

Background to the payday super rules

The government proposed the change to help improve retirement outcomes for Australian workers.

Government research shows that this change could leave a worker 1.5% better off at retirement.¹

Payday super will also help the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) detect and recover unpaid super. In 2019-20, the ATO estimates employees were owed $3.4 billion worth of super.¹

When will payday super start?

The proposed start date for payday superannuation is 1 July 2026.

What does payday super legislation mean for employers?

Employers have 3 main obligations under the proposed super legislation starting 1 July 2026:

They need to accurately calculate the amount of super owed to each employee (see 'qualifying earnings' below).

They must pay an employee's super within 7 calendar days of every payday (called 'QE day' in the draft legislation). There are limited exceptions to this rule.

They must comply with the employee's choice of fund.

Different rules may apply to Defined Benefit accounts.

Get ready for payday super

Employer checklist

Use this checklist to see if your business is ready for payday super.

Remember, you don't have to wait to change your superannuation payment dates. You can start as soon as you're ready.

Download checklist

Key changes to understand

Calculating super: qualifying earnings

The new rules introduce the term 'qualifying earnings' (QE). QE means the wages payable to an employee on their pay cycle day. It'll be used to calculate how much SG employers should pay.

Qualifying earnings is made up of:

An employee's Ordinary Time Earnings (OTE)
Amounts of OTE that have been used as part of a salary sacrifice arrangement for super contributions
Other amounts which are currently included in an employee's salary or wages for SG.

Read the proposal for more details on how to calculate QE.

When to pay super under payday super rules

Under the proposed rules, employers must pay employees' super at the same time as their salary or wages. That means super payment dates for your business will be the same as your paydays, if they're not already.

Super contributions must be in an employee's super account within 7 calendar days of their payday.

What does ‘payday’ mean under the new rules?

'Payday' means the day you pay an employee their wages or salary. The draft Bill calls payday 'QE' (qualifying earnings) day.

Changes to the Super Guarantee Charge (SGC)

Under the proposed super legislation, employers that don't pay employees' super in full and on time will be charged interest each day. Employers might also face extra charges and fees if they don’t pay all super entitlements within 28 days of receiving a notice of assessment from the ATO.

The Treasury has more information on changes to the SGC in its fact sheet.

Other changes proposed as part of payday super

The ATO's Small Business Superannuation Clearing House will close

As part of these changes, the ATO's Small Business Superannuation Clearing House will close from 1 July 2026. So if your business relies on it to process super payments, you'll need to find a new solution.

Australian Retirement Trust Clearing House

With our clearing house, you can easily pay super to multiple funds for different employees.

Learn more

Onboarding employees and stapled super

The new rules include some changes to help employers onboard new employees. These include:

Being able to ask for an employee's stapled fund details before offering them a choice of fund. This means employers can show a new employee their stapled fund as part of their onboarding.
Creating an exception to the 7 days rule for paying super contributions. Employers have an extra 14 days to make their first payment to a new employee's super fund.