For years, paying your team's super was a quarterly job. You worked out what was owed, sent it off four times a year, and moved on. From 1 July 2026 that has changed. Super now has to be paid far more often, and the cost of getting it wrong has not softened. If you employ even one person, here is what you need to know about when super is due and how the new rules work.
The super guarantee (SG) is the minimum super you must pay on top of an employee's wages. It rose in steps for years and reached 12% on 1 July 2025, which is where it now sits. So for every $1,000 of an eligible employee's earnings, you owe at least $120 in super on top.
There is also no longer a minimum monthly earnings limit. The old rule that only kicked in once someone earned $450 in a month was scrapped on 1 July 2022, so super is now payable even to casual and part-time staff earning small amounts (workers under 18 still need to work more than 30 hours in a week to qualify). Super is payable for your employees, and for some contractors too, so getting the call right on whether someone is an employee or a contractor matters more than ever.
Until 30 June 2026, super was due quarterly. You had 28 days after the end of each quarter to get it paid:
From 1 July 2026, that quarterly rhythm is gone. Under Payday Super, you pay super at the same time you pay wages. Every payday now triggers a super payment, and the money has to reach your employee's fund within 7 business days of payday.
The rate stays at 12%, but the base is broadening. Instead of calculating super on ordinary time earnings alone, you now work from qualifying earnings, which pulls in amounts like commissions and salary sacrifice. For most weekly or fortnightly payrolls, that means a super payment every single pay cycle. It is a genuine shift, so it is worth checking that your payroll software and the way your pay run works are ready for it.
One trap catches out even careful employers: the deadline is the date the super lands in the employee's fund, not the date you clicked pay. Payments made through a clearing house can take a few business days to arrive. If you send super on the last allowable day, there is a good chance it counts as late.
Build in a buffer. Treat the real cut-off as several days before the official one, so a clearing house delay does not tip you over the line.
Not sure your payroll is set up correctly for the new rules? Book a free call and we will walk through it with you.
Late super is expensive, and not in a way you can write off. If you miss a deadline, even by a day, you have to lodge a super guarantee charge (SGC) statement and pay the SGC to the ATO. The SGC is made up of three parts:
The real sting is that the SGC is not tax deductible, unlike the super contributions you make on time. So a missed payment costs you the super, plus interest, plus the fee, and you lose the deduction on all of it. The SGC statement is generally due one calendar month after the payment deadline.
If you have already fallen behind, do not ignore it, because the interest keeps building. It is far better to lodge and sort out a plan than to hope it goes unnoticed. We cover your options if you owe the ATO money in a separate guide.
If you are about to bring someone on, super starts from their very first pay. There is more admin to line up when you are hiring your first employee, including choosing a default fund and offering staff a choice of fund. Getting the setup right from day one is far easier than untangling it later.
And if you work for yourself, none of this applies to you as an employer. Just remember that no one is paying super on your behalf either, which is a separate decision worth making deliberately.
Payday Super is a significant change, but the principle behind it is simple: pay the right amount, to the right fund, on time, every payday. Get your payroll software configured for the new timing, build in a buffer for clearing house delays, and treat super as non-negotiable rather than something to catch up on at quarter's end.
Want a second set of eyes on your super and payroll setup? Book a free call with us and we will make sure you are covered.
This article is general information only and does not take your personal circumstances into account. For advice specific to your business, please get in touch.
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