payday super frequently asked questions

The clock starts on your employee's payday — not when you submit the payment. To give yourself the maximum buffer, the safest approach is to pay super on the same day as wages. This leaves the full 7 business days for your clearing house to process and forward the contribution to the super fund.

A business day is any day that isn't a Saturday, Sunday, or a public holiday applying to the whole of any Australian state or territory. This means a state-wide public holiday in any state removes that day for all Australian employers — even those based elsewhere. Regional public holidays (such as the Royal Hobart Show Day) still count as business days for everyone, including employers in that region.

Yes. If you use a clearing house — including the HESTA QuickSuper^ clearing house — the time it takes to process and forward your payment to HESTA counts within your 7 business days. If you use the HESTA QuickSuper clearing house, QuickSuper will pay your contributions to the Fund on the same day, according to the QuickSuper Payday Super hub.

Yes, in three circumstances:

• New employee or new fund: you have 20 business days for the very first contribution for a new employee, or the first payment to a new fund when an employee changes funds.
• Out-of-cycle payments (such as commissions, one-off bonuses, or back-pays): super on these amounts is due by 7 business days after the employee's next regular payday. Note: if the employee has no further regular paydays (for example, they've left the business), this extension doesn't apply — the standard 7-day rule applies from the original payment date.
• Exceptional circumstances (such as natural disasters or widespread system outages): the ATO may issue a determination extending the deadline to 20 business days. You self-assess whether you fall within the affected group — no application is required.

Because Payday Super starts on 1 July 2026 and the last quarterly payment is due 28 July 2026, there's an overlap. Any super paid between 1 and 28 July is first applied to offset any shortfall from the April–June 2026 quarter, with any remainder counting toward Payday Super obligations. If you pay both correctly and on time, there's no penalty during this period. You're not required to pay your Q4 quarterly contribution before 28 July unless you choose to.

Important: The ATO Small Business Super Clearing House (SBSCH) closes permanently at 11:59pm AEST on 30 June 2026 – before your final quarterly payment is due. If you use the SBSCH, you'll need to have an alternative clearing house in place before then. For more information, head to this section.

Qualifying earnings (QE) is the new term for the amount used to calculate each super contribution. For most small businesses, it won't change how much total super you pay — just how often. Qualifying earnings generally include:

• ordinary time earnings (OTE) – the base most employers already use
• all commissions paid to employees (including those earned outside ordinary hours)
• salary sacrifice super contributions that would otherwise be qualifying earnings.

The SG rate stays at 12%. Visit ato.gov.au/QE for full details on what is and isn't included.

It depends on when the work was performed. A bonus paid entirely for work done outside of ordinary hours (overtime) is not qualifying earnings and super doesn't apply to it. If a bonus relates to work spanning both ordinary and overtime hours, you'll need to assess which portion qualifies. When in doubt, check with your tax adviser or visit ato.gov.au/paydaysuper.

The following are explicitly excluded:

• paid parental leave
• fringe benefits
• payments to employees under 18 years of age (unless they work more than 30 hours per week)
• payments for private or domestic work (unless the worker does more than 30 hours per week)
• payments to employees temporarily working in Australia covered by a bilateral social security agreement. 

Check with your payroll software provider that their system will be updated before 1 July 2026 to:

• calculate and process super contributions with each pay run (weekly, fortnightly, or monthly)
• report qualifying earnings and super liability for each pay cycle via Single Touch Payroll (STP)
• support the new ABN matching requirement between STP reporting and your clearing house (see question below).

Most modern cloud-based payroll systems will be updated automatically, but confirm this with your provider and review your pay codes once the update is available.

Yes. The ABN you report through STP must be the same ABN included in the contributions file sent to your clearing house. This is especially important if your business is part of a larger company group where different entities may currently be submitting payments. Check with your finance team and clearing house to confirm ABNs match across both systems.

The ATO Small Business Super Clearing House closes permanently at 11:59pm AEST on 30 June 2026. After that date, you won't be able to log in, make payments, or access historical records. This means you can't use it to make your final quarterly payment (due 28 July 2026).

The recommended approach:

• make your Q3 payment (due 28 April 2026) through the SBSCH as normal
• download all historical records before 30 June 2026 (see ato.gov.au for instructions)
• set up an alternative clearing house before your Q4 payment is due.

The HESTA QuickSuper clearing house is available free to HESTA employers and is SuperStream-compliant. Visit clearinghouse.hesta.com.au/apply to register.

MVR is a new SuperStream service that lets you verify an employee's fund details — including whether their account exists, is valid, and can accept contributions — before making a payment. This significantly reduces the risk of rejected contributions.

Around 90% of current SuperStream errors come from just two issues: the member not being found with the information supplied, or the employee no longer being a member of that fund. Talk to your payroll provider or clearing house about when MVR will be available in your system and plan to use it in the second half of 2026.

Instead of a quarterly super payment, cash will leave your account with each pay run. Review your payroll funding cycle and approval processes now to make sure you can cover super alongside wages. July 2026 may feel heavier than usual: depending on when you last paid super, you could effectively have up to four months’ worth of contributions falling in that month — your Q4 quarterly payment (due 28 July) plus new Payday Super payments from 1 July. Factor this into your planning and consider maintaining a separate super contributions account if that helps.

Yes — and it's a great idea. Switching early lets you test your payroll software, clearing house, and cash flow processes before the legal requirement takes effect. There's no penalty for paying more frequently before 1 July 2026.

Pay the outstanding amount to your employee's super account as soon as possible — even if you can't pay the full amount straight away. Getting money to the fund quickly is the right first step. For questions about penalties or the super guarantee charge, visit ato.gov.au/paydaysuper or speak with your tax adviser — these matters are between you and the ATO. Speak to the ATO, as they will determine how they will approach your circumstances.

With super now due within 7 business days of the first payday (or 20 business days for the very first contribution), having complete and accurate fund details at the point of hire is more important than ever. Update your onboarding process to:

• collect super fund choice details before or on the employee's first day
• enter names, dates of birth, TFNs, and fund details in your payroll system promptly
• if an employee doesn't nominate a fund, request their stapled fund from the ATO before making the first payment.

HESTA's employee onboarding service, powered by QuickSuper, gives new staff secure online access to complete their choice of super fund form digitally.

The fund list is linked live to the ATO's Fund Validation Service, so details are always current. Visit clearinghouse.hesta.com.au/apply to register or sign in.

Request their stapled fund from the ATO before making the first payment. If no stapled fund exists and your workplace default fund is HESTA, contributions go to HESTA.

Don't wait — late fund details can mean a late super payment, which triggers penalties. Having a streamlined digital onboarding process in place before 1 July is the best way to avoid this scenario.

Yes. Once Payday Super starts, employees will see contributions appearing in their HESTA account every pay cycle rather than quarterly. A brief heads-up before the change takes effect reduces confusion and questions coming to you. 

For most employees, no. Contribution caps don't change. However, caps apply in the financial year that the fund receives the contribution. Learn more about contribution caps.

Timing around 30 June could affect employees who are close to their annual cap. If an employee is concerned about exceeding their cap, encourage them to seek financial advice. HESTA's financial advice team can also help members understand their options. Make an appointment here.