If you employ staff, this is one of the biggest payroll changes in years. While the total super you owe may not change, the timing, administration and penalties absolutely do.

Businesses that prepare early are likely to move through the transition smoothly. Those that delay may face avoidable stress, system issues and cashflow pressure.

Super Payment Deadlines

Current Rules

Super guarantee payments must be received by the employee’s super fund within 28 days after the end of each quarter. Employers can choose to pay more frequently, such as monthly.

Quarterly due dates:

• 28 October
• 28 January
• 28 April
• 28 July

From 1 July 2026

Super guarantee payments will need to be made on payday, at the same time as paying qualifying earnings (QE), and received by the employee’s super fund within 7 business days.

Some exceptions to the 7-business-day deadline will apply, including for certain new employees.

When to Pay Super

To avoid the Super Guarantee Charge (SGC), super contributions must be received by your employee’s super fund within the required timeframe, together with all information needed to allocate the payment correctly.

A contribution is considered on time if it is received by the fund within 7 business days after paying your employee.

If you use a commercial clearing house, allow enough time for processing. Best practice will be to pay super on payday.

This is also known as the QE day — the day you pay qualifying earnings (QE) to your employees.

For super purposes, “employee” can also include certain contractors and other workers under the extended SG rules, such as some independent contractors, sportspeople and performers.

What is a Business Day?

A business day means any day other than:

• Saturday or Sunday
• A public holiday that applies across an entire Australian state or territory

This means a state-wide public holiday is not counted as a business day for Payday Super purposes, even if your business is located elsewhere.

However, local or regional public holidays that apply only to part of a state or territory will still count as a business day.

What You Need to Know

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