Highlights

  • Payday Super, which became law and started on 1 July 2026, requires employers to pay super guarantee at the same time as wages rather than quarterly.
  • The exception for new starters is longer. the first contribution for a new employee is due within 20 business days after the qualifying earnings day.
  • The same 20-day window applies when an existing employee moves to a new complying fund.
  • Payday Super uses the extended definition of employee in super guarantee law. includes contractors paid mainly for their labour, sportspeople and performers, and company directors.

Seasonal recruitment is accelerating, and a special first-payment deadline gives employers more time for new workers’ super contributions.

The usual deadline, the new-starter exception and who it covers

Payday Super, which became law and started on 1 July 2026, requires employers to pay super guarantee at the same time as wages rather than quarterly. The super guarantee rate is 12%. Under ATO guidance, a contribution is on time when the employee's fund receives it, with the information needed to allocate it, within 7 business days after the qualifying earnings day, generally the payday. The exception for new starters is longer. the first contribution for a new employee is due within 20 business days after the qualifying earnings day. The same 20-day window applies when an existing employee moves to a new complying fund. It also covers workers who are rehired, or who restart under a new arrangement, which may be relevant for casuals who return each summer. Payday Super uses the extended definition of employee in super guarantee law. includes contractors paid mainly for their labour, sportspeople and performers, and company directors. That can matter for businesses bringing in short-term help on contract over the holidays, as well as those hiring casuals through payroll.

The ATO's worked example, step by step

The ATO illustrates the rule with an employee in the Northern Territory, where Picnic Day falls in early August. The new employee is first paid on 9 July 2026. Because it is their first contribution, super is due by 7 August 2026, 20 business days later once the territory's public holiday is excluded. The employee's second pay is on 30 July 2026. That contribution falls under the standard 7-business-day rule and is due by 11 August 2026, again allowing an extra day for Picnic Day. In other words, the extra time does not roll forward. From the second pay, the normal clock applies. The ATO gives a second example for an employee who switches funds. A payment on 7 August 2026 is due by 4 September 2026 under the 20-day rule. The next payment, made on 4 September, is due by 15 September.

The bunching rule that can align deadlines

New starters who are paid weekly or fortnightly can have a second payday well before the first contribution is due. The ATO has a rule for that situation. If the later due date for one qualifying earnings day falls after the normal due date for the next qualifying earnings day, the next contribution is due on that same later date. In the ATO's example, a second payment made on 23 July 2026 is aligned to the 7 August 2026 deadline that applied to the first pay. This allows both contributions to be sent together, which may suit businesses processing large numbers of new starters at once. Hypothetical example: assume a casual is hired for a 10-week summer season and earns $1,000 a week in ordinary time earnings. At 12%, each weekly pay carries $1,000 × 12% = $120 of super, or $1,200 over the season. Only the first $120 benefits from the 20-business-day window, plus any later pays aligned to it under the bunching rule. Each remaining contribution must reach the fund within 7 business days of its payday. The example assumes the same hours each week and no other exceptions.