In the 2023-24 Budget, the Government announced that the super guarantee framework will be reformed to align the payment of super guarantee contributions with an employee’s regular pay cycle, instead of the current quarterly requirements. 

The exposure draft legislation for the new ‘Payday Super’ rules has now been released, with consultation open until 11 April 2025.

The super guarantee charge, payable where employers fail to make contributions in full and on time, will be updated, including a new ‘administrative uplift’ component of up to 60% of the shortfall amount.

At long last proposed regulations have been released for consultation that would permit the conversion of legacy pensions and reserves over a 5 year period. As a nice added bonus, the regulations will also better allow allocations from non-pension reserves.

In Part 1 of our Super Guarantee article series, we discussed the background to the super guarantee regime and an overview of how the regime operates. In Part 2, we looked at who will be covered by the super guarantee regime, and in Part 3 we specifically looked at when this will include certain contractors.

The superannuation guarantee (Super Guarantee) system is the Federal Government system under which employers make superannuation contributions on behalf of their employees, certain contractors and other persons.

In the recent decision of JMC Pty Limited v Commissioner of Taxation [2022] FCA 750, the Federal Court found that an ‘independent contractor’ was an employee for super guarantee purposes.

A quick reminder of the new superannuation measures which are effective as of 1 July 2022:

ake super guarantee contributions on time is not a breach of the super laws, but it will trigger tax for the employer, and potentially penalties.

In the recent Australian Administrative Tribunal (AAT) decision of Trustee for Virdis Family Trust t/a Rickard Heating Pty Ltd v FC of T [2022] AATA 3, the AAT relied on the decision in Dental Corporation Pty Ltd v Moffet [2020] FCAFC 118 (Moffet) to find that a plumber who was engaged as a contractor was an employee for the purposes of the Superannuation Guarantee (Administration) Act 1992 (SG Act).

As previously discussed here, the May 2021 budget announcements included a number of changes aimed at increasing flexibility in the superannuation system. Some of these key changes have now been introduced to Parliament as part of the Treasury Laws Amendment (Enhancing Superannuation Outcomes For Australians and Helping Australian Businesses Invest) Bill 2021 (Bill).

As part of the broader ‘Your Future, Your Super’ reforms, the concept of default ‘stapled super funds’ for employees will take effect from 1 November 2021. Where employees start work on or after 1 November 2021, and do not choose a super fund, most employers will have to check with the ATO if their employee has an account with an existing super fund, known as a ‘stapled super fund’, to pay the employee’s super guarantee into.

The super guarantee (SG) amnesty ended on 7 September 2020. The SG amnesty allowed employers to disclose and pay previously unpaid SG charge, including nominal interest, for the quarters between 1 July 1992 to 31 March 2018 without incurring the administration component or Part 7 penalties. In addition, payments of SG charge made to the ATO under the amnesty were tax deductible to the employer.