Payday Super Has Started: What The ATO's First-Year Approach Really Means for Your Business

Payday Super began on 1 July 2026, and a lot of employers are asking the same practical question. If a super payment lands a few days late while we get our systems sorted, are we in trouble? And is it alright to keep paying quarterly for a bit longer?

The ATO has said the first year of Payday Super is a facilitative period for employers who are genuinely making the move and fixing problems quickly. What it is not is an extra window to keep paying quarterly. The difference comes down to how you behave, not just the date on the calendar.

What the first-year approach covers

The ATO's first-year approach runs from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027 and is set out in a Practical Compliance Guideline, PCG 2026/1. It was finalised in January 2026, so it is no longer a draft.

Two things are worth separating from the start. One is your legal obligation, which has not changed. The other is how the ATO decides where to spend its compliance resources during the first year. The guideline only deals with the second. It does not soften the law itself.

Three situations the ATO treats very differently

The ATO looks at how you behave and how quickly you fix issues, then places employers into one of three risk zones.

• You pay on payday and fix problems fast. If you are paying super for each payday and something goes wrong, say a contribution is returned or arrives late, and you correct it as soon as reasonably practicable, so nothing is left unpaid, the ATO treats this as low risk. It has said it will not apply compliance resources to review low-risk employers.

• You keep paying quarterly for now. If you carry on with a quarterly rhythm after 1 July 2026 but clear any unpaid super within 28 days after the end of the quarter (the deadline that applied under the old quarterly system), the ATO generally treats this as medium risk. It may still review you, though at a lower priority than high-risk employers.

• You leave super unpaid past the deadlines. If super is still unpaid and not corrected within 28 days after the end of the relevant quarter, that is high risk, and it is where the ATO has said it will direct compliance attention first.

Put simply, moving to payday and fixing errors quickly sits in a very different place from treating the first year as a reason to keep paying quarterly, and both are a long way from leaving super unpaid.

What hasn't changed

From 1 July 2026, super guarantee contributions must be received by your employees' funds within 7 business days after each payday. The day you pay qualifying earnings is day 0. That 7 business day window does not stretch simply because a payment hit an error or a delay, although a longer period can apply in some cases, such as a first contribution for a new employee or where an exceptional circumstances determination is in place.

It's also worth remembering the super guarantee charge still exists. If super stays unpaid, the ATO can assess the charge, which is the unpaid super plus notional interest and administrative costs. Paying the outstanding amount to the fund before an assessment is issued reduces that liability. A lighter compliance focus for low-risk employers does not remove any of this.

A practical checklist for the first year

If you employ staff and you're still settling into payday timing, you might want to work through a few things:

• Check how much you currently pay in merchant fees each month, so you know the number you're working with.

• Decide how you'll handle that cost once the surcharge goes: absorb it, build it into your prices, or a mix of both.

• Confirm with your payment provider how and when surcharging will be turned off, and leave time to test it.

• If a price adjustment is part of your plan, work it out now so it isn't a rushed decision in late September.

  
  

One thing that isn't a way around it

It can be tempting to rename a card surcharge as an “admin fee” or “service fee” and carry on. That doesn't work. If a fee only applies to card payments, it's still a card surcharge whatever it's called, and the ACCC treats dressing it up as misleading conduct. Cleaner to make a clear pricing decision and move on.

Where this leaves you

For most businesses this is a manageable change, and the earlier you look at your numbers, the more room you have to make a calm decision. Two months is plenty of time if you start now.

If you'd like a hand working out what removing your surcharge does to your margins, or reviewing your merchant fees before October, we're happy to run the numbers with you.

Disclaimer: This article is intended to provide general guidance and is not specific advice. We encourage you to seek tailored advice for your circumstances.