Meeting superannuation guarantee (SG) obligations is one of those requirements that comes with being in business, right? And that hasn’t changed with the fires, floods and pandemic of 2020. So we thought it may be a good time to remind you on when you have to make those payments and meet your obligations.
Choice of fund
Most Australian workers can choose their own super fund so unless all your employees are covered by certain industrial or employment agreements you need to understand the rules about choice.
If an employee does not make a choice, you need to make their super contributions into your chosen default super fund from the first pay period they are eligible for super. Many employers choose a fund which specialises in their industry sector – like AvSuper does for the aviation industry.
On the other hand, once an employee makes a choice, you need to make contributions into their chosen fund within two months of receiving that request. Note employees can make a choice at any time, not just when they start working with you although you can reject choices that are not compliant or if the employee has made another choice within the last 12 months.
Making SG payments
For eligible employees, you must make SG contributions to the correct super fund at least once a quarter – although many employers pay it at each pay run. Fines may apply if you do not meet the following due dates:
- October 28 for Quarter 1 (July 1 to September 30)
- January 28 for Quarter 2 (October 1 to December 31)
- April 28 for Quarter 3 (January 1 to March 31)
- July 28 for Quarter 4 (April 1 to June 30)
Payments can be made electronically to the relevant fund for each member, or you can choose to use a Super Clearing house (you make one payment to them and they distribute the money to the various funds for your employees).
Making other super payments
As an employer, you may be requested to make a salary sacrifice or after-tax personal contribution for employees. Such payments must be clearly marked as that type of contribution when paying the super fund and need to be made promptly – the actual due date may be stated in their employment contract or an industrial award.
Note that personal and salary sacrifice contributions do not count towards your SG obligation so you must still make the full SG contribution for all eligible employees.
Reporting super contributions
SG contributions do not have to be listed on pay slips (unless specific workplace legislation requires it), but salary sacrifice and after-tax contributions must be recorded as reportable employer super contributions on annual payment summaries.
You must notify each fund electronically about contributions you make so that the fund knows which member to allocate the money to and how to treat it in terms of taxation and contribution limits.
It is important to keep records of your contributions paid for five years, as well as copies of any written information you provide employees (eg payment summaries and choice forms).
AvSuper is a profit-for-members, MySuper-compliant super fund dedicated to the aviation industry. This information is of a general nature only and does not take into account your personal objectives, situation or needs. Before making a decision about AvSuper (ABN84 421 446 069), you should consider your own requirements and the relevant Product Disclosure Statement. For a copy or to discuss your super, call 1300 128 751 or visit www.avsuper.com.au.