Your
responsibilities 

Understanding your legal obligations is an important aspect of running a business. When it comes to super, you need to follow the requirements set out in the Superannuation Guarantee (Administration) Act 1992. 

The Superannuation Guarantee (SG) was set up by the government to help employees save for retirement. The SG means employers must pay super contributions on behalf of employees who are:

• aged 18 years or over and employed on a full-time,
  part-time or casual basis (including those who are working in Australia
  temporarily)
  
• aged under 18 years and work more than 30 hours in a
  week. 

The current SG law requires you to pay employees a minimum of 12% of their ordinary time earnings (OTE). This rate is scheduled to gradually increase to 12% by 1 July 2025. If your employees are covered by an award or employment agreement that specifies a higher super contribution than 12%, you must pay the higher amount.

You’re required to make super payments at least quarterly, although you can make them monthly or even fortnightly if you find that easier. It's important, however, to check any contractual obligations you may have with your super fund, awards or contracts or employment, to ensure your super contributions are paid on time.

For the latest information about SG rates and ordinary time earnings, call the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) on 13 10 20 or visit ato.gov.au. You can also use this ATO tool to work out if an employee is eligible for SG contributions. 

Self-employed? You don’t need to pay the Superannuation Guarantee – but contributing to your super may still be a smart choice.

Once your employee provides you with their tax file number (TFN), it’s important to pass it on to Hostplus when you begin to make SG contributions. Failing to do so may result in a fine from the ATO.

If your employee doesn’t have a TFN attached to their super, they’ll be taxed an additional 32% (on top of the standard 15% tax on employer contributions) on ‘no TFN’ contributions paid into the fund on their behalf. It also means they can’t make personal super contributions to the fund.

Under the government’s SuperStream standards, you need to make your employees’ super payments through a compliant online system of your choice.

We offer employers a simple online payment solution called QuickSuper. It’s fully compliant, accepts the standard SuperStream Alternative File Format (SAFF), and is available to Hostplus employers for free. 

You typically need to pay super contributions every quarter. Some employers find it’s easiest to pay monthly instead – choose the option that works for you and your business. How frequently you make super payments may also depend on whether any of your employees are covered by an award or employment agreement, as some agreements may specify alternative payment periods.

For most employees, these are the SG contribution due dates:

Introducing 'payday super'

The Australian Government announced that from 1 July 2026, employers will be required to pay their employees’ SG contributions at the same time as their salary and wages. These contributions must be received by their employees’ super fund within 7 days after payday. Hostplus will continue to support our valued employers to understand and implement these changes as more details become available. 

If your Superannuation Guarantee (SG) contributions are late, you may need to pay the Superannuation Guarantee Charge. This is made up of three parts:

• the SG payment
• an administration charge of $20 per employee per
  quarter
• an interest charge of 10% p.a. on any SG shortfall amounts imposed by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).

If you have questions about the SG charge, call the ATO on 13 10 20 or visit ato.gov.au. 

Single Touch Payroll (STP) requirements mean that you need to electronically submit payroll information to the ATO at the same time that you make payments to your employees. This includes details about super contributions.

You also need to report any contributions you make on your employees’ behalf that are outside of standard SG contributions, including salary sacrifice and additional employer contributions. These are known as reportable employer superannuation contributions (RESC) and are reported on your employees’ annual payment summary.

If you don’t need to make a payment for a particular period – for example, you don’t have any eligible employees – contact us to let us know. We’ll add a note to your account (known as a ‘Nil Advice’) so we know not to expect a payment for that period.

If your business is seasonal, or you’re taking a break and not keeping any employees, you can suspend your employer account for up to 12 months. If you get back up and running at any time during the 12 months, just submit your payment and get in touch to reactivate your account. Suspended accounts reactivate automatically after 12 months. 

If you've sold or closed your business, or no longer have employees, you can permanently close your account. If you’d like to make payments to Hostplus again in the future, you’ll need to re-join. 

We’re here to support you and your employees every step of the way. We’ve got more than 30 years’ experience helping businesses just like yours understand and implement their super obligations, so you can concentrate on business as usual.

For general enquiries and questions about joining Hostplus, registering online or our Clearing House solution QuickSuper, please contact our Employer Services Team.

If you’re not a registered Hostplus employer yet, and need additional help or want to know more about how Hostplus can support you and your staff, contact our New Business team. From onboarding to completion, they’re experts at guiding you through the set-up process and can answer any questions you might have.