Posted on May 17, 2026 by admin
One of the biggest changes to hit Australian payroll in a generation is now less than two months away. From 1 July 2026, employers must pay superannuation contributions on payday — and it must land in the bank account of the Super Fund within seven business days of each wage payment — rather than quarterly. If your payroll systems, processes, and cash flow planning are not ready, the consequences can be significant.
What is changing and why it matters
Under the current rules, employers have been able to accumulate super obligations and pay them quarterly. Under Payday Super, that buffer disappears. Every time you run payroll — whether weekly, fortnightly, or monthly — a super payment must follow within seven business days. The ATO will have real-time data on whether contributions have been made on time through Single Touch Payroll reporting, making non-compliance much easier to detect than under the old system.
The new system also changes how the Superannuation Guarantee Charge works for late payments. The revised charge is designed to be more punitive than before, removing the incentive some employers had to delay payments and simply pay the charge instead. Getting compliant from day one is the right approach.
Check your payroll software
The most important first step is confirming that your payroll software is ready for Payday Super. Most of the major Australian payroll platforms — including Xero Payroll and MYOB — have been working on updates to support the new rules. Log in to your provider’s portal or contact their support team to confirm their Payday Super functionality is in place and that your system is configured correctly. Do not assume the software will handle everything automatically — verify it.
Review your cash flow
Paying super on payday rather than quarterly has a real cash flow impact, particularly for businesses that have been accustomed to holding that money for up to three months. A business with a $100,000 monthly wage bill at 12% super has been deferring roughly $36,000 per quarter. Under Payday Super, those funds need to leave your account much sooner. Review your working capital position now to ensure you can comfortably meet the new payment cadence from July without disrupting your operating cash flow.
Confirm employee fund details
Take the time before July to confirm that you have valid superannuation fund details for all employees — including the correct fund name, ABN, and unique superannuation identifier. Review any employees who have not provided fund details and may be defaulting to your nominated default fund. Where employees are in the process of consolidating super accounts, confirm where contributions should be directed before the new system goes live.
Your pre-July checklist
In summary: confirm your payroll software is Payday Super ready, review your cash flow and working capital, update employee fund details, check that your bank accounts are set up for faster super payments, and brief your bookkeeper or payroll manager on the new requirements. The transition will be smoother for businesses that prepare now rather than scrambling after 1 July.
Payday Super is a significant compliance change with real cash flow implications. If you would like help reviewing your payroll setup or understanding your obligations under the new rules, contact us now — there is limited time before 1 July.
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Posted on June 16, 2026 by admin
With the end of the financial year just weeks away, most business owners are heads-down managing day-to-day operations. But this is precisely the time to pause and take stock of how your business is actually performing — not just how it feels. A structured review of your key financial metrics now gives you the chance to fix problems, capture opportunities, and walk into the new financial year with a clear picture.
Gross profit margin
Start with your gross profit margin — the percentage of revenue left after you subtract the direct cost of delivering your product or service. If your margin is tracking below budget or below where it was at this point last year, something has changed. Either your prices haven’t kept up with rising input costs, your cost of goods has crept up without you noticing, or your sales mix has shifted toward lower-margin work. Any of these is worth investigating before they become a bigger problem in the new financial year.
Debtor days and cash flow
How long are your customers actually taking to pay you? Debtor days — the average number of days between issuing an invoice and receiving payment — is one of the clearest signals of cash flow health. If your debtor days have stretched out compared to the same period last year, you may have a growing pile of unpaid invoices quietly eroding your working capital. Now is a good time to identify your slow payers, review your payment terms, and consider whether your invoicing and follow-up process needs tightening. On the other side, check your creditor days too — are you paying your suppliers on time, or are there outstanding bills building up?
Revenue vs forecast and cash in the bank
Pull your year-to-date revenue and compare it directly against what you planned at the start of the year. If you’re tracking behind, ask why — is it a market issue, a pricing issue, or a specific client or product line underperforming? If you’re tracking ahead, consider whether your cost base has scaled appropriately, or whether there’s an opportunity to invest before 30 June. Then look at your bank balance right now compared to this time last year. Cash is the ultimate reality check — it doesn’t lie the way profit figures sometimes can.
End-of-year tax planning and write-offs
Before 30 June, this is also the window to consider whether there are any write-offs you should be taking — bad debts you’ve been holding onto, obsolete stock, or assets that are no longer in use. It’s also worth reviewing whether there are any asset purchases or prepayments that make sense to bring forward into this financial year. These decisions are worth running past your accountant rather than making on the fly — the tax implications vary depending on your business structure and current-year income.
The difference between planning and reacting
Businesses that review their numbers regularly — not just at tax time — consistently make better decisions. The metrics above aren’t just housekeeping; they’re the early warning system that tells you whether your business is on track or quietly drifting off course. Taking an hour now to work through these figures is one of the most valuable things you can do before the new financial year begins.
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