Before you hire: get an ABN, register for PAYG withholding with the ATO, understand your super guarantee obligations, and take out workers' compensation insurance with your state or territory scheme.
For each new hire: confirm employee vs contractor, collect a Tax File Number declaration, identify the award and classification, sort super (choice and stapled fund), and give the Fair Work Information Statement.
Every pay run: pay at least the award or National Minimum Wage, withhold PAYG, calculate super on qualifying earnings (12% from 1 July 2025; the base for earnings paid up to 30 June 2026 was ordinary time earnings), accrue leave, report through Single Touch Payroll, and issue a compliant payslip within one working day.
Payroll in Australia sits across three agencies: the ATO (tax withholding, super and STP reporting), the Fair Work Ombudsman (minimum pay, awards, leave and record-keeping), and your state or territory (workers' compensation). The checklist below groups every obligation by when you need it. Each item links to a full explainer.
You need an Australian Business Number to operate and to register for tax roles. If you don't have one yet, apply through the Australian Business Register before you take anyone on.
business.gov.au — hire & pay →Once you're paying employees, you must register for pay as you go (PAYG) withholding so you can hold back tax from wages and send it to the ATO. Register before your first pay day.
ATO — PAYG withholding →Know who you have to pay super for and how much. The super guarantee rate is 12% from 1 July 2025, calculated on qualifying earnings each pay period for earnings paid from 1 July 2026 (on ordinary time earnings for earnings paid up to 30 June 2026). Most employees are eligible, and many contractors count too.
Who gets super? →Workers' compensation is compulsory for employers and is run separately by each state and territory. Register with the scheme where your workers are based before they start.
business.gov.au — hire & pay →Get this right first — it drives tax, super, leave and insurance. Genuine independent contractors are treated differently, but calling someone a contractor doesn't make them one; the working relationship decides.
Fair Work — hiring employees →Work out which modern award covers the role and the correct classification level. This sets the minimum pay rate, penalties and allowances you must apply.
Read →Offer the employee choice of fund. If they don't choose, request their stapled fund from the ATO before defaulting them into your fund.
Read →Give every new employee the Fair Work Information Statement before, or as soon as possible after, they start. Casuals also get the Casual Employment Information Statement.
Fair Work — information statement →Every pay must be at least the applicable award rate, or the National Minimum Wage where no award applies, plus any penalties, loadings and allowances the award requires.
Read →Withhold income tax from each payment using the ATO tax tables and the employee's TFN declaration, then report and pay it to the ATO through your activity statement cycle.
ATO — PAYG withholding →Calculate the super guarantee (12% from 1 July 2025) on qualifying earnings — generally not on overtime. Under Payday Super the contribution goes out with the pay run, so work it out as part of every run.
Read →Annual and personal/carer's leave accrue on the employee's ordinary hours of work under the NES. Overtime hours generally don't add to the leave balance.
Overtime, leave & super →Report wages, tax and super to the ATO on or before each pay day through Single Touch Payroll (STP Phase 2). It replaces separate end-of-year reporting for most employers.
Read →Give each employee a payslip within one working day of being paid, with the details Fair Work requires — pay rate, gross and net, tax withheld and super.
Read →Under Payday Super, super guarantee for earnings paid from 1 July 2026 must be paid at the same time as salary and wages — each payday, not quarterly. The old quarterly rule (fund receipt by the 28th after each quarter) applies only to earnings paid up to 30 June 2026, with the final quarterly deadline on 28 July 2026.
Who gets super? →Keep pay, hours, leave and super records for seven years, legible and in English. Fair Work inspectors can request them, and gaps carry penalties.
Read →Make an STP finalisation declaration for each employee by 14 July each year so their income statement is marked "Tax ready" in ATO online services.
Read →Work top to bottom the first time, then treat the "every pay run" and "ongoing" groups as your repeating routine. The two deadlines worth pinning to the wall are super out with every payday (Payday Super, for earnings paid from 1 July 2026 — the final quarterly deadline, for earnings paid up to 30 June 2026, is 28 July 2026) and STP finalisation by 14 July.
Getting employee vs contractor wrong is the error that quietly unwinds the whole list — it changes tax, super, leave and insurance at once. When it's genuinely unclear, check the Fair Work and ATO guidance, or get advice, before the first pay run rather than after.
Quick answers
How often do I pay super?
Each payday. Under Payday Super, super guarantee for earnings paid from 1 July 2026 must be paid at the same time as salary and wages. The old quarterly rule — contributions reaching the employee's fund by the 28th day after the end of each quarter — applies only to earnings paid up to 30 June 2026, with the final quarterly deadline on 28 July 2026.
How long must I keep payroll records?
Seven years. Under the Fair Work Act, pay, hours, leave and super records must be kept for seven years, legible, in English and readily available for inspection.
Do I need workers' compensation insurance?
Yes — it's compulsory for employers. Workers' compensation is administered by each state and territory scheme, so register with the one that covers where your workers are based.
Every item on this list, automated
Ledra Pay handles the repeating parts of this checklist for you — PAYG withholding, super on qualifying earnings paid each payday, award-correct minimum pay, leave accrual, STP Phase 2 reporting and compliant payslips — with an auditable evidence trail behind every figure. Set it up once and the pay-run and ongoing steps run themselves.
See Australian payroll →Government sources
- Fair Work Ombudsman — Hiring employees (steps to take on before hiring).
- Fair Work Ombudsman — Fair Work Information Statement (give to every new employee).
- Australian Taxation Office — Super for employers (work out if you have to pay super; 12% from 1 July 2025; Payday Super from 1 July 2026).
- Australian Taxation Office — What payments are qualifying earnings (the SG base for earnings paid from 1 July 2026).
- Australian Taxation Office — Payday superannuation (law status; per-payday SG from 1 July 2026).
- Australian Taxation Office — PAYG withholding (registering and withholding tax).
- Australian Taxation Office — Single Touch Payroll (reporting each pay day; annual finalisation).
- business.gov.au — Hire and pay employees (ABN, workers' compensation and payroll basics).
- Fair Work Ombudsman — Record-keeping (7-year retention of pay records).