xero user

Super payment due dates

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You must pay super for eligible employees

An employee’s fund must receive their super payments on or before the quarterly super due dates.

To avoid the super guarantee charge (SGC), payments must be received by the employee’s fund on or before the quarterly super due dates.

Payments can be made at least 4 times a year. This applies from the day employees start working for you. Payment due dates occur quarterly.

Quarterly super payment due dates

 
Quarter Period Payment due date
1 1 July – 30 September 28 October
2 1 October – 31 December 28 January
3 1 January – 31 March 28 April
4 1 April – 30 June 28 July

When a super due date falls on a weekend or public holiday, your contribution must be received by the fund on or before the next business day.

You can also make payments more frequently than quarterly, for example fortnightly or monthly. If you do, ensure you pay your total super guarantee (SG) contribution for the quarter by the due date.

If you have missed the quarterly payment due date or made late super payments, you will need to lodge a SGC statement and pay the SGC to us. The missed or late super payments are no longer tax deductible.

Clearing houses

A clearing house distributes super contributions to your employees’ funds on your behalf.

SG payments made to a commercial clearing house before the SG due date may not reach the super fund until after the due date.

Your employee’s super contribution is only considered ‘paid’ on the date it’s received by the super fund. Not the date it’s received by the clearing house.

Note: It’s important that you leave enough time for your SG payments to reach the super fund and allow for their processing timeframes.

However, if you use the ATO’s Small Business Superannuation Clearing House, payments may be considered ‘paid’ on the date they’re received.

Check the processing timeframes required by your clearing house to ensure your payments will be processed before the payment due dates.

Related reading

Changes in the Small Business Super Clearing House

Due date considerations

Some super funds, awards and contracts require you to pay super more regularly than quarterly.

Meeting the SG contribution payment dates does not ensure compliance with other super funds, awards and contracts.

You should check the contractual obligations you have with your super fund, award or contract to ensure super contributions are paid on time.

Need payroll help for your business?

Notch Above Bookkeeping are Certified Xero bookkeepers offering agreed-price monthly fees so you know exactly where you stand. No hidden extras and no ticking clock. Browse our range of Xero payroll services and get in touch on 1300 015 130 to discuss the plan which best suits the needs of your business.

Source: ATO

july written in sand

Changes to your pay as you go withholding cycle

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Your pay as you go (PAYG) withholding cycle may change from 1 July

The ATO reviews PAYG withholding cycles every year, basing reviews on a business’s annual withholding amount.

The ATO writes to employers and tax agents in April to advise if a PAYG withholding cycle is changing. If affected, your reporting and paying obligations will change from 1 July.

Your new withholding reporting and payment cycle will be based on the amount you withheld and reported under your Australian Business Number (ABN) in all branches in 2022-23.

Medium withholders

You’re classified as a medium withholder if you withheld from $25,001 up to $1 million.

You’ll need to:

  • report your PAYG withholding amounts on your activity statement monthly
  • pay by the monthly due date
  • check that your stated withholding matches the amounts you reported using Single Touch Payroll (STP).

Large withholders

You’re classified as a large withholder if you withheld more than $1 million. You’ll get a new Payment Reference Number (PRN) to quote when you pay on the set payment dates.

You’re not required to report PAYG withholding on your activity statement. You should still reconcile your reported STP and paid amounts.

Changing your withholding reporting and payment cycle

You’ll need to make the changes to your payroll software before 1 July, to align your withholding reporting payments with the new due dates.

You can ask to stay on your existing cycle if you estimate your 2024-25 PAYG withholding amount will be less than the relevant threshold.

To do this, submit a completed Request to review ATO initiated PAYG withholding cycle change form within 21 days of receiving an ATO letter. Provide the reason for your request. This should include your change in circumstances and the estimated amount you expect to withhold in 2024-25.

Need payroll help for your business?

Notch Above Bookkeeping are Certified Xero bookkeepers offering agreed-price monthly fees so you know exactly where you stand. No hidden extras and no ticking clock. Browse our range of Xero payroll services and get in touch on 1300 015 130 to discuss the plan which best suits the needs of your business.

For more information, visit ATO annual review of PAYG withholding cycles and review your record-keeping practices.

Source: ATO

A Look into Xero Invoicing Updates

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Unlocking Enhanced Flexibility and Functionality

Xero has announced that they will be retiring the older version of their invoicing product ‘classic invoicing’ on 2 September 2024.

Xero teams are busy building a new invoicing product that is going to give users more flexibility and customisation in the future, with better checkout experiences and unlimited payment methods.

Building new features you love

There are so many great ideas about what invoicing features we’d like to see in Xero. Unfortunately, they can’t be rolled out in classic invoicing because of the limitations faced with the older technology (think of it like trying to plug an electric charger into a classic car).

The new invoicing solution is a flexible and scalable solution that’s built on the latest technology, so Xero can build the features you need now and in the future.  Some of the features being worked on at the moment include:

  • adding multiple delivery addresses on an invoice
  • requesting partial payments and deposits via invoicing
  • more customisation of invoicing templates and on repeating invoices
  • improved control and smarter scheduling of reminders
  • easier statement creation and statement payment capability.

The changes made so far (and what’s next)

In addition to this list of features exclusive to new invoicing, there are a number of features from classic invoicing that Xero is planning to bring across to the new version, many of which will be available before September.

So far, they have already introduced the following improvements to new invoicing:

  • Copy information from invoices to quotes
  • Option to ‘Create another invoice’ once an invoice is approved
  • Add ‘Reference’ when adding a payment without an extra click
  • Option to ‘Send receipt’ after a payment is added to an invoice
  • Quickly create and save a contact on the fly without extra clicks
  • View item code on the ‘View invoice’ page
  • Paste numbers with commas or dollar signs into line items
  • Delete line items in just one click.

Many of these changes are in response to feedback about the design and usability of new invoicing, and development teams are working hard to make sure these will improve processes and workflows.

There is plenty of time to keep exploring new invoicing, as new functionality is rolled out. Remember, you can keep switching between the two versions until classic invoicing is retired on 2 September 2024.

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manufacturing

CSIRO ‘Innovate to Grow’ program

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Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO, is inviting small to medium enterprises (SMEs) working on advanced manufacturing solutions to apply for a self-paced, 10-week, online program that can help them turn an idea into an R&D opportunity.
Innovate to Grow: Advanced Manufacturing is open to SMEs working in the following sub-sectors:

  • Robotics
  • Additive manufacturing
  • Advanced materials and processes
  • Mechatronics design and engineering
  • Energy storage and battery technology
  • Sensing and detecting technologies
  • Natural products manufacturing
  • Biomedical manufacturing

Learn more and apply for the Innovate to Grow: Advanced Manufacturing program or discover more programs for SMEs.

Applications close on 12 May 2024.

‘Innovate to Grow’ was launched in 2020, and in just four years the free program has equipped over 500 SMEs with the knowledge and tools required to progress their research.

CSIRO recently announced a $20 million investment to provide SMEs with greater access to vital research and development (R&D) opportunities to accelerate their growth.

The funding will support an additional 600 SMEs through its Innovate to Grow program, kicking off with its Advanced Manufacturing cohort.

Source: CSIRO News