How much superannuation should my employer pay?
Short answer
12 per cent of your ordinary time earnings since 1 July 2025, paid on top of your wage into a fund of your choosing, at least quarterly. It applies to most employees including casuals, with no minimum monthly earnings threshold. Unpaid super is a debt recoverable through the ATO.
Verified · 4 cited sources
The superannuation guarantee rate reached 12 per cent on 1 July 2025, the final step of a legislated schedule that raised it from 9 per cent over more than a decade. It is calculated on ordinary time earnings, which means your normal hours' pay including most allowances and paid leave, but generally excluding overtime.
It is paid in addition to your wage, not deducted from it. The old rule excluding employees earning less than A$450 a month was abolished on 1 July 2022, so most casual and part-time workers are now covered. Employees under 18 must work more than 30 hours in a week to be eligible.
You choose the fund. Your employer must give you a standard choice form; if you do not choose, they must ask the ATO for your existing 'stapled' fund and only use their default if you have none.
Contributions must be made at least quarterly, and reforms to require payment at the same time as wages have been legislated. Your payslip must show the amount and the fund — but a payslip showing an accrued amount is not proof it was actually paid, so cross-check against your fund statement or your myGov super account.
If super has not been paid, raise it with the employer in writing, then lodge an unpaid super enquiry with the ATO, which has recovery powers. There is no time limit on reporting it.
- 12 per cent of ordinary time earnings since 1 July 2025
- Paid on top of wages, not deducted from them
- Applies to casuals; the A$450 monthly threshold was abolished in 2022
- Paid at least quarterly into a fund you choose
- Cross-check your fund statement — a payslip is not proof of payment
Sources & provenance
Facts verified
- 1.Super guarantee OfficialAustralian Taxation OfficeUsed for: 12 per cent rate from 1 July 2025
- 2.Work out if you have to pay super OfficialAustralian Taxation OfficeUsed for: Eligibility, removal of the A$450 threshold and the under-18 rule
- 3.Unpaid super OfficialAustralian Taxation OfficeUsed for: How to report and recover unpaid superannuation
- 4.Pay slips OfficialFair Work OmbudsmanUsed for: Requirement to show superannuation and fund details
Rates, eligibility and recovery processes come from the ATO and Fair Work Ombudsman as cited. The advice to cross-check a payslip against a fund statement, because an accrued figure on a payslip is not proof of payment, is our own practical emphasis rather than a sourced statement. Contribution rules and payment timing are subject to legislated change.
Facts on this page are taken from the sources listed above — Australian government departments, regulators, statutory bodies and official statistical releases. Comparisons, judgements and "which option suits whom" conclusions are AI-assisted analysis written over those sources; they are marked in the text and listed as an AI-analysis entry in the sources, not attributed to any authority. Rates, thresholds, fees and processing times change, often at the start of a financial year; figures are current as at the review date shown and should be confirmed with the responsible agency before you rely on them for money or legal decisions.