Rethinking Pay Cycles and PayDay Super

Executive Summary
> Modern payroll systems can streamline the administrative processes that come with Payday Super.

> Payday Super means you must pay superannuation to Australian employees at the same time as their qualified earnings.

> CashD allows for real-time remuneration, so your team can access pay more frequently without affecting the timeline of superannuation payments.

Payday Super represents a significant shift to Australian payroll legislation and compliance. Superannuation obligations that were previously settled quarterly must now be paid at the same time as normal pay runs. For organisations running weekly or fortnightly payrolls, this can raise concerns about increased administrative effort and perceived pressure on working capital.

Modern payroll platforms and real‑time remuneration solutions allow businesses to rethink how payroll is structured, without increasing administrative burden or compromising employee expectations.

What is Payday Super?

Payday Super is new legislation that changes the way Australian employers pay Super. From 1 July 2026, superannuation must be paid at the same time as wages and salaries. These contributions must also reach the employee’s member super fund account within 7 business days of payment. This turnaround is extremely fast, especially compared to paying superannuation quarterly.

After these changes come into effect, your payroll system must be able to:

• Calculate Qualifying Earnings (QE), instead of Ordinary Time Earnings (OTE). This includes payment of ordinary hours of work, commissions, salary sacrifice amounts, and earnings paid under the expanded definition of an employee (e.g. labour-based contractors).
• Report both QE and Super Liability in Single Touch Payroll (STP).
• Support faster payments by streamlining approval timing and payment processes, including SuperStream compliance.

It is also important to understand that the ATO will no longer support manual reporting of Foreign Earnings Income (FEI). If your current system does not support FEI reporting and does not support a manual workaround, you should move to a new payroll system.

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Challenges Caused by Payday Super

For most businesses, the Payday Super changes create new short-term challenges that must be addressed.

Increased payroll administration

Paying superannuation with each pay run increases the frequency of transactions and compliance events. Without the right systems in place, this can lead to:

• Additional payroll processing effort
• Elevated compliance risk
• Greater reliance on manual checks and reconciliations

This is particularly relevant for larger, more complex organisations running multiple pay cycles across different workforce groups.

Compliance pressure

Payday Super introduces a tighter compliance framework, with consequences for delays or missed obligations. The accelerated compliance cadence can feel like it places additional pressure on your payroll team, especially where controls and visibility are limited.

Your process must be flexible to manage errors and bounce backs from super clearing houses in the case that a mistake was made. Part of meeting compliance is that the superannuation payment reaches the correct account within 7 days, not that you paid into the clearing house within 7 days.

Workforce expectations around pay timing

Your team members plan their lives around when they are paid. Weekly and fortnightly pay cycles support budgeting for rent, bills, fuel and other ongoing expenses. However, if your payroll processes are suffering from an increased burden from Payday Super, then maintaining these pay cycles may not be the best approach.

Some businesses may consider shifting pay runs to monthly cycles to simplify Payday Super compliance. However, this can negatively affect employee satisfaction and retention as you disrupt one of the fundamental aspects of the employer-employee relationship.

Software to support your compliance requirements

One of the most significant risk factors under Payday Super is relying on payroll systems that were not designed for real‑time compliance. Legacy or lightly integrated payroll software can struggle to support:

• Automated superannuation calculations aligned with each pay run
• Accurate and timely ATO reporting
• Multiple pay cycles and pay groups operating concurrently
• Clear audit trails and compliance visibility

Without software that embeds compliance into payroll processes, organisations may experience increased workload, higher risk, and reduced confidence in their payroll outcomes. This is where modern, cloud-based, enterprise-grade payroll platforms play a critical role in reducing compliance pressure and supporting sustainable payroll operations.

MYOB Acumatica Payroll and Payday Super

MYOB Acumatica Payroll is well-suited to supporting Payday Super compliance for larger, more complex organisations. The latest version is fully compliant with Payday Super requirements.

In addition to its compliance support, MYOB Acumatica Payroll has key capabilities that include:

• Flexible pay frequencies and pay groups, allowing specific team cohorts to be paid on different schedules.
• An online tax engine that is maintained and updated by MYOB, so you are always using the latest tax rates and thresholds without manual updates.
• Amazon Web Services (AWS) managed cloud environment is secure and stable, plus MYOB Acumatica Payroll supports two-factor authentication (2FA) and Single Sign-On for enhanced protection.
• Multi-entity payroll support, to securely pay every team member across the entire group organisation from one system.

• Automatic allocation of payroll expenses and costs to relevant projects to improve billing efficiency.
• Employee Self-Service that allows your team to update personal details and apply for leave. Managers can approve these requests from anywhere.
• Advanced payroll software reporting, transaction history and audit tracking.
• End of Year Payroll functions to streamline your end-of-year processes.
• Optional workforce management functionality for rostering, time capture, and timesheets.

MYOB Acumatica Payroll is the native payroll module of the MYOB Acumatica ERP platform, the number 1 ERP system in Australia and New Zealand. MYOB Acumatica is the only platform available to ANZ midmarket organisations that combines ERP Finance, Payroll, and Workforce Management in one integrated system.

Offering flexible pay cycles and consistent super payments

Payday Super changes create the opportunity to add increased flexibility to how you pay your staff. There is more to payroll than getting paid; it is the connection to your team and a key part of your relationship. You should strive to make payroll and the administration that comes with it a positive experience for everyone involved.

For example, with the right technology, businesses can formally manage payroll and superannuation payments on a monthly cycle while supporting employees who prefer more frequent access to their earnings. Employees can elect to receive funds weekly, fortnightly, or as needed without payroll teams running additional pay cycles or compromising Payday Super compliance.

CashD

CashD is a real‑time remuneration platform that enables employees to access earnings they have already worked for, without loans, interest, or employer‑funded advances. It is an Earned Wage Access (EWA) and Real-Time Remuneration (RTR) platform. It allows your team to access funds they have already earned within their payroll period, without requiring loans, interest, or repayment cycles. CashD is a strictly B2B financial wellness service giving the employees flexibility around how and when they can access their earned wages.

When integrated with MYOB Acumatica Payroll, CashD operates without adding workload for payroll teams. Pay run data, superannuation calculations, and earnings information remain accurate and current, ensuring the correct reporting and payments are made to both employees and the ATO.

Key benefits include:

• Real‑time pay access for employees without additional pay runs or super payments.
• No manual intervention by payroll staff.
• Accurate superannuation and earnings data are maintained in MYOB Acumatica Payroll.
• Improved employee financial well-being and workplace satisfaction.

Next Steps

The Kilimanjaro Consulting team can help your organisation support compliance and payroll administration around Payday Super changes, as well as suggest new strategies to improve efficiency.

To discuss how Payday Super, MYOB Acumatica Payroll and CashD may apply to your organisation, contact the Kilimanjaro Consulting team at sales@kilimanjaro-consulting.com or call 1300 857 464 (AU) or 0800 436 774 (NZ).