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ATO action to reduce the gap

How we are reducing non-compliance and improving willing participation by employers in the super guarantee system.

Last updated 16 February 2025

Improving super guarantee compliance

We are committed to actively reducing non-compliance and improving willing participation by employers in the super guarantee system. We focus on reducing the super guarantee gap in the following  ways.

Helping employers get it right

We offer support to make it as easy as possible for employers to understand and comply with their super guarantee obligations. This includes phone calls, webinars, website content, printed publications, social media posts and assistance on ATO communityExternal Link.

At our tax professional open forums held across Australia, we focus on the importance of employers complying with their super guarantee requirements. We remind employers about SG due dates and the consequences of not meeting their quarterly payment and reporting obligations.

The Small Business Superannuation Clearing House (SBSCH) is a free service employers can use to help pay super. However, the SBSCH service will be closed from 1 July 2026 as part of the Payday superannuation reform. The recent government announcement provides more detail about the implementation of Payday superExternal Link.

Employers can access free education and services through the guide to starting a businessExternal Link.

Our online tools to help employers get it right include:

We also have tools to help small businesses and their advisers better understand how to manage your business cash flow.

Helping employees understand their entitlements

Our activities are not limited to employers. We provide online super tools to make it easier for employees to understand and report unpaid super guarantee. We also give employees visibility of contributions made to their super funds through ATO online services.

Our tools for employees include:

Correcting employers who don't get it right

We take the late and non-payment of super guarantee seriously and have a focused compliance program. Our program provides enforcement action to improve employer behaviour and recover unpaid super guarantee.

We address non-compliance through:

  • proactively reminding employers of their obligations including to pay on time
  • nudging employers via letters, emails and phone calls to check their obligations and lodge super guarantee charge (SGC) statements if they have not paid the full amounts on time and to the correct funds for their eligible employees
  • Undertaking reviews and audits which may result in the application of penalties.

See what employers must do if they have an overdue super guarantee payment.

Each year we publish our annual super guarantee employer compliance results to provide an overview of ATO compliance activities and employer actions regarding super guarantee obligations.

We are also working across government to support and enhance our current compliance approaches.

Identifying non-compliance

We have improved access to Single Touch Payroll and superannuation fund data to help identify employers who may not have met their super guarantee obligations, we also obtain information from:

  • unions
  • government agencies
  • other third parties, and
  • employee referrals of unpaid super

We use this information to detect non-compliance and implement preventative and corrective strategies when employers do not meet their obligations.

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