Super contributions for employees

You must keep records that adequately explain your super transactions for your employees. Even if you use a clearing house to distribute super to your employees' funds, you're still responsible for keeping adequate records of super guarantee payments. 

Information your records need to show

Examples of types of records

  • How you worked out the amount of super you contributed for each employee. 
  • Factors that affect the amount of super you must contribute, such as advice you’ve received from trustees about the funds to which you contribute. 
  • Salary sacrifice amounts, including information about how they're calculated and employee's choice. 

If you fail to meet your super obligations and are liable to pay the super guarantee charge, you must also keep details of how you worked out the amounts shown in your super guarantee charge statement

 

  • Bank statement showing payment to a super fund, Retirement Savings Account (RSA) or super clearing house. 
  • Confirmation from a SuperStream compliant payroll system, super fund online system or super clearing house showing a successful payment. 
  • Receipts or other documents issued by super funds showing that you have made super contributions for employees to their chosen fund. 
  • Contribution receipts showing the date, contribution period, amount, fund and member account number for each employee. 
  • Documents that can show how you worked out the amount of super paid for each employee. 
  • Documents required to work out the super guarantee shortfall for an employee for a quarter.

How long to keep super contribution records

You need to keep super contributions records for 5 years from the date of the contribution.

Record keeping

Steps Progress

Record keeping overview

10 mins

Tasks and tips

6 mins

Starting your business records

2 mins

Digital record keeping

5 mins

Manual or paper record keeping

2 mins

Banking records

2 mins

Income records

3 mins

Accounting for private use of assets

9 mins

Motor vehicle deductions records

2 mins

Home-based business deductions records

1 mins

Other deductions records

1 mins

Stock and asset records

5 mins

GST records

1 mins

Employee records

7 mins

Car fringe benefits records

1 mins

Expense payment FBT records

2 mins

Contractor records

2 mins

Sharing economy records

1 mins

Cryptocurrency records

1 mins

Records for other taxes

5 mins

Sole trader structure records

4 mins

Partnership structure records

3 mins

Company structure records

3 mins

Trust structure records

1 mins

Changing your business structure records

1 mins

Selling or closing your business records

2 mins

Related courses

1 mins

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