SUPERANNUATION

Ask Paul: My boss hasn't paid my super since last year

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Dear Paul,

How often does my employer need to pay my superannuation? I am on a temporary visa and my work has not paid my superannuation since early last year.

I don't want to cause trouble for anyone, but my Australian friends say my boss really should be paying my superannuation. Thank you. - Binh

ask paul clitheroe my boss isn't paying my superannuation

Yow, this is not good, Binh. In fact, it is totally outrageous.

Super must be paid every three months into the employee's nominated account. From 2026 this will be every payday.

There is absolutely no excuse your employer can use not to pay your super.

I appreciate that you are on a temporary visa, but it concerns me your employer may be using this as an opportunity to not pay your super. Your employer is liable to pay a superannuation charge of the shortfall amount, plus interest of 10% and an administration fee.

From here you can take a couple of steps.

A lot depends on your relationship with your employer. You could raise this with them.

A formal step you can take is to use the ATO online tool to inform them your employer is not meeting their super guarantee obligations. The ATO will use this information to investigate your employer.

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Paul Clitheroe AM is the founder of Money and serves as the publication's editorial adviser. One of Australia's most trusted personal finance experts, Paul has spent decades helping Australians build wealth, manage debt and make smarter money decisions. He is widely known for host­ing the Money TV program and authoring best-selling personal finance books. Since launching Money in 1999, he has played a leading role in delivering practical, independent financial guidance to Australians. Paul is chair of InvestSMART Financial Services. He was the founding chair of Ecstra Foundation, a national not-for-profit focused on improving financial wellbeing, from 2018 to 2026, and led the Australian Government's Financial Literacy Board and Financial Literacy Australia from 2004 to 2019. In academia, Paul is chair in financial literacy at Macquarie University, where he is also a Professor in the School of Business and Economics. Ask Paul your money question. Due to volume, Paul cannot respond to questions posted in the comments section.
Comments
Adele Salvatori
September 14, 2023 6.23am

I'm in a super fund which I am not happy with where can I go to get advice on changing the fund? Regards Adele

Dijon Jackson
September 16, 2023 8.28am

Hi Adele, you can simply go onto any super fund & join online & then transfer the funds from your old fund to your new one. I did this and it was easy.

I went with Prime Super because they are the only member-owned industry fund & the fees were low and good returns. They also were the only website I saw that still had the names & phone numbers of their local reps. The lady I spoke to sorted it out on the spot - couldn't be happier! It was so easy that I probably didn't need assistance which is why I imagine that you can do this with any super fund. Hope that helps.

Mark Roberts
September 16, 2023 2.38am

My employer hasnt paid my Super for my full year that I've been employed with the company. Only 1 contribution of $500 was made. I went to ATO to make a complaint. My account said I was owed $3600 plus interest. ATO under-quoted me $2000 only. ATO don't seem to be taking the fraudulent side of it seriously either as my PaySlips show that Super was paid when it was t. My employer is quite vile to deal with, so best ATO handle it but now I'm not too sure if ATO will recoup all my unpaid Super.