SUPERANNUATION GUARANTEE, SALARY SACRIFICE AND PAYROLL TAX INTERACTIONS

Course overview

This intermediate course provides an integrated technical analysis of Superannuation Guarantee obligations in Australian payroll systems and their interaction with salary sacrifice arrangements and state payroll tax regimes. Participants examine how to correctly interpret ordinary time earnings, contribution timing rules, contractor classification exposure, and SuperStream compliance requirements. The course explores how errors in payroll configuration, salary packaging, or worker classification can trigger Superannuation Guarantee Charge liabilities, payroll tax reassessments and PAYG withholding consequences. Through applied scenarios and case-based analysis, practitioners develop structured review frameworks to ensure payroll systems align with current legislative and reporting standards.

Course objectives

Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:

Analyse and correctly apply Superannuation Guarantee legislation, including ordinary time earnings definitions and contribution timing requirements.
Evaluate salary sacrifice arrangements and ensure SG calculations are based on pre-sacrifice earnings in accordance with legislative reforms.
Assess contractor versus employee classification risks under both SG and payroll tax regimes.
Integrate payroll tax treatment of superannuation contributions into multi-state compliance frameworks.
Develop structured remediation and governance strategies to manage Superannuation Guarantee Charge exposure and director liability risk.

Learning outcomes

After completing this course, participants will be able to:

Accurately calculate SG obligations across complex remuneration structures, including allowances, bonuses and salary sacrifice arrangements.
Identify compliance failures that may give rise to Superannuation Guarantee Charge, payroll tax reassessment or PAYG withholding exposure.
Apply statutory and judicial principles to determine when contractors are deemed employees for SG purposes.
Reconcile SG accruals, SuperStream payments and STP reporting to detect systemic payroll risks.
Implement preventative compliance controls and remediation frameworks aligned with Australian regulatory expectations.

Intermediate learning for accountants, payroll managers and advisers reviewing remuneration, superannuation and state payroll tax.

Duration basis. The metadata states 4.5 hours. Confirm the duration after the currency review and any resulting revisions.

Membership body	Direct alignment and course evidence
CPA Australia	Employer superannuation and taxation. Lessons 1–2 analyse earnings, calculation bases and salary sacrifice. Lesson 3 covers state payroll tax, contractor provisions and interstate operations. Lesson 4 applies exposure analysis and remediation.
CA ANZ	Technical competence in remuneration and employer liabilities, with professional skills in integrated review. Topics 2.5 and 3.5 link payroll configuration to compliance; topics 4.5–4.7 develop correction plans and preventive controls.
IPA	A1: superannuation, taxation and regulation through calculation, salary sacrifice and payroll tax analysis. A2: problem solving and business processes through reconciliation, configuration review and remediation frameworks.

Learning evidence. Four lessons and a 20-question scenario assessment support calculations and review work. Retain remuneration calculations, contractor reviews, reconciliations and a remediation plan.

Ethics treatment. No separately timed ethics component is identified. Learning about penalties and remediation does not, by itself, quantify ethics hours.

Separate TPB relevance. Employer super and withholding content can support relevant tax/BAS services. State payroll tax learning is not automatically a TPB CPE claim; assess its connection to the services provided.

Course administration. The course presents quarterly SG deadlines and charge calculations as current, while referring to Payday Super as a future change. Label historical examples by period and update current-rule teaching before using it as a current compliance course. Payday Super commenced on 1 July 2026.