What changes are happening in STP for Payday Super?

When do I need to start reporting Qualifying Earnings in STP?

From 1 July 2026 all employers will use qualifying earnings (QE) as the base to calculate SG amounts (replacing OTE). From 1 July 2026, employers will be required each payday through their Single Touch Payroll (STP) to report year-to-date amounts for:

• QE for each employee, and
• Super Liability for that employee.
• RESC (Reportable Employer Superannuation Contribution) continues to be permissible.

What STP changes are SuperChoice making? 

As an Employer, what should I do?

• Review the helpful ATO Payday Super Qualifying Earnings guide
• Your digital service provider will let you know when your software is ready to report QE. You can check with them to find out when their STP product will be updated. 
• In mid/late May, SuperChoice will be enhancing the Portal screens to display “Qualifying Earnings YTD $” column on the “Tax & Super” tab.  
• Should an Employer wish to test prior to the above enhancement, you can upload your STP file including the QE amount.  Although not displayed, the QE amount will be validated, and any uploaded and submitted data will be passed to the ATO test environment.  
• Important – Any testing with QE needs to be completed with an STP payroll date after 30th June 2026. 
• If you need access to the SuperChoice Test Portal environment, please contact your usual Customer Support contact.
• You can also review your STP reporting. Make sure you’re lodging on time; and that your pay codes and employee details are correct. 

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As a DSP (Payroll Provider), what should I do?

Familiarise yourself with the below ATO artifacts:  

• Payday Super STP Reporting Changes Webinar.pdf
• External DSP Test Guide -STP PDS v1.0.pdf
• Explaining Qualifying Earnings

SuperChoice Test Environment – Ready for DSP Testing

• The SuperChoice test environment is ready for DSPs to complete the ATO STP Qualified Earning Conformance testing. Please note – The display of “Qualifying Earnings YTD $” column on the “Tax & Super” tab is pending. Although not displayed, any uploaded QE values will be passed to the ATO test environment. 
• The ATO has published on the Online Services for DSPs the DSP Test Guide: Qualifying Earnings (QE) for STP. This covers in detail the steps that DSPs must complete.
• As a DSP, if you need access to the SuperChoice Test environment, please contact [e-mail].

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ATO External Vendor Testing Environment (EVTE)

• The SuperChoice test environment is connected to the ATO EVTE for any submissions made via the STP API or STP Portal.
• When testing with the ATO you will need to ensure you submit with your DSP’s unique 5-digit EVTE Product ID (which was updated when testing STP v2).
• The ATO EVTE temporarily supports “future dated” Update submissions until 19th May 2026. After this date the ATO is preparing for their Production release and from that date, all Update submissions must include the current date.