Every year, 1 July brings payroll changes. This year, it's bringing three at once.
From 1 July 2026, employers will need to navigate Payday Super, a new national minimum wage, and updated SCHADS Award pay rates, all taking effect on the same date. For HR officers, payroll teams and operations managers in the care sector, that's a significant amount to have sorted before the financial year rolls over.
This article breaks down each change and what you need to do before 30 June.
From 1 July 2026, super must be paid within 7 business days of each payday. Under the current system, super can be paid quarterly, up to 28 days after the end of each quarter. That changes completely.
The total amount of super you owe doesn't change. The Super Guarantee rate stays at 12%. What changes is the timing. Super shifts from a quarterly liability to a pay-cycle cash outflow.
At the same time, the ATO Small Business Super Clearing House closes permanently on 30 June. If your business uses it to process contributions, you need a SuperStream-enabled alternative set up before then.
What to do before 1 July: Review your payroll cycle and confirm super can be processed and authorised alongside each pay run. If you're on the SBSCH, set up your alternative now. Check that your payroll system is calculating super correctly on all applicable earnings. Errors that were manageable quarterly become compliance risks every pay run.
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We ran a webinar with a guest speaker from Beam Super Clearing House covering Payday Super and super payment automation in detail. You can watch the replay here: Payday Super + Super Payment Automation
The Fair Work Commission's annual wage review decision is expected in June 2026, with new rates taking effect from 1 July.
[PLACEHOLDER: Insert new national minimum wage rate when announced, expected June 2026]
The new rate will be $[X] per hour, up from $[X] per hour.
What to do before 1 July: Check whether any of your employees are on minimum wage rates and update their pay in your payroll system before the first pay run of the new financial year. If you're using Pay Cat, updated rates are reflected in the system as soon as they're confirmed.
Updated SCHADS Award pay rates also take effect from 1 July 2026, flowing from the Fair Work Commission's annual wage review decision.
[PLACEHOLDER: Insert updated SCHADS classification pay rates when announced, expected June 2026]
For NDIS providers, home care and aged care organisations, this means reviewing pay rates across all classification levels before the new financial year. Given the complexity of SCHADS loadings, allowances and broken shift provisions, getting this right in your payroll system before 1 July, not after, is important.
What to do before 1 July: Review your SCHADS classification rates and update them in your payroll system as soon as the decision is handed down. Don't wait until the first pay run of the new financial year to make the change.
The compounding effect here is worth naming plainly. Payday Super changes how and when super is paid. The minimum wage increase changes base rates. Updated SCHADS rates affect the entire pay structure for care sector employers. All three land on the same date.
Prepared businesses will work through these as a checklist in June. Unprepared businesses will be scrambling on 1 July.
Pay Cat is payroll software built specifically for SCHADS Award compliance. We track every update to the award, and when our clients need support, they talk to real people who know their setup.
SCHADS pay rates are updated in the system as soon as they're confirmed by Fair Work. Super is calculated automatically on the correct earnings. And with Beam integrated for super payments, contributions can be submitted and tracked directly inside Pay Cat without separate clearing house steps.
If you want support reviewing your payroll setup ahead of 1 July, our team is here to help.
We help businesses simplify complex pay runs and stay 100% compliant under modern awards, all powered by Employment Hero Payroll.