Employee Onboarding Checklist Australia 2026 (Tax, Super & Fair Work)

Quick Answer

When onboarding a new employee in Australia you must collect a TFN declaration, set up super with a complying fund, register for Single Touch Payroll, and provide a Fair Work Information Statement before or on their first day. From 1 July 2026, super must be paid on every payday — not quarterly. Get these steps right before you process a single payslip.

Step 1 — Register as an Employer with the ATO

Before your employee works a single hour, you need to be registered as a PAYG withholding entity with the Australian Taxation Office. If you are already operating as a sole trader with an ABN, you are not automatically registered for PAYG withholding. You need to separately register through the ATO Business Portal or myGovID. This registration allows you to withhold tax from your employee's wages and remit it to the ATO.

You will also need to register for Single Touch Payroll (STP). Under STP Phase 2, which is now fully mandatory for all employers regardless of size, you must report every pay event — salary, PAYG withholding, and super information — to the ATO digitally on or before each payday. Manual spreadsheets and end-of-year group certificates are gone. You need STP-compliant payroll software from the very first pay run.

If you expect your total Australian wages to exceed the state payroll tax threshold, you may also need to register for payroll tax with your state revenue office. In New South Wales the 2025–26 threshold is $1.2 million annually, so most small businesses with one or two employees will sit well below it. But if you operate across states or grow quickly, check the SRO thresholds for Victoria ($900,000), Queensland ($1.3 million), and Western Australia ($1 million).

Step 2 — Collect the Right Documents from Your New Employee

On or before the first day of work, you must collect a Tax File Number (TFN) Declaration form from your employee. This is the document that tells you how much tax to withhold from their wages. If an employee does not provide a TFN within 28 days of starting, you are legally required to withhold tax at the highest marginal rate — currently 47 cents in the dollar including the Medicare Levy — until they do. The ATO form is NAT 3092 and it can be completed digitally through myGov.

You also need to provide — and get a signed acknowledgment of — the Fair Work Information Statement (FWIS). This is a legal requirement under section 125 of the Fair Work Act 2009. The document explains the National Employment Standards, modern award coverage, and workplace rights. For casual employees, you must also provide the Casual Employment Information Statement (CEIS). Both documents are free downloads from the Fair Work Ombudsman website. Failing to provide them does not void the employment contract, but it can be used as evidence of non-compliance in a Fair Work claim.

If your employee is on a temporary visa — including a student visa subclass 500 — you must sight and record their visa work conditions before they start. Under section 245AO of the Migration Act 1958, allowing an unlawful non-citizen to work, or allowing a visa holder to breach their work conditions, is a civil penalty offence for employers. Use the Department of Home Affairs Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO) system to check work rights before day one.

Step 3 — Set Up Superannuation Correctly

Every employee who earns $450 or more per month — note the ATO removed this threshold from 1 July 2022, meaning super is now owed from the very first dollar earned — must receive superannuation contributions from you. The current Superannuation Guarantee rate is 11.5% for the 2024–25 financial year and rises to 12% on 1 July 2025. If you are onboarding an employee now, budget for 12% super on top of their gross wages from 1 July 2026 onwards.

You must first check whether your new employee has a stapled super fund. Under the stapled fund rules introduced in November 2021, if your employee does not nominate a super fund, you cannot simply default them into your preferred fund. You must request their stapled fund details from the ATO via the Online Services for Business portal. Only if the ATO returns no result can you then default them into your business's default MySuper product.

This is where the July 1 deadline becomes critical for every employer reading this right now. From 1 July 2026, the Payday Super legislation requires super contributions to be paid to the employee's super fund on the same day as their wages — not at the end of the quarter. If you onboard a new employee this week and process your first pay run on or after 1 July, you must remit super on that same payday. Quarterly super payments will attract a new Superannuation Guarantee Charge. Your payroll software must be capable of same-day super from day one.

Step 4 — Determine Award Coverage and Pay Rate

Australia has 121 modern awards covering most industries and occupations. Before you set your employee's pay rate, you must check whether a modern award applies to their role. The Fair Work Ombudsman's Pay and Conditions Tool (PACT) is the fastest way to confirm this. Getting the award wrong is not a paperwork issue — underpaying an employee under their applicable award is wage theft, and penalties under the Fair Work Amendment (Protecting Worker Entitlements) Act 2023 now include criminal liability for deliberate underpayment.

If no award applies — for example, for high-earning professionals — the National Minimum Wage sets the floor. From 1 July 2026, the National Minimum Wage increases to $24.95 per hour following the Fair Work Commission's 2026 Annual Wage Review decision. The national minimum for award-covered employees increases by the same percentage across most award classifications. Check the exact rate for your employee's award classification on the Fair Work website, because casual employees also attract a 25% casual loading on top of their base rate under most awards.

Document the agreed pay rate, employment type (full-time, part-time, or casual), hours of work, and award classification in a written employment contract before the employee starts. This does not need to be a 20-page document — a clear one-page letter of engagement covering the key terms is sufficient for most small business hires. What matters is that the agreed terms are in writing and signed by both parties.

Step 5 — Set Up Payroll and Issue Compliant Payslips

Under Fair Work Act regulations, you must issue a payslip to every employee within one working day of each pay day. The payslip must include the employer's name and ABN, the employee's name, the pay period, the gross and net amount paid, any loadings or penalty rates, PAYG withholding deducted, and the super fund name and amount. Missing any of these fields is a breach of the Fair Work Regulations 2009, and the Fair Work Ombudsman actively audits payslip compliance.

Single Touch Payroll means your payroll software automatically reports wage and withholding data to the ATO on each payday. You do not send a separate report — the STP submission is built into the pay run process in compliant software. At the end of the financial year, instead of issuing paper group certificates, the ATO pre-fills your employees' income statements in their myGov accounts. Your job at EOFY is to finalise the income statements in your STP software by 14 July.

For new employers setting up payroll for the first time, the software you choose matters enormously. You need a platform that handles STP Phase 2 reporting, same-day super remittance for Payday Super from 1 July 2026, award rate updates, and compliant payslip generation in one place. SAB Account AI is built specifically for small Australian businesses with these obligations — it automates STP reporting, calculates the correct super rate, and generates Fair Work-compliant payslips without requiring a payroll degree.

Step 6 — Ongoing Obligations After Day One

Onboarding does not end after the first payslip. Within 28 days of employment starting, make sure you have lodged the employee's TFN Declaration with the ATO if it was submitted on paper, confirmed the stapled super fund result and begun contributions, and confirmed the employee's Fair Work Information Statement receipt is on file. These are the items most commonly missed in audits because they feel like admin afterthoughts once the employee is already working.

You must also keep employment records for a minimum of 7 years under the Fair Work Regulations 2009. This includes the signed contract, timesheets or records of hours worked, payslips, and records of leave balances. For payroll tax purposes, state revenue offices may request wage records going back 5 years. A simple cloud payroll system that archives every record automatically eliminates the risk of being caught without documentation during an audit.

Finally, review your employee's entitlements at key milestones. Casual employees who have worked regularly for 12 months have the right to request conversion to permanent employment under the Fair Work Act casual conversion provisions. Annual leave, personal leave, and long service leave accrue from the first day of employment for permanent staff and must be tracked accurately. Setting calendar reminders for the 3-month, 6-month, and 12-month marks helps you stay ahead of these obligations without scrambling.

SAB Account AI handles STP Phase 2 reporting, Payday Super remittance, and Fair Work-compliant payslips in one place — start your free trial today at sabaccountai.com.

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What documents must I give a new employee on their first day in Australia?

You must provide the Fair Work Information Statement to every new employee before or on their first day. Casual employees must also receive the Casual Employment Information Statement. You should also collect a completed TFN Declaration form from the employee on day one.

Do I need to pay super for a new employee from their very first pay?

Yes. The $450 per month threshold was removed on 1 July 2022, so super is owed from the first dollar earned. From 1 July 2026, under Payday Super laws, you must remit super to the employee's fund on the same day as wages — not quarterly.

What happens if a new employee does not provide their TFN?

If an employee has not provided their TFN within 28 days of starting, you must withhold tax at the highest marginal rate of 47% (including Medicare Levy) from their wages. Normal withholding resumes as soon as they submit a completed TFN Declaration.

How do I find out what award rate applies to my new employee?

Use the Fair Work Ombudsman's Pay and Conditions Tool (PACT) at fairwork.gov.au. Enter the industry, job type, and employment classification to get the correct minimum rate. Getting this wrong is a legal liability — underpayment under a modern award is a civil and potentially criminal matter.

Do I need to register for Single Touch Payroll even if I only have one employee?

Yes. STP Phase 2 is mandatory for all employers in Australia regardless of how many employees they have. You must report wages, PAYG withholding, and super information to the ATO digitally on or before each payday from the very first pay run.

Related: Payslip Requirements Australia · Casual Employee Payroll Australia · How To Pay Super Employees Australia · Payday Super 2026 · Single Touch Payroll Small Business Australia · Australian Payroll Changes 1 July 2026