22 June 2026 · 8 min read
Quick Answer
Sole traders and micro-businesses who used the free SBSCH should not jump to a $70/month payroll suite. The lean plan: (1) export your SBSCH records before 1 July 2026; (2) pick a low-cost compliance tool such as SAB Account AI ($9/month) that calculates super, tracks the Payday Super deadline and reports through STP; (3) confirm employee fund details; and (4) run one test pay before July. If you have no employees and only pay yourself, super is generally not compulsory for sole-trader drawings — so your main action is simply exporting any past SBSCH records.
The SBSCH closure hits sole traders and micro-businesses hardest, because they are exactly who it was built for and exactly who feels the jump from free to paid most sharply. If you have one casual, a couple of part-timers, or a family member on the books, the standard advice to "move to Xero or MYOB" means going from $0 to $50-70 a month to pay super for one or two people. That is not proportionate.
There is a leaner path. As a small employer you have the same legal obligations as a big one — 12% super on ordinary time earnings, paid within 7 days of payday under Payday Super from 1 July 2026, reported through STP — but you do not need an enterprise accounting suite to meet them. You need the cheapest tool that does the compliance correctly.
This is a deliberately short, practical plan for the smallest businesses. SAB Account AI (sabaccountai.com) is built for precisely this group: Australian sole traders and micro-employers who want correct super and Payday Super compliance from $9/month, not a full ledger they will never use.
Start by confirming who you actually owe super to. If you are a sole trader with no employees and you only draw money for yourself, super is generally not compulsory on your own drawings — sole traders are not employees of their own business, so the Super Guarantee does not apply to your personal income (though voluntary personal contributions can be smart for tax and retirement). In that case, the SBSCH closure barely affects you: your only action is to export any records of past contributions you made through it.
If you pay anyone else — a casual, a part-timer, a family member doing genuine work — you are an employer for super purposes and the full rules apply: 12% on ordinary time earnings, Payday Super''s 7-day deadline, and STP reporting. Be honest about contractor relationships too; a contractor who is really an employee in disguise is a common ATO trigger and may be owed super.
Quick check: If you only pay yourself as a sole trader, the SBSCH closure mostly means ''export your old records''. If you pay anyone else, read on.
Who you owe super to
Step 1 — Export your SBSCH transaction history now, through ATO Online Services for Business. It disappears after 1 July 2026 and you must keep super records for five years.
Step 2 — Pick a low-cost compliance tool. For one to ten employees, you want something that calculates super, flags the Payday Super deadline and reports through STP — without the cost of a full accounting suite. SAB Account AI does this from $9/month.
Step 3 — Confirm each employee''s super fund USI and member number so contributions go to the right place.
Step 4 — Run one test pay run before July to confirm the 12% calculation, the STP submission and the payment timing all work. That is it — four steps, most of which take minutes.
Keep it proportionate: One or two employees do not justify a $70/month suite. A $9/month compliance tool does the same compliance job.
The 4-step plan
You can — but for a micro-business it is usually overkill. Xero and MYOB are full double-entry accounting platforms with payroll bolted on, priced at $50-70/month. If you do not need general-ledger accounting, accounts payable, or multi-user bookkeeping, you are paying for capacity you will never touch just to pay super for one person.
The annual difference is real money for a small operator: roughly $9/month versus $70/month is over $700 a year saved. For a sole trader watching every dollar — especially one building a business on the side — that saving funds something more useful than software features you do not use. The compliance outcome is identical: correct super, on time, reported and recorded.
$700/year: That is the typical gap between a full payroll suite and a focused compliance tool for a micro-business. Same compliance, lower cost.
The cost comparison
The lean approach does not mean cutting corners — it means matching the tool to your size. As you add employees, the same tool should scale with you: still calculating 12% super, still tracking the Payday Super deadline, still reporting through STP, just for more people. The goal is to never overpay for software ahead of your actual needs, while never under-delivering on compliance.
SAB Account AI is built around that principle for the Australian market: PAYG withholding, super, BAS, payslips and STP, with an AI chat that answers compliance questions in plain English — so a sole trader without a bookkeeper can still get it right. When the SBSCH closes, the smallest businesses do not need the biggest tools; they need the right one.
Built for your size: SAB Account AI (sabaccountai.com) gives sole traders and micro-employers full Payday Super compliance from $9/month — and scales as you grow.
Scaling without overspending
SAB Account AI (sabaccountai.com) is built for sole traders and micro-businesses — full Payday Super compliance from $9/month, not a $70/month suite you do not need. Try it before the SBSCH closes.
SAB Account AI — ATO-compliant invoicing and payslips for Australian small businesses. From $9/mo.
Start free trialGenerally no. A sole trader is not an employee of their own business, so the Super Guarantee does not apply to your own drawings, though voluntary personal contributions can be tax-effective. If you pay employees, the full super rules apply.
A low-cost compliance tool such as SAB Account AI ($9/month) that calculates super, tracks the Payday Super deadline and reports through STP, rather than a full payroll suite costing $50-70/month.
No. Full accounting suites are overkill for one or two employees. A focused tool delivers the same compliance — correct super, on time, reported and recorded — for far less.
Export your SBSCH records, choose a low-cost replacement that supports STP and 7-day payment, confirm employee fund details, and run one test pay run before 1 July 2026.
Roughly $700 a year — the difference between a ~$9/month compliance tool and a ~$70/month payroll suite — for the same compliance outcome.